The Nature of Reality..

I want to go over a few reasons why moving back to the country is what I need. Don't get me wrong.. I love Portland. Portlander's are proud to be from such a popular city. This city is booming with tourism(which explains the abundance of people that can't drive). The local beer, funky doughnuts, local wines, local coffee roasters, craft workshops, craft markets, locally sourced food restaurants, produce markets, mass transit system, and young hip vibe. What isn't there to love? 

It is unsustainable. I live in a sustainable living complex.. Which is quite the opposite. It may be Leed certified, and energy efficient, but stacking families on top of eachother for 30 floors, with their dogs, and late night parties on Saturday night is not the way I feel life should be. I am not into trends. I don't work a 9-5. I don't go out because I need to update my facebook page with a picture of what I did on Saturday night to make myself feel like I am worth something. This isn't life. Life isn't doing what is expected of you. Graduate, go to college, get a job, pay off your loans, get married, have kids, buy a house, save for retirement, retire, then finally live out your dreams. Reality is that you should live out your dreams now. Do not do what is expected of you. The system we live in survives off of you being in debt. That is the reason for the guidelines in our lives. To be successful is to find happiness. I feel I will find happiness being surrounded by mountains, and streams, covered bridges, swimming holes, growing all my own food, preserving food, learning hands on skills.We do not live to work, We work to live. It is slavery, but we do it to ourselves. We choose the house that we know we couldn't afford. We do it because we need others to see how successful we are. We work damn hard, why can't we live in a beautiful large home? Right? We do it with our cars, our clothes, cell phones, Ipads, Ipods. Everywhere we can, we all deserve to best. We need to change the way we see reality. Reality is you don't need to bite off more than we can chew. A tiny house by the sea, a cottage, a small cabin. All of these things are things we really want. We want to travel the world but can't find the time. Don't save it till retirement. Find your goals, and make enough money to reach them! We get one life to live. I want to live mine in the slow lane. I am not racing to the finish line. I live to be with family, go camping, swimming, hiking, create, give, photograph, travel, keep the house warm, make some money for simple luxuries, and not be dependent.  I hope to inspire all of you to change the way you see reality. Reality is the simple life is much more luxurious, and being back in nature is more sustainable.

Tiny Cabin Inspiration, and Update.

Dear Bloglandia,
I want you to know I haven't forgotten you! My shop has been blowing up. It IS wedding season, also happens to be the best time for me to be outdoors! It is tough to sacrifice my oh so rare sunshine. Me and my Deer ; ) have been going for run/walks and going to the farmers market near our house every Thursday. Wednesday is usually our day of running around, and every other day of the week I am working on prints after work, and going to the post office. The extra money in the wallet is something worth smiling about by itself! The idea of being in a new home in the next year(ish) feels so close! We have everything pretty much worked out in our heads, as long as we are just able to find desirable land.. That has been our setback this entire time! As soon as we get there it is going to be Dream State Blog Land! I will be making How-To's, time lapse videos, and regular garden tip updates. Maybe even advice on sharing a micro cabin.. There will be so much material I won't even know where to start! Let me give all of us some tiny cabin inspiration from my "My Tiny Dream Home" Board on Pinterest. (Follow me on Pinterest Here!)

Sources:
1st set- here & here.
2nd set- here and here.
3rd set- here and here.

Sonoma Escape

Here is some cabin porn for all of us 'small living' wannabes (like me).

This magical escape home is located in Northern California by the architect/designer Olle Lundberg. The house is constructed from reclaimed materials salvaged from office buildings. The home is also LEED compliant. Mr. Lundberg's weekend cabin just happens to be the same design i'd like our small house to be. Big windows in front, pitched roof, and open upstairs loft. Big porch, and wood burning stove, and don't forget that garden! It is wonderful. I do not care for the hot tub, or pool very much, but they have the right idea, and It feels like they took it right out of my head. There are a few things different, kind of like a vague dream. I hope you enjoy my cabin quest, and I can't wait to see and show you what we end up building!

Check out the Sonoma Escape House on Apartment Therapy.

Cabin Ideas And The Goal In Sight..

