Whether in a tiny house or a small house - Living Small also implies a degree of self sufficiency, but is this realistic - must we become Hippies from the 60’s to have a better lifestyle?!

You can simplify your life wherever you live - urban or rural; Lloyd Kahn the original small living guru wrote, rather comfortingly, in Shelter that

- self sufficiency is a direction, not an attainable goal. The idea is to do as much for yourself as possible - not ploughing your own fields with horses or growing your own wheat or making your own shoes but doing something within the context of your life: remodelling a house, creating a studio, building a table or bed, fitting in things like a productive garden or chickens or homemade bread, or lettuce and chives in pots on the window sill.

It’s a tightrope act, finding the right balance these days, between work for others and work for yourself, between creating things with your own hands and buying things from others. Just like finding a balance between sitting at a computer and physical activity.

Small is a path on a journey - houses evolve naturally - adapting to the needs of their occupants - this is ‘proper architecture’ in my opinion - see Stuart Brand’s fascinating book How Buildings Learn - if small facilitates young people achieving their first home then being able to add to it as needs and funds allow - means they means will have a healthy regard for their own property and not be pressurised by having to aspire to some unachievable mansion lifestyle which is not only un-affordable but unsustainable.