Lulu, a single mother, had to choose between living in a large house and working more or spending time with her little daughter. After converting a shipping container into a home, she chose to build an incredible 160 square foot home for only $4,000. The single mother decided she needed more space, so she built a bedroom on a flatbed trailer for herself and her small daughter, from which she can watch the moon rise.
It should be mentioned that despite the fact that this sort of container house appears to be fairly rudimentary, an increasing number of dwelling structures are being constructed using old containers that are no longer in use as their foundation and frame. The tiny house movement is a growing trend that advocates for simple living in smaller spaces.
This increasing trend has two major benefits. It allows old containers like this to be reused and converted into housing while also lowering building costs. Lulu has always been interested in basic living and has been in contact with the tiny home movement, which has risen in popularity in Sonoma, one of the most popular places in the United States for building in this manner.
Northern California is home to Sonoma County. It’s most known for the Sonoma Valley Vineyard region, but it’s also home to the tumbleweed Tiny House Company, which is founded in response to a growing demand for tiny homes in this part of California.
Lulu currently lives with her daughter on a lovely Hill in Sonoma County’s, unincorporated territory just a few miles west of the beach. Because of the fires that have destroyed over 5000 homes and structures in the area, home values have risen dramatically in the first half of 2018, reaching at a record $700,000 sale price in June of last year.
Many people have begun looking for housing that’s more environmentally friendly, both financially and physically. Because she feels claustrophobic, she stated that the storage container was a little intimidating. She went on to say that the trailer is a decent looking shed, but it’s actually an eight X 16 cabin with windows.
Her daughter has reservations about the house. I can’t sit up or stand up, the girl explained, explaining why she dislikes her loft bed. She wants to construct another room as well as a greenhouse to offer the girl her own area. Lulu, who is inspirational, chose the shipping container route because she values the time she can spend with her baby. So despite having no prior construction experience, Lulu spent only one month cutting windows and doors, as well as erecting insulation and a basic kitchen, complete with a propane powered camp stove and a water heater.
Lulu and her daughter moved into the eight X 20 square foot house at that time, cramming a bed, couch, bookshelves and kitchen cabinets into the cramped quarters. Lulu moved to the United States with her little daughter a few years ago. Hailing from Argentina, she desired to return to school, but the nine to five full time work and lifestyle that it entailed did not appeal to her.
Lulu discovered that one of the most significant expenses that necessitate such a high level of income is accommodation. Lulu has never been one for living a lavish lifestyle, so finding a creative solution that would allow her to spend more time with her kid was a no brainer.
Lulu chose the alternative housing option of a shipping container after discovering what she would need to live in a place she loved. She chose Sonoma County in California to grow the home, since the container she wanted was used to transport supplies back and forth from China. Lulu is both proud and grateful for the home she built.
Not only did she design it herself, but she also lives a life she enjoys. Despite having no prior construction knowledge, Lulu was able to adapt the shipping container and install windows, insulation, and a functional kitchen using a camping stove and a water heater.
The whole cost was $4,000, and it took her only one month to complete. Lulu saved not just a lot of money, but also a lot of time when compared to the normal cost and time it takes to build a standard house.
Despite the fact that her kid does not recognize the advantages of her home, Lulu is confident that one day she will she’s complained. At times, Lulu told Faircompanies.com, but I’m also aware that we’ve spent many more hours together than I would have if I had to pay rent. Lulu opted to leave her home because she would rather spend time with her kid than work.
Thus, converting the storage container unit into a home for a month for only $4,000 seemed worthwhile. It came down to deciding how many hours we had in our lives and how I want to use them. Lulu made a remark after thinking about the project she’d just finished. She eventually made the decision to spend more time with her daughter and less time working. Lulu, on the other hand, is adamant about a few things.
She enjoys high end tea and has a spacious bath tub in which to relax. Her brother described her style as elegant poverty because of the lavish accents. She also enjoyed recycling building components in the construction of the new home, such as sinks, flooring, and tiles. She’s scooping up bits and pieces as she goes, preferring old and salvaged over new. She’s gradually accumulated fixtures and furnishings, acquiring only what she could find for free or cheap, preferring to live a simple life so she can spend more time with her kid on the inside.