I have some tiny cabin porn for you. I could pick them apart and tell you exactly what I like about them, But I think you can guess.. I like a compact multifunctional house that feels large. Tons of build-ins, storage closets, multi-purpose space, tall ceilings. Same goes with furniture. I like a fold out sofa for guests, trundle beds, wall mounted swiveling flat screen TVs, storage compartments. The list goes on. Above desing- sustainability is the most important thing.. We don't want to be dependent to the "grid". In the long run we will save money, with the prices consistently going up for water, gas, and electricity-not to mention gasoline and food.. We want to catch our own water, have a wood burning fireplace, tankless water heater, solar power, a large garden, make all of our own cleaning products(laundry soap, shampoo, conditioner, house cleaning products etc.). The goal is to have to go to the store as less frequently as possible. Whatever we can DIY I think we will. We will continue to buy bulk, and buy only what we use regularly. So as we continue this adventure.. I will show you how we do things! But for now.. We are saving, and decluttering our lives of all the unnecessary "needs" of the typical American lifestyle.. For now it is all a dream, but a not so distant dream. So check back to continue to follow us on this amazing adventure. Till we have the goal in close distance, I will continue to look for natural cleaning solutions, health remedies, DIY projects, recipes, and home and garden care tips. I will share them with you. You learn as I learn!  : )

Photo credits:
Photo 1- here and here.
Photo 2- here, here and here.
Photo 3- here and here.
Photo 4- here and here.

Beautiful Sauvie Island Renovation- Tiny Farm Cottage

This tiny farm cottage caught my eye, and I can't resist sharing.. It is located on Sauvie Island, here in Portland! It's beautiful renovation is home to a family of four. There is no TV. The parents have a tiny loft right off of the living room- where they have custom couches. The kids have custom build bunk beds. The front porch is built around a tree that has a swing. So many nice touches and details! They also have a nice garden in the back. This isn't the style of house I see myself having, But I'll take it. : ) It is just refreshing to see a family oriented household, embracing a more natural lifestyle.

Read more about the house history, and renovation here, and more photos here!

Photos by Lincoln Barbour

The Quest For The Dream Cabin Continues..

I came across this cabin at the website Architizer. It is a way for architects to interact, show their work, and find clients. It connects the architectual community. Now I am hooked looking for more cabin designs. Just waiting for the day that money falls in my lap. : ) I love the Red Cedar, slanted ceilings, and open floor plan. The only part I am a bit iffy about is all of those windows! I would prefer the corner windows to be there, and cover the rest of the house. I like alot of light, but I also don't want "creepers" coming along seeing what I am working with. If you know what I mean.. Plus.. Where is the wood stove? You live in the forest and you don't collect and burn wood to keep warm? All of those windows with a central air unit? Not to pick the place apart.. There is just alot I would change.
The cabin's name is "The Small House"(perfect!). Read the description of the design here-

"Conceived as a modest one-room cabin, the house packs a kitchen, living, dining areas and two sleeping alcoves into just 750-sf; a 500-sf screened porch and sleeping loft create a thick threshold between inside and out. Double French doors connect the house to the porch. When flung open, the entire house takes on the quality of the screened porch, with dappled light streaming in and breezes suffusing the interior. Wrapped in Western Red Cedar inside and out, the structure seems to recede into the landscape. From the outside, the house dialogs respectfully with the landscape. On the interior, the cedar frames and reinforces the woodland setting.
Small House was one of the first in Great Barrington to be designed to comply with the Berkshire Scenic Mountain Act, which requires that a house not peek above the ridgeline, that tree-cutting be limited to ¼-acre, and that drainage prevent both flooding and erosion of the site. In response, Small House tucks into the hill side, nestling beneath the tree canopy with its roofline following the slope of the mountain to mimic natural drainage patterns. The house also incorporates such commonsense sustainable strategies as radiant structural slab, which maximizes opportunities for passive solar gain through the broad expanses of glass on the south and east elevations. Natural cooling is achieved with the stack effect through operable skylights and ceiling fans. The house utilizes a highly efficient remote-operated mechanical system so that the homeowners can monitor and adjust it from a distance."

This is a Maryann Thompson Architects Project