My tiny home/cabin renovation ~ Part 1

My tiny home/cabin renovation ~ Part 1


Well, here we go!

This little former chicken/hog house has been staring at me from the stock-pond hill for four years...four years!

This building is an 11.5' x 16' round roofed quanset that we acquired for free! A local farmer needed it gone and I needed it in my yard. SO, we moved it in! For far too long, it sat unloved and used as storage until about a month ago when the rest of my free materials arrived.


I finally found the time to and the free materials to start renovation of my mom lodge. You have NO idea how happy I am that I'm getting this done! With the sole help of an ambitious 8-year-old, I'm finally getting somewhere.

I know it's not all that pretty right now, but just you wait.

After getting the insulation installed (for our cold North Dakota months) I used some salvaged barn siding to close off the interior walls:


Next, I spent $140 on plywood to cover the old rickety floor and give it some extra (well-needed) support. I would have loved to save the old floor, however, it would have taken months to bring them back to their former glory and my patience doesn't have months...

The next thing I did was remove the old chicken coop window which was just a plastic panel with open slats for airflow, and install two very large windows that were also acquired for free. They were salvaged from a new window install we did over the wintertime. This addition added so much natural light. This was NOT an easy feat by myself, but I did it:



Seeing as I put this lovely smooth plywood down, I decided I'd stain it to give it a little extra glory. I had some leftover Vintage Aqua stain - 1.5 quarts to be exact - and I hoped that it would be enough to cover the area. It most definitely was. I used all but 1/4 of a quart (which I'm saving for the shelving) after applying 2 healthy coats on the floor:


I'm a bohemian lady and I wanted to incorporate those beautiful bright bohemian colors into my mom lodge. This aqua floor turned out AMAZING! It brightened up the entire cabin! My next step is to install the two front windows (which took me some time to find and should've been done before the floor) and then sealing the entire inside. 

I found the small front windows for $40 apiece so my total investment so far is around $250 with the two extra batts of insulation I realized I needed.

My plan for the exterior is something extravagant resembling an old Gypsy caravan and done in wood. I don't like the vinyl siding it came with, but it serves its purpose while I wait. I still have to build a new front door since the existing one is barely hanging on, but it's holding its own for the time being and can be an afterthought. It doesn't leak yet, so we're good!


I'll be back for more updates as I go!
I hope you enjoyed it!




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