Lulu’s construction feels both pleasant and efficient, even if it isn’t the most opulent of tiny residences. The house is in someone’s backyard, and she simply pays a minimal monthly rent for water and electricity. Her only other outgoing is the cost of her butane tanks in Argentina. When I showed this to my brother, he replied, You’ve always liked poverty with style, she told Faircompanies.com. I always prefer elegant.
Poor Lulu has unquestionably embraced the simple life, and despite the fact that she lives in a shipping container, she is surrounded by a stunning landscape complete with green Hills and even a chicken coop. Material things. Everything is borrowed. We’re all just borrowers, she continued. We try to fix ourselves in these identities like my house, my spouse, my car, my family and my job.
But none of it’s ours. The more it grows, the more certain I am of who I am, and it’s as if this house is a jail and I’m enslaved to the bank. Lulu has adopted a minimalist lifestyle and is pleased with what she has. Lulu has always admired Eastern culture and way of life, and she’s inspired by Wabi Sabi, a Japanese aesthetic that emphasizes acceptance of transience and imperfection as well as finding beauty in the fleeting and incomplete. Lulu enjoys living in a home that represents the transient essence of life which can be seen throughout her space.
She embraced this way of life totally many years ago and is grateful that she can now live a life that’s in line with her ideals. When you don’t have a lot of money, Lulu said in her interview, you just have to get more creative.
And that was certainly the case in the outfitting of her new house, which was formerly a shipping container. She got a lot of the building components from the junkyard, which she discovered repurposed. Many others have been inspired by people like Lulu, who have embraced simple life and have begun to look outside the box in order to possess their own home.
With the associated costs, she gathered materials such as flooring, cupboards and cabinets that had previously been used but were still in good condition and functioned properly. The container home is entirely functional, including a toilet, bathtub, sinks and even a play room. For Lulu’s daughter. She might think it’s only a temporary house, but Lulu has all she needs here, and the limits of the container she’s turned into a home don’t allow for a lot of stuff. The space in the original cargo container was limited, with only 160 sqft.
Available for the two of them to occupy. Lulu decided to expand the container by constructing a new bedroom on an old flatbed trailer in order to significantly enhance the size of the area. Because she already had the frame for a container home, attaching any changes to the shipping container’s construction was much easier.
She’s also stated that she hopes to expand even further in the future. Lulu is friends with Janine Alexander, a tiny house builder from the same area, and is familiar with some of the industry’s biggest stars, including Jay Schaefer, the creator of Tumbleweed Tiny House Company.
Jay has been dubbed the poster child of tiny houses, and many people turned to him for advice on how to build and design them. Janine has assisted Lulu with the practicalities of creating a house out of a shipping Container by coaching and mentoring her.
One of the best things about making a house out of a shipping container is that Lulu can pack it up and transport it wherever she wants whenever she wants. If you want to own a home but also want to travel, this mobility can be really beneficial. The durability and toughness of shipping containers are sometimes underestimated advantages.
Consider this. Shipping containers are designed to transport important cargo in inclement weather making them ideal for travel. The tiny house movement is motivated by a desire for simplicity, conservation and selfsufficiency. In terms of taxes, building, heating, maintenance and repair expenditures, smaller residences are less expensive than larger ones. It’s become a more viable option for many people who cannot afford to buy a home or even take out a mortgage.
The downsizing movement is capturing the attention of the broader public and many people are looking to the pioneers for ideas for their own houses. Those with limited funds may benefit from the lower cost of living.
Small dwellings may encourage an uncluttered simpler lifestyle as well as less than other negative effects on its residents. The tiny house movement theme is similar to the Minimalist movement which has gained popularity in recent years. Minimalism, like the tiny house movement, can be regarded as a tool that can help people downsize their lifestyle and need for belongings.