The Hipster House: Tiny Victorian Resurrected (Part 2)

It was an ugly, tiny house. The exterior was all wrong. The hovel was awkward and confined even for 900 sq feet. Everywhere was damp, musty, and dark. The kitchen was located just inside the front door and the bathroom was well, hideous. Unfortunately this tiny house’s issues went beyond the cosmetic. There was no standard stud spacing…or sizes…some of the walls weren’t even made of studs. It was terrible and we made it beautiful.

Now follow me through the front door and admire the transformation

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We were originally hoping to keep the old floors but there was too much missing or severely damaged. The house is less than 900 sq feet therefore I really wanted consistency in the floor. So we  put in this engineered hardwood from a wholesale website (reallycheapfloors.com) that we purchased during one of their warehouse sales for 0.89/sq ft! I think they look fabulous.

I love the living room.

Opening up the entrance to the kitchen really brightened up both spaces and made the tiny house  feel so much larger. There is space for dining next to the corner cabinet and I love the old fashioned sconce with the Edison bulb. Simple and bright. One last look?

Onto the…?

Now look what we did…

Can you believe it is the same place?! It feels so fresh. This kitchen was a planning challenge; between the stairs to the second floor, the basement stairs, the side door, opening to the living room, the back hall, and the chimney there was right about zero space for anything.

Let’s unpack the kitchen…

Most of the kitchen came off craigslist or ebay.

The cabinets were from a kitchen I purchased off craigslist for about $200. We painted them a fresh white, added classic hardware, and patterned shelf liners. The countertops are project board from Lowe’s. They have a butcher block look and are fortunately very affordable. We finished the counters (and custom sink cabinet) with waterlox.

The cast iron sink and Fisher & Paykel dishwasher drawers were bargains from craigslist. The Fisher & Paykel refrigerator is an open box I bought off eBay and had delivered freight. It was the only refrigerator I could find that was counter depth, narrow, bottom freezer, had decent space, and could afford.

We mounted black pipe on the chimney and used scrap wood to make the classic industrial shelves for a little more storage space. I wish we had stained the sink base a different color, or painted it white, or added doors…or a curtain…or a back. Something. It looks not quite finished but at that point I was done with this house.

We also left the adorable in-swing casement window above the sink and just added a new lock so that it actually closed. I think it adds just a little more charm.

Onward and Upward…

Let’s check out the upstairs while we are right here.

So upstairs is thankfully a little brighter than downstairs. It is still dank, wet. Just gross. There is a charming little in-swing casement to the right in the last picture that we were able to save. We also built a casement for the back window.

Are you anxious to see what does it looks like now?

Naturally it is lighter and brighter! The loft room would be perfect for an office space, dressing room with rolling garment racks, or an occasional guest room. The front bedroom is now a true bedroom with 4 walls and a closet. There is space enough for a full or queen bed and the flooring and paint color just make the whole upstairs feel so airy.

Where is the bathroom?

Down the stairs and to the back of the house we head down a small hall and see this:

It’s dark, small, and yellowed. The door is a 1980s louvered bifold. Not exactly ideal for privacy. We replaced the door with one we removed from elsewhere in the house, mounted it on a track and made a space saving sliding door.

I wish I had more pictures of the bathroom because it turned out amazing. It felt bigger, brighter, modern, but with original charm. We got a tiny clawfoot tub, ideal for the tiny house, from craigslist My brother and I hauled that heavy sucker from a backyard and heaved it into our truck. I had to refinish the bottom and get the appropriate faucet setup but it turned out darling.

The vanity was another craigslist for $15. An open style, I modified it with some scrap hardwood flooring making a lower shelf that looked super hip. I am not sure how I never took a picture of it. The floors were also a craigslist find. 12 x 12 marble tile set in an an offset pattern that keeps it looking fresh. We were short 1 or 2 tiles but I can’t even tell which ones are different since there is so much natural variation. The subway tiles just keep it clean and are practical when water escapes the clawfoot.

Maybe I should have called this the craigslist house.

Now onto the last bedroom…

I know you are shocked…but it is dark, wet, and it smells.

To make this room it’s best self we only made a few changes. The most noticeable of which is we added a back door. The door was another craigslist find, this one was brand-new oops and the odd size was perfect for the space. Now this room can be used as a den, bedroom, or office. I imagined that whoever was living in this house would have a dog so I wanted a way for the pup to head out on a rainy day without owner having to go out too.

Interestingly when we went to install that door we discovered the back wall was not made of studs but was a wall of old doors. The original builders literally used left over doors to create the back wall like a kids fort. I will give them credit that it was solid. Needless to say that necessitated some extra unexpected framing.

Voila…

 

 

Let’s compare what a difference that door makes:

Amazing. Like the interior? Check out the exterior! Tell us what you think about the transformation in the comments.

Do you like reveals? Check out our work in progress (The Worst House) or any of our other renovation transformations.

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