Written by: Cassidy Dunn, Matt Gress, Abby Goodman, Zosia Proch, Hanna Ward, Tim Zeiber
When our Simple Living class arrived at Tiny Estates, we passed by houses that were about the size of some of our dorm rooms. We stared in amazement as we imagined life living in a house that small. Farther into the tour, given by Abby Hobson, we started to realize that although the houses are miniscule, they use every inch of space efficiently. Tables could be hidden and folded up, only to be unfolded and revealed when it is time to have a meal.
Tiny houses always have sneaky storage compartments all over the house, like under the stairs or strategically placed shelving. Walking around the tiny houses was like walking around a friendly neighborhood. It felt like a community. They make you want to spend more time outdoors and with other people instead of being inside all day. A part of living a simpler life is connecting with people around you and being with nature instead being attached of things.
Fun Facts About the Tiny Estates:
1. It is only six minutes or 1.8 miles away from campus.
2. You can rent one out for relatively low cost.
3. You can tour the homes with an appointment.
4. Tiny Estates is the “nation’s biggest haven for tiny homes.”
5. They have 23 units of tiny homes.
6. The land was once a camp ground.
7. Their biggest challenge creating it was getting off the property’s existing well water that limited them to a smaller amount of houses.
8. There are nine different builders for all of Tiny Estates.
An Elizabethtown student and one of the writers of this column, Cassidy Dunn, had the opportunity to stay at a Tiny House. She told us a bit about her experience.
“I personally stayed in one of their tiny homes overnight, which was a dream of mine. It was amazing seeing how everything fit and the cozy feel made it feel like it could be home,” Dunn said.
While we were there, we were able to see the tiny home that Kevin Hart took to New York City to live in. He decorated it himself and they were able to drive the home from Elizabethtown to New York City. He used it for a few days and then returned it to Tiny Estates. People can rent the tiny home out today. You can learn a lot from their website, but we still had a few questions. Luckily, we had the opportunity to ask during our tour. We wanted to know why no two houses looked the same. When we asked she told us that when you decide to go tiny, you sit down with a designer and make your own tiny home!
“Each is custom-made,” Hobson said.
Be sure to check out next week’s column, “Destressing for Finals.”
