Young Woman’s Off-Grid Green-Built Tiny House Designed For a Sustainable Future
This little home is built with a whole lot of heart. When Isabelle Nagel-Brice began looking for a place to live in Colorado, she quickly realised that for the amount of money she would pay for a few years rent, she could instead purchase the materials needed to construct her own green-built tiny house on wheels. With a background in permaculture and sustainable design, she set about constructing a tiny house that was not only a wonderful home but one that was packed full of eco-friendly, healthy home features.
All throughout the build, Isabelle has remained conscious of the materials that she has used to construct her home, ensuring that she was not only building a tiny house that would be healthy to live in but also one that was built with materials that were environmentally friendly and could be recycled or biodegrade at the end of the tiny house’s life.
The home is designed to be off-the-grid ready, with solar panels soon to be added. It’s also incredibly well insulated and designed to be suitable for living in any climate zone. Colorado can get extremely cold, so constructing the home to be warm and comfortable was essential.
The tiny house kitchen is designed to be open to the downstairs area and has lots of bench-space. Isabelle plans to homestead in the future and so plenty of space which could be dedicated to not only cooking, but also canning and preservation of food was required.
There’s a comfortable seating area which becomes a great place to relax in front of the Dickinson propane heater. The couch design is packed full of useful storage space and also has the ability to transform into a queen-sized guest bed.
Multiple-use is a key principle of permaculture that has also crossed heavily into the world of small-space design. This little writing desk also has an old peddle sewing machine built into it.
The bathroom has been designed to allow for a good sized bath tub, large enough for Isabelle to bath not only herself, but also her large dog who often needs a good bath after adventures in the Colorado wilderness. A Natures Head composting toilet means that the home doesn’t need to worry about any black water. The toilet is designed to seperate liquids and solids and the constant 12v fan which runs inside the unit eliminates any potential odour from the bathroom.
Upstairs, the sleeping loft is beautiful and cosy. Conscious of creating a healthy sleeping environment to match her home, Isabelle sleeps on an organic latex mattress which at only 7 inches also helps to give her lots of head room in the loft.
Isabelle has done a truly incredible job of constructing a wonderful tiny home for herself. For the cost of a few years rent in Colorado, she has built home-security into her life plan and set herself up for a bright and sustainable future. In order to help others, Isabelle has set up her own website, A Tiny Good Thing, which provides lots of information and resources on green tiny house building. Be sure to watch the full video above for lots more information on this beautiful tiny home.
