You’ll Never Believe What this Charming Tiny Home Used to Be

Small House, Big Impact

The tiny home movement has really taken off over the last few years. And it’s no wonder why. Some families spend up to half of their income on their rent or mortgage! According to a recent report by Nerd Wallet, rising costs of living have outpaced income growth over the past 12 years. That might be why more than half of all Americans are living paycheck to paycheck and 80 percent are in debt.

Size Doesn’t Matter

For many, the solution is to live smaller. Enter the tiny home trend. Tiny living has its rewards: 68 percent of tiny house owners have no mortgage, compared to 29 percent of all U.S. homeowners. And 55 percent of tiny house dwellers have more money in savings than the average homeowner.

For context, the average American house is about 2,600 square feet. The typical tiny home? Anywhere between 100 and 400 square feet.

To save even more money, many people DIY their tiny houses from the ground up. Like grandmother Monica Smith.

Backyard Shed Turned Tiny Home

Smith transformed her 8×10 foot backyard shed into a rustic tiny home. Isn’t it adorable? The reason behind this ambitious DIY project is heartwarming.

 Tiny Home, Big Heart

Monica converted this shed into a two-story tiny house to help her family. Her daughter and 5 grandchildren lost their home. So she moved into this cozy little cabin so her family could have the bigger house.

Kitchen Conversion

Monica’s kitchen is small but mighty. It has all the functionality and space she needs to make a delicious meal: a refrigerator, pressure cooker, crock pot, water cooler and more.

Built-In Storage Space

The kitchen cupboards hold all of Monica’s essentials. It took some out-of-the-box thinking and carpentry skills to build these shelf doors with molded details. Can you believe a grandma a grandma made these herself? Incredible.  

A Charming Living Room

On the other side of the house is Monica’s living room. She infused this space with shabby chic details and photos of her grandchildren to make it feel like home. The pops of color go a long way toward making the space appear bigger. She even made built-in shelving to create more space for decor.

Furniture that Does Double Duty

When you live in a tiny home, every single inch of space counts. This clever grandmother made the most of every nook and cranny. Not only did Monica manage to fit this large chest of drawers in an 8×10 house, but she brilliantly used it to double as a TV stand.

It may seem counterintuitive, but according to Apartment Therapy, several pieces of small furniture sprinkled around a small space could give it a cluttered and messy feel. But strategically using a couple of functional larger pieces actually makes small spaces look bigger.

Grandma of the Year

Monica didn’t need to hire a contractor to build her tiny home. With a little ingenuity and elbow grease, she designed, built and decorated the house all on her own. With maybe a little help from her children and grandkids.

Bravo Monica for such a stunning transformation!