Small Homes: The Right Size

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Lloyd Kahn and Shelter Publications have assembled another gorgeous architectural book, this time focusing on Small Homes: The Right Size. After having published two other books about tiny homes, Lloyd has realized that many individuals and families are just not comfortable squeezing their lives into such small spaces. So he has scanned the world for moderately sized homes that are roughly between 400 and 1200 square feet (37 and 112 square meters), what he feels is the “sweet spot” between tiny and extravagant.

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New Zealand Bug Out Cabin

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I’ve been corresponding with one of our readers in New Zealand about low cost, alternative cabin building ideas with disaster preparedness in mind. We’ve talked about a whole range of ideas such as using straw bales for energy efficiency. The design presented here is DIY friendly, affordable, suitable for a grid-down situation and can be easily moved if desired.

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Nomadic Gardner Grows In Florida + Maine on Other People’s Land

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“After visiting Jim’s winter market garden in Florida, it’s time to follow up and see his summer market garden in Maine. See all the tricks of this nomadic gardeners trade.”

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Converting my chain link fence to a stone wall

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Finished faux stone wall
Finished faux stone wall

“I installed a chain-link fence in 1974, Now, with my pond, I wanted a better backdrop and more privacy than the chain-link fence provided. I also wanted a barrier to occasional water runoff from the schoolyard behind my property. A rock wall seemed to be the answer. This video shows how to use an existing fence as the base for a faux rock wall made from concrete. This is part one as the summer came to and end. Part two will be made when warmer weather returns.”

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Earthbag Retaining Walls for Pathways and Erosion Control

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Earthbag retaining walls for paths, landscaping, planters, steps and erosion control
Earthbag retaining walls for paths, landscaping, planters, steps and erosion control

Earthbags are most commonly used for houses, schools, greenhouses, survival shelters and water tanks. Another very practical use for earthbags is retaining walls. These can range from massive retaining walls along highways to small garden walls. This article is about terracing the land with low retaining walls to create pathways and to control water runoff.

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How 16 containers became 8 market-rate Phoenix apartments

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“On an old used car lot in Phoenix, architects Brian Stark and Wesley James placed 16 used shipping containers and turned them into 8 one-bedroom apartments. With the goal of creating market-rate rental units, the architects tried to work with the containers rather than altering them.

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