Today the New York Times spotlights the work of Derek Diedricksen, a Massachusetts-based carpenter (and former drummer in a Rage Against the Machine tribute band called Age Against the Machine) who makes “playful micro-shelters” out of scavenged materials like shipping pallets, storm windows, and kitchen cabinets. The four tiny houses that he has built so far all have wacky names (“The Gypsy Lady,” “The Hickshaw”) and range in size from about 12 to 24 square feet as he is limited both by the space in his yard and the tolerance of his wife. “I had envisioned all these microstructures as places to sleep for the people who say, ‘Oh, I forgot my sleeping bag,'” he explains. “Almost like the Ewok village, all these little micro-shelters dotting my land.”
For those interested in following his footsteps, Diedricksen previously self-published a book, Humble Homes Simple Shacks Cozy Cottages Ramshackle Retreats Funky Forts , that will be reissued by the Lyons Press next year. (As the Times notes, the initial run was financed with “refunds from the beer bottles and cans he picked up on the trails he hiked around town with his dog.”) He also has a sporadically-updated YouTube series called “Tiny Yellow House,” which he launched last year to help promote the book. Check out the first few episodes of that below, and head over to the NYT for a virtual tour of the tiny homes.
Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3