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Request for a 'Smaller Homes' forum....

20 years ago

There has been quite a bit of interest expressed in establishment of a forum specifically designated to issues for those building/designing and living in smaller homes.

As the owner of an 1800 sf home, I know that I would love to be able to gain knowledge from, and share ideas with, those with similar space, storage, and decorating/design issues. There is a "mini-trend" in the housing industry toward efficient and beautiful use of smaller spaces, and also a trend toward downsizing for a large segment of the population. A "Smaller Homes" forum would be very useful for GardenWeb members, and quite timely in content.

Best Regards,

Andrea

Comments (24)

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    That would be great! My DH and I are proud owners of a small cottage style house, about 1,420 sq feet. I would love to see pictures and ideas on decorating and remodeling small rooms.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Yes, a forum for small homes would be great. I live in a rancher-940 sq ft, definately small. LOL

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  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    At under 900 sq.ft., count me in too.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    The Manufactured Home forum seems to be primarily about mobile homes and there is a lot of ill feeling going back and forth about mobile homes vs. modular, manufactured. Mines a 35 year old Cape Cod stick built with no real improvements.

    Most of the modular homes being built in our area are large. The main thrust of my suggestion of a forum for small houses is usage of space, with decorating a close related second.

    Our home is a very small, 1440 sq. ft. with no basement and only under the eaves storage upstairs. ItÂs just DH and I, but we fill in the space we have and IÂd like some objective input.

    We are on a well, and the water tank is in the master bedroom closet, so DH just has room to hang shirts. His trousers and shoes are in the hall closet. We have a wire rack inside the front door for visitors coats. Our master bedroom (and I use the term loosely) just holds our king-size bed and a dresser. My closet is in the second downstairs bedroom, which barely qualifies as a bedroom (it held a twin bed, barely). We use it for a dressing room. A walk-in closet is a luxury I can only fantasize about. Downstairs bathroom is tiny by any standards with a small cupboard.

    Kitchen is workable. I have a portable dishwasher because I donÂt want to give up any cupboard space. My desk/computer is in the "dining area", what there is of it. Dining room has barely enough room to walk around. There is a small closet there where we keep winter coats/jackets, etc. IÂve just hung a shelf on the inside of the door to hold canned goods. Putting the leaf in the table is a real stretch. Washer and dryer are behind bifold doors in the dining room. Many of the "laundry rooms" I see on the Decorating forum are larger than my kitchen!!

    There are 2 bedrooms upstairs; one DH has taken over as he is retired and an amateur painter, and the other is a combination storage/guest room with a futon for visitors. Each has a small closet where we hang out of season clothes. There is also a small 3/4 bath.

    I sure donÂt want to start a donneybrook here, but I know there are some very clever people out there in the same small spaces who are willing to share their solutions to living in limited space without regard to landlord/tenant or mobile home park issues, just space issues and decorating around them.

    I donÂt have a basement, attic, pantry, great room, den, or whatever spaces are being called these days. I just would like to have some input from others how they cope with a small house and to keep clutter to a minimum in the process and make it look more than presentable.

    IÂve lived in 18 different abodes as an adult, including England (in the 60s, donÂt ask) and both US coasts, not counting time spent with parents/inlaws during military transitions, in every situation imaginable.

    Maybe IÂm must getting old and cranky, but I just canÂt get all hot and sweaty about a particular shade of paint or granite or window treatments or whatever is the current focus of those decorating their large, new or newly-remodeled homes.

    Sound bitter? Not really. IÂm just trying to get past the mundane and on to making my life more comfortable with the small space I have.

  • 20 years ago

    I've said it before, on the thread that got yanked for some reason - I live in 1300 sq. ft. here - I'd love a Smaller Homes forum.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    DH and I live in a tiny 50's cottage and I also would love a forum for smaller homes. Our cottage is under 700 sq.ft.

    FlowerLady

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I'd like a forum for smaller homes too! I have under 2500 sq feet and would love a forum with pics, ideas, and insights from others in similarly-sized homes. It wouldn't stop me from continuing to browse existing forums, but it would be so nice to find info that's more relevant to how and where I actually live.I hear enough about "down-sizing" to think I'm not alone in my interest in a smaller homes forum.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I'd like that too. We're just under 1800 sq. ft. and I always considered it a big house! Not anymore. Sandy

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I have a good sized house that "grew" from a small house, so of course I have small rooms!! Please allow us a forum that will address these small problems!
    Thank you.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    My house has a 40' x 40' footprint. It's a beach cottage, but it's located four miles inland, lol. I am glad to have a finished basement, but man, I can't stand my galley kitchen--and it has a counter with an eybrow shape--gawd, how weird is that!

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I've been to lot of estates sales recently and even the beds would fill up my whole living room. I have about 1250 sq ft. I'd like to see how others utilize their spaces.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    "I've been to lot of estates sales recently"

    The first thread on the Small House Forum, if it happens, is "Cure my PackRat Syndrome!"

    T--who can't drive by a garage sale without turning her head to see if there's some pieces of satisfying stuff I don't need but just gotta have.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    We have 1170 sf and adding another 550 sf this summer ... still considered small by most standards. I've always had trouble finding furniture that fit and finally embraced the less is more mentality. Our living room is long and narrow with the front door opening directly into the room. Makes furniture arranging difficult to say the least.

    Would love to see a forum devoted to the challenges posed by smaller homes.

    Harper

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I would also like to see a forum on smaller homes. There are many books and television shows devoted to just this topic; why not a forum? I can see there might be some overlap with other forums, but that is already happening - many people post the same question on flooring, kitchens, home decorating, furniture, etc. Right now the Home decorating forum is very busy, so that posts get moved to page 12 in a matter of days and are lost forever. If there were a separate forum for small homes, it would take some of the traffic off Home Decorating, and allow people with smaller houses to address their specific issues.
    Thank you for you consideration.

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Thanks for the new forum I'll give it a visit

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    To Tamara, and all others in GW Admin.....thank you so much!~

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    You are MOST welcome! Enjoy!

    Tamara

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    May I ask for a gallery on this new forum? I'm sure many of us would like to see the suggestions that have been made on this new, active forum.
    Thnks in Advance

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Tamara and Gw Admin, thanks so much for the new smaller homes forum!

    A gallery would be nice, especially for those folks who are on dial-up and can't get on the discussion threads if pics are posted instead of links.

    TIA, Diana

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Here's my bid for a Gallery as well.

    The new forum is a hit and has obviously filled a niche. Thanks for adding it.

    Carol

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Please, please, please add a Gallery to the Smaller Homes forum.
    Nora

  • 20 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Thanks for the potential gallery!!

  • 19 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Clearly there is desire for this forum. Also with the trend towards smaller, greener homes this forum would be perfect...forget the MacMansions...consider smaller and greener.

  • 19 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    bentap, the Small Homes forum has been up and running for quite some time. It was a welcome addition to the forums back in June of "06.

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