Category Archive: Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU)

A live/work laneway house for a graphic artist | Lanefab

The owner’s personality shines through in this Vancouver laneway house. A freelance graphic artist, she asked Lanefab Design/Build to design a small house that would be both her home and her workplace. Small… Continue reading

A sweet little Southern-style cottage

We came across this tiny jewel of a cottage on Airbnb. The “Tale Inn” is located in Fairhope, a town on the Gulf Coast south of Mobile, Alabama. Its pleasing proportions, welcoming porch… Continue reading

Crows’ Hermitage, a converted stone barn in Ireland

A compact stone barn in the Irish countryside is now a sumptuous holiday cottage perfect for romantic escapes. The current owner converted the barn, now named Crows’ Hermitage, and has been using it… Continue reading

A Seattle backyard cottage for empty-nesters | microhouse

With their children out of the nest, one Seattle couple was looking to downsize from the large home where they had raised their family. However they did not wish to leave the Tangletown… Continue reading

Cost-saving strategies in a small California beach house

It’s no secret that housing costs eat up a significant chunk of most people’s budgets. Many people are drawn to the small house movement in the hopes that it will enable their dreams… Continue reading

Two Birds laneway house | Lanefab

The Two Birds laneway house is somewhat of an anomaly for Vancouver, Canada. Because it is built on a large (for Vancouver) lot of 80′ in width, architect Bryn Davidson of Lanefab Design/Build… Continue reading

Buttercup laneway house in Vancouver

This Craftsman-style laneway house sits in a Vancouver, Canada, backyard. The Buttercup Guest House is one of the hundreds of laneway houses built in Vancouver since its laneway housing program was adopted 2009.… Continue reading

The Cypress Laneway House | Smallworks

A young couple added this compact laneway house to their property in Vancouver, BC, intending to use it as a “mortgage helper” by renting it out. Because their lot is located on a… Continue reading

Contemporary coastal cottage on Bowen Island, BC

Visitors to coastal British Columbia can enjoy ocean views from this small cottage on Bowen Island, just a short ferry ride from Vancouver. Other windows look into the adjacent forest of majestic cedars… Continue reading

Tiny house for sale in Vancouver — must be moved

$20000 / 250ft2 – Tiny house / cabin / studio (Vancouver) 12′ x 24′ footprint tiny house FOR SALE! Yes, the entire house! So reads an ad on Craigslist for Vancouver, British Columbia.… Continue reading

MEDCottage, a tiny house designed for the elderly

What to do with an aging parent or grandparent who can no longer live independently? That question will be asked more frequently as the population ages. For some families, having granny move into… Continue reading

Compact guest cottage in Portland | Dyer Studio

Living in a one-bedroom bungalow, Stephanie and Sam Dyer didn’t have much room for overnight guests and couldn’t offer them any privacy. With both sets of parents making regular extended visits, they decided… Continue reading

A grandmother’s modern backyard cottage | microhouse

Wanting to be closer to her family, Sylvia recently moved from North Dakota to this modern “granny flat” in her daughter’s Seattle backyard. When her daughter’s family purchased their house, they had made… Continue reading

The Birdhouse

Since our last three featured homes were all tiny houses that cater to single-level living, we decided it was time for something different. Today’s home is also tiny, but this one is a… Continue reading

Susan’s tiny backyard cottage with a loft and stairs | New Avenue Homes

Susan had a cottage built behind her small California bungalow to provide more space for when her daughter’s family visits. The tiny dwelling was designed and built by New Avenue Homes, and is… Continue reading

Garden Pavilion | Gary Shoemaker and Ninebark Design Build

This copper, glass and cedar structure sits in a Seattle backyard. The owners were outgrowing their small house but didn’t want to leave the neighborhood. A relative, the principal of New York studio… Continue reading

Hillsborough River dock house

A ramshackle exterior conceals a modern residence in this truly unique character home. The small house is built at the end of a pier in the Hillsborough River within sight of downtown Tampa,… Continue reading

A storybook cob cottage

Cob is an age-old method of building that can be used to create very unique organically-shaped structures. This particular example, called the Cob Cottage, is situated on Mayne Island, a quiet and laid-back… Continue reading

Artwood Cottage

Artwood Cottage is a cozy vacation hideaway in the woods on Pender Island, part of the Gulf Islands chain along the southern coast of British Columbia. The small cottage was restored by its… Continue reading

Katrina Cottage | GMF+ Associates

“Katrina Cottages” were tiny and small house designs from a number of architects intended to allow households to quickly rebuild following the devastating 2005 hurricane that destroyed tens of thousands of houses along… Continue reading

The Piedmont Cottage, a tiny backyard cottage in Portland

The Piedmont Cottage sits in an older neighborhood of North Portland, Oregon. It is a small backyard cottage currently being used as a vacation rental unit. This cottage likely started out life as… Continue reading

The Wee House Company

The Wee House Company is a recent Scottish startup offering energy-efficient small houses designed to appeal to first-time homebuyers, downsizing empty-nesters and anyone wanting to add a rental cottage or “granny flat” to… Continue reading

A bright and spacious little backyard cottage | ART Design Build

The owner of a house in Maryland asked ART Design Build to replace an old one-car garage with a small accessory dwelling unit. She also requested that her new backyard cottage be made… Continue reading

The Tardis, a tiny tower house | Edwards Moore Architects

This mini tower is located in a central Melbourne, Australia, neighborhood. The “Tardis” as it is now called was originally an octagonal gazebo-type structure built on top of a brick backyard shed. Wanting… Continue reading

  • Enter your email address to receive notifications of new posts by email. Your email will never be shared or used for anything else.

  • Join our Facebook community!