California DIY, shipping container tiny home and a cargo trailer bedroom

December 12, 2011 admin 25 comments

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Lulu is a single mom who’d gone back to school and didn’t have the time or interest in working full-time to pay for rent. So when she had to move out of her more conventional home, she decided to move herself and her daughter into a shipping container. With no building experience, Lulu spent just one month cutting windows and a door and installing insulation and a basic kitchen (complete with propane-powered campstove and on-demand water heater). Then she and her daughter moved into the 8 by 20 foot square foot home, fitting a bed, couch, bookshelf and kitchen cabinets into the 160 square foot box. When Lulu decided they needed a bit more space, she went from shipping to trucking waste and began to build their bedroom on a used flatbed trailer. “It’s really mostly built like a shed. It’s a nice looking shed, but it’s really an 8 by 16 shed with windows in it.” Using only recycled building materials- including used floorboards, windows, cabinets, doors, bathtub, toilet and sinks- she built the entire thing for about $4000 (trailer included). Original story here: www.faircompanies.com Music credit: “I Am a Man Who Will Fight for Your Honor” by Chris Zabriskie (chriszabriskie.com

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Kitchen Cabinets bedroom, California, cargo, container, Home, shipping, tiny, trailer

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Written by signalfire6 about 5 months ago.

@AshyMishyMashy Try out in the rural areas; I would put an ad in craigslist or let family members, neighbors, etc know you were looking to rent a spot in a (hidden away?) backyard; that you would need access to water, perhaps showers, etc. A LOT of people could use the income from a renter, always go for win-win situation. If possible, have the place on wheels or made to look like an uber-cute playhouse or garden structure to avoid neighbors complaining…
Written by signalfire6 about 5 months ago.

If I were a guy, I would marry that woman in a heartbeat! Smart, beautiful and resourceful.

If all of the housing in the world were divided by all the people, everyone would get 10 SF and a house without indoor plumbing or heat… it’s time we made sure everyone has shelter, food, clean water, lifelong education and transportation. We need a new economic paradigm based on our available resources – see the Zeitgeist Movement for more.
Written by signalfire6 about 5 months ago.

@sabaqat Thanks
Written by signalfire6 about 5 months ago.

@SuperPoliceState The same fuckwits that want to put you in cages for using psychoactive plants because they don’t understand the phrase, ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They’re miserable and think you should be also.
Written by signalfire6 about 5 months ago.

@mrhulot101 The codes may mean well (safety and resell value issues) but they’ve become worse than stifling. It’s amazing we *say* we live in a free country but it’s anything but. The day will soon come when the code enforcement officer will arrive and be met at the door with a shotgun and a stern look. Local govts are broke, and people fending for themselves should be the least of their concern.
Written by signalfire6 about 5 months ago.

@AshyMishyMashy Rooming houses. My grandmother bought a huge (maybe 4000 SF?) Victorian back in the 1920s and ended up renting it to single men for her income. Breakfast was 7:30 sharp and you were expected to come down dressed for the day; you left the house for the day to either work or look for work, dinner at 6 sharp. As far as all the McMansions in suburbia now, they’re built like crap. Absolutely useless tax and upkeep nightmares.
Written by ahhitisbriana about 5 months ago.

@kerflop Did you not listen to what she was saying? She said she was building another room and the kid would have that one all to herself.
Written by ahhitisbriana about 5 months ago.

@BleachRush Why would she be complaining, mad, pissed, or seeking sympathy? She’s not living in a shipping container because she has to, she wants to. She doesn’t want to work full time to pay for rent, though she most certainly could and live in a conventional house. She’d just rather not and spend that time with her daughter.
Written by dothedeed about 5 months ago.

I love her bedroom with all those windows. Really inspiring.
Written by grimbitter about 5 months ago.

Does she own the land she built on? Or it is a squat?
Written by BleachRush about 5 months ago.

@kerflop you can’t be serious.. Ofcourse they need bigger space someday, & surely she’ll manage that when the time comes Like how she managed herself right now, you even heard her say that she’ll move as soon as she get a new room & give this one to her kid. You’re talking like she got an option & can afford more space, Also she said that her kid sometimes lay in bed with her. She’s in a very crappy situation & only what you thought about was this? seriously?
Written by BleachRush about 5 months ago.

wow.. this woman is just amazing. Seriously look at her, in the whole video, NO SINGLE COMPLAINT! not mad or pissed, not even seeking sympathy. She was just show her house & talks about how she manages her stuff & how she lives with a smile.. That a spirit!

i mean i’ve seen much better life & richer people who were bitching about how their lives sucks & they want better living..

Great spirit & positive woman. Amazing.
Written by Bangbro911 about 5 months ago.

Who is this women? MacGyver’s wife? how did she build all this?
Written by toflus about 5 months ago.

This is fantastic! I often joke around to my friends and family that I bought anxaiety when I took a loan for my apartement, but it is a bit of truth in it. You don’t really own anything you just play a game of house where the bank is the dealer and some of us are fortune enugh to have some to gamble. I grew up with more than enough, even though the economy in the household was pretty bad at times, I never felt that I lacked anything. This video is a true inspiration to many of us, thanks a lot!
Written by bambamh20 about 5 months ago.

you did well for the little you have NICE JOB : ) GOD BLESS : )
Written by yunaku3 about 5 months ago.

Someone should hire her!
Written by Achbar about 5 months ago.

This is a Metal tent
Written by Tribalcon about 5 months ago.

@Jake000500 She only ever refers to “my daughter” (singular) so I think that the other kids are visiting friends.
Written by dt65262 about 5 months ago.

Hey just because a child wants something doesn’t mean they should get it. I think more people could learn a thing or two about materialism from this lady. Kids are spoiled rotten today, most never work for anything and they have a harder time when they have to provide for themselves.
Written by Shweetbox about 5 months ago.

You should say “like” more. Like totally.
Written by kerflop about 5 months ago.

i like how the mom gets all the space on the bed and the kid can’t even sit up. you know your kid’s gonna get bigger right?
Written by Megazell about 5 months ago.

She needs to hook up with the ‘Garbage Warrior.’ He made self-sufficient homes out of garbage.
Written by CuteFairyCreature about 5 months ago.

I love your trailer home, all the windows. I think the crate would be nicer if the outside was painted. The place with all the trees is lovely, and I love your philosophy that we’re all just borrowing everything. Elegant poor.
Written by Uriel1816 about 5 months ago.

This was fascinating.
Written by irvykinneas about 5 months ago.

and this looks much much better than that 40k bucks of french wood or whatever from the other video

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