With space and square footage becoming ever more expensive and difficult to find, a new trend in micro-living is becoming part of urban culture. Down-sizing or small-space-living has now become a component of the rental market, where the cost of merely surviving has sky-rocketed in recent years.
For those of us who value leisure time or short vacations away, booking into a hotel or short-stay rental accommodation through an online company such as Airbnb can also be unaffordable. Whilst camping and sleeping on the earth’s floor can be a little too rough and ready for some, micro-trailers have arrived on the market and may be a solution to our getaway desires. Usually weighing less than a thousand pounds, these are compact enough to be towed by smaller vehicles and a good quality trailer can cost as little as $3000 USD.
Mobile Tiny Home
Still too pricey for you?
Then meet Washington man, Paul Elkins.
A self-taught designer, artist, and former employee of Boeing, Elkins first attended the Burningman art festival in 2000; a place that would awaken his inner creativity and launch his ingenuity. Two years later he fell in love with micro-camping when he toured the country. (1)
Convinced he could build something affordable, Paul began developing and creating his “micro Airstream bike camper”.
The super durable and lightweight “home away from home” is 6 foot 5 inches in length, weighs 60 pounds, and is light enough to be towed by a bicycle. For the walls and floor, Elkins used 5 recycled campaign signs made from coroplast plastic fastened together with zip ties. Duct tape was used to seal joints and make the structure waterproof.
Sitting on a wooden frame and two 20” wheels, the aerodynamic design comes complete with the following features included:
- Pop-up windows
- Skylight
- Bubble insulation
- Stove
- Sink
- Storage units
- Shelving
- LED lighting
- Rear reflective lights
- Foam bed
- Stereo system
The total cost of his “Nomad Bicycle Camper” was a mere $150 USD and all the materials can be found at your local DIY store. (2)
Interview
Filmmaker, Kirsten Dirksen, who interviewed Elkin at his home for Tiny House Design website said, “His work is inspiring because he pushes minimalism to the extreme.” She continued, “While his tiny structures are lightweight, weatherproof, and portable they are also functional and include all the essentials. From a tiny house design perspective, his work serves an extreme example that sets the standard for small and outside-the-box thinking”.
Inventive Designs
Mr. Elkins’ creativity has also led him to design and build several other projects from coroplast, also known as fluted plastic. A small example of these include:
- Speed Boat
- Box Boat
- Dog House
- Teepee
- Homeless Emergency Shelter
- Micro Mobile Art Studio
All of his inventions and design tutorials can be purchased with prices ranging from $5 – $20 and can be downloaded in PDF form from his website – elkinsdiy.com. You can also check out Paul’s lifestyle and take a virtual tour of his mobile tiny home via his YouTube channel and share your thoughts with him and his 116k subscribers. (3)
Micro-living is not for everyone but if you like a bit of eccentricity in your life, then maybe this is for you.
