Teeny Tiny House Renovation

This post may contain affiliate links. This just means I make a small commission on purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.

This is teeny tiny house renovation. A little tour of the house we lived in when my husband and I moved back to my hometown. We stayed with my parents until we were able to renovate the playhouse my dad built when I was little. It was 8′ x 12′ with a sleeping loft. So we were nice and cozy with our 100lb dog and our guinea pig!

Teeny Tiny house, brown with blue trim. Door is propped open and there is a chop saw on the small deck in front of the door.

The Insulation

First we had to insulate it. Remember this was just a playhouse originally, so nothing fancy like insulation! Part of that meant taking the loft down and framing in the loft window so we would have something to attach the insulation and the wall covering to.

Partial insulation in the framed in walls of our teeny tiny house with a ladder in the foreground.

Partial insulation in the framed in walls around the window inside our teeny tiny house. Miscellaneous tools and insulation on the wooden floor.

Partial insulation in the framed in walls of our teeny tiny house. Michael standing on a ladder smiling at the camera. Working on framing in the little loft window near the ceiling.

Insulation in the framed in walls of our teeny tiny house.

The Walls

We used door skin as wood paneling to cover the walls and ceiling. It was a lot cheaper than using sheetrock and a lot easier to attach to the ceiling since it was much lighter weight. Plus we didn’t have to spend money on the mud and paint that we would have with sheetrock.

Insulation in the framed in walls of our teeny tiny house. Wood paneling in the ceiling. Ladder and a piece of door skin panel.

Insulation in the framed in walls of our teeny tiny house. Wood paneling covering most of the walls.

The Loft

We extended the loft to fit a double mattress. It was originally only big enough to fit a twin mattress. Then we painted the floor and underside of the loft white to brighten the place up. We also put the original railing back on because I am definitely not fond of heights and would probably have rolled right off in my sleep!

Under the loft in our teeny tiny house. plastic drop cloth and painters tape covering the walls under the loft.

Under the loft in our teeny tiny house. plastic drop cloth and painters tape covering the walls under the loft. Freshly painted white loft. Ladder in the foreground to the left.

Finished and painted white loft floor in our teeny tiny house. Wood paneling on the walls and fresh white trim around the window and separating the walls and ceiling.

Michael standing on a ladder next to the loft in our teeny tiny house. Freshly painted teal railing on loft.

The Trim

My husband cut a bunch of the leftover door skin into long strips to use as trim. This saved a lot of money and I think it turned out pretty nice. We painted those white to add a little contrast as well.

Fully paneled and trimmed walls and window in our teeny tiny house.

Loft in our teeny tiny house with mattress and railing.

Loft in our teeny tiny house with made bed and pillows. Freshly painted teal ladder attached to loft.

window side of the inside of our teeny tiny house. Loft ladder on the right.

View of inside the loft in our teeny tiny house. Pillows that say "I belong with you sweet" and "you belong with me heart". Homemade sunbonnet Sue quilt covering the bed.

The Furnishing

We got a hand-me-down loveseat from Michael’s parents, and a wooden dresser that was mine as a child. We had to get pretty creative with the use of the space, but by the time we were done it was really nice and cozy.

Loveseat under the loft beside the ladder in our teeny tiny house.

Living space view under the loft in our teeny tiny house. Loveseat couch on the left and plastic and wooden dressers on the right with a laundry basket on the dresser in the back corner.

The Kitchenette

Michael made a custom countertop to fit in our teeny tiny house. This is where we kept the coffee pot, mini fridge, a few dishes and other miscellaneous items. We did not have running water, so we used a countertop water dispenser. With a little dish pan in lieu of a sink, we were still able to wash dishes. We were able to prepare foods, but we had to use my mom’s kitchen if we needed to cook or bake anything. Except on occasion when we would crack out the camping stove on the deck.

Homemade custom counter top and shelves under construction.

Kitchenette with coffee pot and water dispenser crock on countertop.

Kitchenette with coffee pot and water dispenser crock on countertop. Storage on shelves underneath on the left and mini fridge on the right.

Desk workspace across from the kitchenette. Computer and office supplies on the desk. Broom hanging on the wall.

We took advantage of every inch, using shelves and hooks on the walls to maximize the space. The desk in the corner made a good little work station. Under the loft was our little living room where we got to snuggle up on the couch at the end of the day and watch a movie with our dog Barney and our guinea pig Zeek.

Loveseat couch under the loft. Throw pillows that say "Mrs Always Right" and "Mr Right". Coat rack on the wall behind the couch and bags and backpacks hanging on the wall on the right.

Finished living space under the loft. Loveseat on the left and dressers on the right. TV mounted to the wall above the wooden dresser. Guinea pig cage bucket on the plastic dresser.

Our Barney dog laying on the loveseat couch under the loft.

The Teeny Tiny Life

After we completed our teeny tiny house renovation, living in it was very simple. We mostly used the bathroom in my parent’s house, though we eventually got a little RV toilet to use at night. We also built an outdoor shower that was pretty cool. The deck needed to be replaced, so we rebuilt and expanded it, then built a fence around it, so our Barney dog could roam without getting into too much trouble.

We loved living in this space! Mostly because it was our own finally. We still live here after 8 years and three kids, though we have added on a little and made some changes. But I will write about this in another post!

Feel free to leave questions or comments. Thanks for stopping by to share in our tiny life adventures!