A family of five lost nearly everything during the real estate crash of 2007-2008. This humbling moment gave them a new perspective on life, and they decided to make a change in lifestyle. They decided to downsize.
With a new take on life, the family of five picked up and moved to a small town in Wyoming in a home that was only 665 square feet.
“We began by carefully considering what could stay and what had to go. We gave up much. We gave away much. We sold much. But we gained even more. We moved to small-town Wyoming. We moved to ancient mountains, clear streams, and clean air. For us, financial security was no longer linked to the size of the portfolio or the potential of real estate holdings; financial security now meant zero debt and a job well loved. Home security meant building a 665 square foot portable guest cabin, placing it on rented land, and living there while saving our cash to buy land and build a house. Life security meant adjusting parameters to ensure more time for passions and less for obligations,” Carmella Rayone says on their blog.
This two-story cabin might be a bit on the small side, but the family of five fits perfectly. Let’s take a peek.
Walking through the rustic front door, you enter the surprisingly large room that serves as the living space, kitchen, and dining room.
The vaulted ceilings and large windows make the room feel open, airy, and spacious.
The white wood and white decor are another great way to make a small space feel bigger.
Gray curtains hide storage that the family uses as a pantry and the built-in bookcase holds decor and knick-knacks. The stairs lead up to the children’s sleeping loft, and the hallway leads to the bathroom and master bedroom.
The dining room is simple and understated, but practical.
The bench seating also doubles as extra storage.
The beautiful kitchen flows seamlessly with the surrounding living space.
Although they don’t have a dishwasher, garbage disposal, or microwave the family opted for a stove and oven to cook family dinners.
The knives cleverly fit in the unused space behind the range.
The master bedroom continues with the white plank walls and neutral-colored decor.
“A local carpenter built four cabinet/wardrobes, one for each corner of the room. Here on either side of the bed, the wardrobes were designed with nooks for books, clocks, and nighttime necessities – the perfect stand-in for bedside tables.”
Just outside the master bedroom, you can find the simplistic bathroom.
With five people bathing and showering, there needs to be plenty of room for towels.
The upstairs loft is just 15′ x 13,’ and even though it’s tiny, it’s the perfect space for the family’s three boys and all of their toys.
The ceiling only peaks at 5-feet, but they’ve managed to make room for storage and a computer desk.
“The bunk partitions were made to specification by a local carpenter out of beaded tongue and groove pine. He attached them to the ceiling and floor by screwing through the top and bottom cleats (the horizontal pieces that look like trim). Standard framed walls or partitions would have taken up too much space.”
With the computer desk on one wall, each bed is neatly tucked against the other three walls. Storage is hidden underneath each one.
They threw in an extra desk for good measure.
After seeing how this family of five lives in such a small space, do you think you’d be able to make the change and downsize?
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