Our Home- Tiny Living in a Tobacco Barn Eve

I never thought I would ever live tiny. I always imagined myself in a big old house with tall ceilings and rooms to spare for a library, a sun room and guest room. At times I have to laugh a little at how much my life has changed because we now live in 360 square feet and honestly, I love it. From time to time I do still wish for more space but I feel so at home here in my little barn eve that those wishes don’t last for long.
Even though it’s only 360 square feet I thought I would take you through our little barn eve and let you see some of our inspiration and also some of the character that makes this place feel so much like home for us.

When we bought our land there wasn’t any house on it, there was only this tobacco barn. The barn itself is around 70-100 years old but somewhere along the way 2 eves had been added to each side. Jordan and I had already been living small in a camper for a year and a half so we had gotten used to and even enjoyed living in a smaller space. We weren’t ready to build or even go back to living in a larger space so we decided to renovate one of the eves in the barn and use it as our apartment.
In one side of the eve a previous owner had created a bit of a work shop by pouring a cement floor and adding electricity and a door. We decided to keep the concrete floors just as they had been. We liked the idea of not worrying about tearing up any flooring (especially with dogs) and also there were little things about the floor that made this eve feel not so lonely. I love that you can still see faint shoe prints where someone walked over the floor before it completely dried and I also like the initials and date carved into the concrete beside the door. I like the stories they tell and it makes me appreciate the use and care this part of the barn has held for others in its lifetime.

The tobacco barn was a part of a farm that belonged to a lady who lived in a small white farm house at the side of the field. When I was little she used to babysit me. Her name was Belva and I remember she collected dolls and before she moved away she even gave me a few to keep. When I first began walking through the barn a lot of memories of the ladies I grew up around on this road came to mind. My grandmother, Era Belle; her friend and neighbor, Rosalie; and of course Belva and the little farmhouse she where she had grown up. It made me want to create a space that would feel nostalgic to them. A place that if they walked in they would smile from memories of their own homes growing up. So we sought out pieces from the 30’s and 40’s.
The kitchen sink was one of the first pieces we bought. Estimating from somewhere in the 40’s it’s an old farmhouse sink with a dish drain on the side. We intentionally chose not to refinish the sink (or tub) because I liked the character it gave and I knew my grandmother didn’t grow up in a house with a brand new sink. She probably grew up in houses with sinks that had been worn down from years of use. Those “imperfections” held stories for me and I liked walking into a place that felt lived in, I didn’t want brand new.
We kept other aspects of our kitchen simple. We have open shelves that store our dishes and cups (many vintage). Our cabinets hold cookware and we have a small cabinet for a pantry.
The corbels we used for our open shelving were from a family friend who was re-doing their porch and I like the simple look of plain wood so we kept it as is with the shelves and stand Jordan made for the sink.
We have a small stove and honestly it’s the best stove I’ve ever used! We purchased one slab of butcher block and it fit perfectly!
For sometime we didn’t have a microwave because I was looking for one that matched the shade of blue of our fridge. With having such a small space I was determined to only have things that I truly loved around me. Sometimes that meant waiting and I can honestly say, it was worth it.
Instead of using hardware on our cabinets I loved the look of simple leather handles and we simply chalk painted our cabinets. We didn’t use a seal or wax on them either. We did this so that we could easily repaint them if they got scratched up. We’ve had to do this a couple of times due to dogs and one lamb we had to raise in the apartment with us.
The last note I’ll make about our kitchen is the framed print. I began collecting pieces from different houses down the road. Because this place is inspired so much by my grandmother and neighbors growing up I wanted pieces in our home to remind us of them. It’s funny because I don’t ask for them but from time to time over the year people have offered things they were getting rid of or just didn’t have any use for anymore and thought I would like.
This print came from a neighbor. It belonged to his mother and although he gave it to me for something I might want to put in the market I decided to keep it for myself. Not only do I think it’s beautiful I like that it comes from our own neighbors.

