How Tiny House Magazine Started

Kent Griswold, Editor & publisher of the Tiny House Blog and the Tiny House Magazine.

Kent Griswold started the Tiny House Blog: Living Simply in Small Spaces in 2007 because he loved small spaces. His interest began with small simple cabins and the different ways in which they could be constructed. Then he stumbled across Jay Shafer’s Tumbleweed Tiny House Company website. Then, Kent started one of the first blogsThe Tiny Life is a website of practical tools for simple living. There are extensive blogs on Tiny Houses, Minimalism, and Homesteading. Tiny Life sells a small number of books on planning and buying a Tiny House, journaling, and a Clear the Clutter course. The posts are very helpful technical reviews of appliances, sheets that make changing a loft bed easier, floor plans with photographs of the finished tiny house. For example, how to select a cooking surface—how do they work, how fitting are they in different environments, how easy to use and store, and energy use. A lovely well-designed... on the new tiny house movement.

In 2013, Tiny House Blog began publishing the Tiny House Magazine, available in PDF and iOS versions.

The world’s only Digital Publication dedicated to micro, tiny, small, and otherwise non-traditional housing.

The Tiny House Blog started Tiny House Magazine in 2013.

Tiny House Magazine

Like the blog, but in greater depth, the magazine considers different types of construction, from logs to yurts to modern and unusual. It includes book reviewsThe Tiny Life is a website of practical tools for simple living. There are extensive blogs on Tiny Houses, Minimalism, and Homesteading. Tiny Life sells a small number of books on planning and buying a Tiny House, journaling, and a Clear the Clutter course. The posts are very helpful technical reviews of appliances, sheets that make changing a loft bed easier, floor plans with photographs of the finished tiny house. For example, how to select a cooking surface—how do they work, how fitting are they in different environments, how easy to use and store, and energy use. A lovely well-designed... and discusses alternate energy sources for heat and electricity. It’s the first place to look when you want to find out about materials, methods, manufacturers, and builders.

The contents of a recent issue included:

1. Tiny Home For The Holidays
How does one family celebrate Christmas and the holiday season in a tiny house? What if they have a couple of kids?

2. Tiny House 4.0
Just as a new stairway can be daunting for any carpenter, so too can a ladder for a DIY tiny/tree/shed builder.

3. Hidden Ledge Drop Down Table
DIY expert Chris Strathy shows how to make another simple addition to any small space—just in time for Christmas.

4. Living And Working The RV Lifestyle
Duties would vary from taking calls and scheduling other RVers to stay (also known as a Camp Host), stocking store shelves, using a register or credit card terminal, computer skills, etc.

5. A Little Eye Candy
The 624 square foot “Fulton” built by Wishbone Tiny Homes is a perfect example of the big ideas that can easily be found in a tiny house.

Construction Plans & Books

The website sells plans for cabins, cottages, tiny houses, and sheds. Some are detailed construction plans for $490. There are also plans for less ambitious structures for playhouses and vacation houses for ~$150.

The magazine also publishes books on building tiny houses. How to Build a Tiny House: Step by step DIY small house construction guide by Joshua Woodsman is published by Pin-up Houses. Includes over 1000 illustrations and 276 pp. The ebook is $29 and the PDF, $49.