Shawn and Luise caught the tiny-house-bug several years ago. After attending a Tumbleweed workshop and purchasing a trailer in 2013, it took three years for the couple to finish their “Runaway Shanty.” Last week I interviewed Shawn and Luise to discuss their construction process and personal experience going tiny.

“(The construction process) was a really hard test on both our relationship and our own strength of will.” – Shawn and Luise

Shawn and Luis were faced with many challenges during their build: obtaining finances, resources, and managing construction with their full time jobs. In the end, all their hard work paid off. Runaway Shanty is absolutely stunning! Perhaps the most unique aspect of their design is the gambrel (barn-shaped) roofline.

Shawn and Luise love their gambrel roof, but it did make construction more difficult. For one, they needed to hire professional help and, secondly, it complicated the installation of their wood stove pipe which required a custom boot.

“If we had anticipated the struggle beforehand, it would have influenced our decision against this kind of roof.” – Shawn and Luise

Efficiency was an important factor in Shawn and Luise’s design. They imported special triple pane windows from Europe to increase their overall R-Value. The Kimberly wood stove, known for being extremely efficient, was also installed. Other “must have items” included: skylights, handmade materials such as their barn door from Better Barns Reproduction Hardware, travel souvenirs, Shawn’s collection of books and Luise’s grandmother’s household items.