Once upon a time, Arianne and Sean lived separately in Las Vegas, managing a combined 4,000 square feet of space. But their journey to “happily ever after” in a 150-square-foot Alaskan tiny house began with a simple newspaper clipping.
Arianne had long dreamed of downsizing, but her passion was ignited when her mother sent her a Tumbleweed tiny house feature from the Denver Post. “Sean and I wanted to live a greener lifestyle,” she said, inspired by her partner’s work in sustainable energy. Downsizing was a way to embrace this lifestyle and plan a move to Alaska.
Teaming up with Tumbleweed, they designed their ideal home, an Elm model, tailored for Alaskan conditions with high R-value insulation and electric heating. They also wanted a unique exterior that Tumbleweed had never done before: a combination of cedar lap siding on the lower half and cedar board and batten on the upper half, giving their home a distinct look. The tiny house also featured four skylights and two lofts, creating a cozy yet adventurous living space.
The next challenge was transporting their tiny home from Colorado to Anchorage. Their journey began with a scenic drive along the Pacific Coast Highway, followed by an unforgettable voyage on the Alaskan Marine Highway Ferry. “We were towing our house, and it barely fit on the ferry!” Arianne recalled, laughing at the memory of the surprised ferry workers.
After arriving in Anchorage, they quickly embraced their new lifestyle. Arianne now pilots C-17s for the Air Force, a plane large enough to house six tiny homes. They’ve settled into their new community and even had a surprise visit from a curious moose on their porch, perhaps pondering a tiny home for himself!
Who knows? Maybe he’s just looking for a little extra antler room.
The state ferry has never docked in Anchorage, maybe they got off in Whittier or homer.
Dear Jay: Wide trailer, left side porch open, right side porch bedroom. Loft living room to large bathroom, entrance to bathroom in hallway to the right or left, window at end of hall or back porch. Stairs to upstairs loft in front of bathroom. End of upstairs – one side bedroom, one side bathroom, kitchen on side. Fireplace on other side of upstairs loft. Tall house upstairs and Navy Blue roof, maybe. Upstairs kitchen Rust with Navy Blue and Almond and Tan, maybe. Bathroom tile with heater and sliding door so that heat can escape (heaters in bathroom. Bathroom shower has stairs and trays to catch the water that are in hallway. Kitchen has propane oven/stove and sink that empties in to bucket. Counter, sink, counter, oven. Toilets are 5 gallon buckets, two seats – one with garbage bag. This house has fire for heat, propane for heat and oven and electrical hook-ups (if available) for electronics. All sinks are buckets and so are toilets. I wanted to share this design for the wide trailer. I’ve had some help and worked on this for years. Please use my ideas. Thank you, Suzy