Years ago I remember seeing a picture of a little table in front of a window beside a little blue refrigerator and I fell in love! It took quite some time to find a little blue fridge but we finally found one that suited our needs and budget and it’s one of my favorite things in our apartment. It’s a little over 7 cubic ft and serves a little house of 2 perfectly.
The table is an old chippy piece I bought from a local secondhand store years ago when I first moved out of my parent’s house. It suits Jordan and I very well and often I keep a vintage table runner over the top with a bouquet of flowers. Although not pictured, we usually have our dog, Willow’s, bed underneath and 2 ladder back chairs at the side.
Living tiny means we often move things around to suit our current needs and situations. Today we were cleaning so we took the chairs and dog bed out to give us more room and I forgot to put them back in before we took photos.
I try to always have a vase of flowers in our house, even if it’s just something small and foraged in a bloom vase. I like the color and beauty they bring. I don’t often buy flowers so I grow my own or forage. I think perhaps, it reminds me to look for beauty and also arranging is therapeutic for me. Currently I’m loving an arrangement on our dresser which is made up of pumpkin leaves 🙂

We wanted to keep our little apartment simple and open. We opted for a “studio” design where it’s all basically one big room (except for the bath).
To help break it up we used the pantry cabinet as a type of divider into this area. We also put wallpaper on the side of the cabinet to not only cover the particle board but to add some pattern and color to the room.

The landscape print above the bed is the color palette for the whole apartment. This print belonged to my grandmother, Era Belle. I remember at her house she had lots of these large prints everywhere. After she passed I was looking around for something in my parent’s garage and saw this print that used to hang in her house. I asked my Dad if I could have it when I moved out and I’ve had it ever since I moved out. I knew this print would be an anchor for everything in this apartment. In the beginning if I ever questioned something I looked at this picture. I studied the colors and everything from the shades of green to light blue in a muted sky can be found in this space.
The chair is a large oversized vintage piece I bought years ago from a second hand store. For months I went by it and finally broke down and bought it for $35 and just put it in storage because at the time I didn’t have space for it. One of the pillows is thrifted and the other is made from a vintage rug. I purchased it at one of my favorite shops, Frenchtown Station. It also serves as my lap desk when I’m using the computer 🙂
The desk lamp was one that Jordan bought and our good friends at Machine Age Restoration restored and re-wired for us.

There was one thing I had learned from living tiny in a 5th wheel camper. I wanted a big bathroom! I wanted a clawfoot tub and vanity and space to move about and get ready. Somehow we have managed to fit a clawfoot tub (painted emerald green), a vanity, water heater, stackable washer and dryer along with the toilet, storage shelves, full length mirror and rolling storage cabinet in here. I’m sure we could have saved a lot of space by having just a small walk in shower but if you’ve ever taken a bath in an old claw foot tub you know there is nothing more relaxing.
Our tub was a gift from photography clients years ago and I had waited a full 5 years to be able to use it as a tub and not a tv stand!
Jordan made the wood piece to go over it and it holds our shampoo and soap.
I had a vanity and matching vintage dresser that I insisted on having in our apartment. The problem with this was it would leave no room for a proper closet. So I forgo the closet to have my vanity. I can’t honestly say I made the right decision but it’s helped me not buy near as many clothes!
*For the record, most of our clothes are kept in storage totes under the bed or in the dresser. Tiny living has meant we don’t buy near as much. We have learned to appreciate things without wanting them and with our clothing this has been the same. We buy and keep pieces that we truly love and are utilitarian for us. We also take out seasonal clothes and put them in totes in storage. *

All in all our home is comprised of some pieces from me and Jordan and lots of pieces from other people in our lives. Its part of what makes me love this place so much. It’s not trendy, it’s not perfect, there are still things we need to finish or replace but it’s home and it feels like home. I love looking around and seeing so many things that each have a memory attached to them; the ladder back chairs Jordan got me as a gift when we were dating, the old dutch door reminding me of my favorite movie “Bringing Up Baby” with scratches from dogs and a mischievous little lamb on it, dried flowers from past bouquets, they are all tangible memories that we get to live our lives surrounded by. We prayed for our home to be a haven for us and all who gather here and the best way to accomplish that for us, is by letting other’s stories and memories share it’s space with our own imprints here.

*I would also like to note this is our apartment freshly cleaned up.  Living tiny or really I think living at all means that most days there’s laundry to be folded sitting on the chair, dishes in the sink, dog hair on the floor and sometimes mismatched pillow cases and bedding.  We’re learning to balance having a home that is clean and aesthetically pleasant with the realities of everyday life 🙂