How Barn Doors Make Sense (and Space) in Tiny Houses

The tiny house is more than a small living space. Tiny house living has become a movement unto itself. We can trace the tiny house movement back to 1854 when Henry David Thoreau published Walden, chronicling his experience in a 150-square-foot cabin he built near Walden Pond outside Concord, Massachusetts. Walden offered a veritable blueprint to tiny house enthusiasts some 150 years later, celebrating the merits of simple living in tight quarters.

Fast forward to 2008 when the United States subprime mortgage crisis took hold, with foreclosure filings spiking to more than 81 percent, up 225 percent over 2006. At that time, the interest in downsizing and living in more modest homes—including tiny houses—spiked.

Today, people are choosing tiny house living more and more. Why? Those who have adopted this tiny house lifestyle do so to downsize, to save money, to simplify, and to live with less stuff. There is a freedom with this lifestyle and it is more than just living in a small house, although, of course, that is a part of it.

Maximize Space

How do you make the most of your tiny house and less space? One great way to maximize space is with a sliding barn door. Unless you live in a one room tiny house with no separation at all between spaces (and without a bathroom door, you might quickly tire of this type of living), you still need door openings.

Since space is minimal, a regular door will take up space on either side of the openings when it swings in and out. With a barn door, you don’t have this issue. Because the barn door slides to the side, you can use the space around it without worrying about the door getting in the way. And you have a great accent piece to add to the decor of your tiny house.

Functionality

Function comes first in a tiny house so your layout needs to follow your lifestyle. Whether you need home office space, entertain often, have out of town guests or have young children, all of this needs to be considered when creating your tiny home, and thus it should be designed accordingly.

Again, a key design element like a barn door can tie this together for both function and fun. If you need a home office space, use a barn door to close off an area in your tiny home for privacy and quiet. Or, since most tiny homes have loft bedrooms, you may wish to create a separate room that can act as sleeping quarters for guests with a barn door allowing for privacy. The options are endless.

Space-Saving Storage

Other things to consider with tiny house living include storage, storage and more storage. You can get this by building it into every available space. Built-in bookshelves are popular as is under-the-stair storage. Some tiny homes even have pull-out spice racks in the kitchen; you’d be amazed at how much storage you can find if you’re creative and willing to work at it.

When looking to save space, don’t forget the details. Something as seemingly innocuous as a set of cooking knives can take up quite a bit of real estate when stored in a traditional butcher block knife holder. Instead look for products like this nesting set. Each of the knives in this set fits inside the next so the whole set takes up just a little more room than the largest knife in the set, because every inch really does make a difference.

Tiny house living isn’t for everyone, but it can be a cost-effective, freeing way of life. There are so many ways to make tiny house living not only affordable but comfortable, fun, and even spacious with the right space saving design elements. A little planning, modification, the addition of a barn door, and some storage and you might find yourself in your very own lovely tiny house where you can enjoy the freedom that tiny-house living brings.

Need help choosing the right barn door for your tiny house space? Contact us today, we are here to help.