Garden Spa Retreat
My newest house-renovation obsession is putting a tiny gym / sanctuary at the top of the garden. Backyard offices are all the rage now, so why not a gym? There’s no space in the house and after spending some time on my mom’s exercise bike the other day, I realized I definitely need to make home exercise an option – Vermont doesn’t really have gyms anywhere near us, and tacking on extra time to the commute isn’t going to happen. Doesn’t a sunny yoga spot at the top of the garden sound amazing – something open and airy and recharging? And someday, we add a potential dry sauna for a tiny retreat spa. I’m holding out until New Year’s resolution folks drop their nice exercise equipment on Craigslist…between that and using salvage materials, it seems pretty do-able. Sure, there’s a lot of other house-fixing that needs to be done, but there’s something to be said for prioritizing health.
While I’m dreaming and saving my pennies, here’s some inspiration.
Summerhouse by Ullmayer Sylvester Architects
Erin
January 7, 2013 at 10:27 am (136 days ago)Gorgeous! That second one looks so airy, I’d love to spend time there, even if I was chugging on a treadmill.
Amy
January 7, 2013 at 11:01 am (136 days ago)I would try to LIVE in the last two examples, they’re so dreamy. It would almost be worth getting rid of everything to live in such a tiny, lovely, calming space.
verhext
January 7, 2013 at 11:06 am (136 days ago)I know, right?! One of the sites does them and calls them “granny annexes”, haha.
If we built one it would only be about 14′ x 14′ – tiny!
Lillian
January 7, 2013 at 11:37 am (136 days ago)The second one is my aunts house, how strange to see it pop up here. It is really lovely. My husband and I just bought a house with a huge yard and we are planning on building a studio/workshop and these a re great inspiration.
verhext
January 7, 2013 at 11:41 am (136 days ago)No way! It’s so great! We’ll need something a little less open to the elements, but I love the look and shape.
The end of our yard is at the top of a hill, so the views will be amazing too!
Ceej
January 7, 2013 at 11:42 am (136 days ago)We’ve dreamed about building tinyhouse so. much. Here are the most affordable ways we think we could make it happen:
-Buy the biggest size gambrel shed, pre-built. The seller can usually deliver it to you. Then insulate and finish it as you see fit. Add windows. Whatever. The sides are wood, so WAY easy to modify.
-Build a structure out of Earth Bags (if you haven’t heard of this, look it up…pretty incredible). Most labor intensive, but cheapest. Can use lots of reclaimed materials. Totally personalizable.
-Buy used mobile home/trailer type deal and fix it up. Has potential to be awesome, but h arder to modify the structure itself. Least work to insulate and time to start using, though.
Also I will be super. effing. jealous. So heads up for that.
verhext
January 7, 2013 at 11:53 am (136 days ago)With the cabin (http://www.verhext.com/autumn-mountains), we used pine shiplap (cheap!!) & all the windows and the door were free salvage materials. We started with a tiny footprint – it’s bigger than those pictures now, being able to just add on and work when we’re able helps too. For this structure we’d keep it a lot simpler – 14 x 14 floor plan, one story (the cabin is 2), slanted basic roof. Using free salvage materials wherever possible keeps the costs way down, too. The spot it would be on is not accessible by anything but on foot, so transporting anything pre-built up there isn’t possible!
If you’re willing to do the building yourself, & to scour Craigslist for freebies, materials might actually be less than a gambrel shed. It’s worth looking into!
Ceej
January 7, 2013 at 12:28 pm (136 days ago)Ugh I want to build a tinyhouse so much. We fell in love with a piece of land nearly a year ago that STILL hasn’t sold, and good gracious so much with the wanting.
Cannot WAIT to see what you do with this top-of-hill inaccessible-by-vehicle space.
verhext
January 7, 2013 at 12:31 pm (136 days ago)Can you afford to put any offer in? Maybe just low ball the heck out of it?
Ceej
January 7, 2013 at 12:36 pm (136 days ago)We just bought a car and used the bulk of our savings as the down payment. The dealership forgot to TAKE this money, but…we’re guessing they’ll remember soon. If we could magically keep this, we’d be most of the way to the lowball offer down payment. But. As it is, don’t securely have enough for a down payment at the moment. Could afford FHA down payment, but then the property would have to be up to FHA standards, and it is decidedly not. Dreaming: On.
verhext
January 7, 2013 at 12:00 pm (136 days ago)Oh! Another tip – the big windows on the side of the cabin? A free sliding glass door that we separated to use as windows.
Portia
January 7, 2013 at 12:05 pm (136 days ago)Since I live in a row home in Philly, we don’t have a yard for a tinyspace, but I do have a half-fourth-floor, a front room (also 14 x 14), really, that opens onto our back roof deck. I have been trying for years to make this a sacred space – whether for meditating, yoga, work, whatever. Last year we painted it a color that I like, and this year I hope to finally make it something I will use in a much better way than as a passthrough to where the peppers are planted.
hungryandfrozen
January 7, 2013 at 12:54 pm (136 days ago)These are so beautiful! I would never want to leave them. Although in the depths of winter I could also imagine myself curling up on the floor in there with a blanket and a book for hours as opposed to doing any actual exercise.
kayce
January 7, 2013 at 5:01 pm (135 days ago)I love these. It strangely reminds me of the forts we used to build as kids. I like to tell myself I would love to live in a teeny house but realistically I know that’s crap. I love space.
We converted our spare bedroom (aka future baby room, ha) into a home gym and I love it. We even bought a treadmill for cheap off craigslist.
verhext
January 7, 2013 at 9:26 pm (135 days ago)I can’t do it.
We’ll turn it into an office if the time comes, and probably throw an exercise bike in there for now…but. Meh. It’s still empty.
Brittany - the Home Ground
January 7, 2013 at 9:13 pm (135 days ago)What a wonderful idea! I love the idea of an outdoor tiny spa/workout space. Did you see my blog post with my 9 favorite outdoor studios? Pretty much the same idea, I would just use mine differently. I’m not a modern girl at heart, but the screened porch design from Poteet Architects just steals my breath away!
verhext
January 7, 2013 at 9:26 pm (135 days ago)No!! I will go look now!
Brittany - the Home Ground
January 7, 2013 at 9:32 pm (135 days ago)I think you’ll love them
Samantha
January 8, 2013 at 12:39 pm (135 days ago)Such a great idea, and those inspiration pictures have me nearly drooling!
Heiress Emma
January 14, 2013 at 1:40 am (129 days ago)Oh this makes me want to run out and buy land in the country so I can build a little house like this. *sigh*
Christy Tyler
January 29, 2013 at 11:10 am (114 days ago)This would be amazing!!!! I wish we had at-home cardio options so badly. We have free weights & yoga mats, but no bike or treadmill. It could really come in handy when it is freezing & I’m too lazy to leave the house. Or when I want to watch trashy TV. Just saying.