"[A] practical and transporting primer on the…skoolie movement" —Vogue.com For homeowners seeking a simpler life and apartment dwellers dreaming of their own space, tiny houses represent an inspiring, attainable ideal. For those fueled by wanderlust, converted buses—they call them “skoolies”—take the tiny house adventure one step further. Reborn as cozy homes, these retired school buses are ready to hit the road. And unlike the bohemian house buses of 1960s counterculture, many of today’s conversions adhere to a contemporary aesthetic of sleek minimalism. In The Modern House Bus, journalist Kimberley Mok shares 12 buses that are sure to inspire. These are families following a new American dream that values financial freedom over square footage, adventure over manicured lawns. Designed to fit the owner’s lifestyle and needs, the conversions are filled with inventive architectural details, creative materials, and unique style. Filled with photographs of the buses and their breathtaking surroundings and ideas space-saving hacks, this is a book for aspiring bus-owners and armchair adventurers alike.

School buses that have been converted into mobile living spaces — known as skoolies — are a natural extension of the tiny house craze. Buses are not only easier and safer to drive than an RV, they provide a jump-start on the conversion process with frame, roof, and floor already in place. Experienced builder Will Sutherland, whose creative school bus conversions have been featured in Road and Track and Popular Mechanics, is behind the wheel of this alluring look at life on the road. In addition to profiles of eight fellow skoolie fans and stunning photos of bus interiors designed for simple living, Skoolie! does what no other book on the subject has — it offers a complete, step-by-step guide to the conversion process, from seat removal to planning layout and installing insulation, flooring, and furnishings that meet your needs.

From the founder of the Instagram feed @TinyHouse, comes a small, chunky inspiration book filled with photographs of the smallest abodes—from vans and boats to tree houses and cabins. A die-cut cover acts as a window onto a simpler world of lighter living and sustainability that never sacrifices function or design. Imagine living debt-free in an environmentally-friendly home. No mortgage, no clutter, and boundless freedom. This is the reality and dream of people all over the world thanks to the widespread momentum of the tiny house movement in recent years. Designed to fit on the tiniest of coffee tables, this book features 250 full-color photographs of the smallest, most efficient homes around the world, with interviews, features, and smart tips straight from the homeowners. From tiny mobile homes in California, Nashville, and Minnesota to a surfer-built tree house in Washington to a school bus that has been converted to a camper in Oregon, this lookbook is packed with big inspiration.

A sampling of homes from builders who have created tiny homes (under 500 sq. ft.). Homes on land, homes on wheels, homes on the road, and homes on water, and homes in the trees. There are also studios, saunas, garden sheds, and greenhouses.

If you dream of living in a tiny house, or creating a getaway in the backwoods or your backyard, you’ll love this gorgeous collection of creative and inspiring ideas for tiny houses, cabins, forts, studios, and other microshelters. Created by a wide array of builders and designers around the United States and beyond, these 59 unique and innovative structures show you the limits of what is possible. Each is displayed in full-color photographs accompanied by commentary by the author. In addition, Diedricksen includes six sets of building plans by leading designers to help you get started on a microshelter of your own. You’ll also find guidelines on building with recycled and salvaged materials, plus techniques for making your small space comfortable and easy to inhabit.

Discover why tiny houses are such a big deal Welcome to the tiny house movement! This guide is the ideal introduction for the true beginner. Learn the history of the modern tiny house movement, get a breakdown of tiny house styles, and meet the passionate tiny house community with profiles of pioneers and their tiny homes. The book also discusses the pros and cons of micro living—is a tiny house right for you, right now? Take the self-evaluation quiz in chapter two and find out. Then, dive into the range of tiny house options and must-knows before taking the plunge. Benefits of downsizing—Find out how tiny houses are better for the environment, cheaper to maintain, and even meet housing shortages. Find a match—Fall in love with a tiny house that fits your style—from simple, stationary A-frames to creative tiny houses on wheels (or THOWs), all less than 400 sq ft. More to explore—The comprehensive resource section will help you dig deeper into tiny house construction options, off-grid living, and the art of downsizing. Learn about living large in the tiny house of your dreams!

"Alex is clearly a world citizen who disseminates on a wide variety of issues with amazing clarity. His refreshing views on a wide range of subjects are written with elegance and a light touch that does not cloud the issues." Veeno Dewan, Editor, Voice Newspaper "Alex Sangha has an impressively broad range of knowledge on issues that affect the world, and challenges problems that most people have come to accept. Sangha doesn't just point out the troubles in this world, but thinks of bold solutions for them." Jenny Uechi, Managing Editor, Vancouver Observer If you could adopt a single step and make a small difference, what would it be? What if you could cultivate multiple small steps that lead to a bigger, better, and brighter future? In this one of a kind social discussion guide, Vancouver visionary Alex Sangha delivers straight-talk on socio-economic, environmental, political, and spiritual issues that anyone can put to use. His mission? Getting people to think for themselves. His tools? The hard hitting articles he pens which call it like he sees it. This valuable volume is a collection of frank and insightful essays on the world in the 21st Century, through the eyes of a social activist immersed in it.

Do you have what it takes to convert your own bus into the living space of your dreams?If so, this book is written for you-the ambitious DIY dreamer.Jeff and Missy Miller have converted numerous buses into motorhomes, tiny homes, mobile stores, and food trucks from the ground up with their Skoolie Homes team. In this comprehensive DIY skoolie guide, they share all of their proven strategies and experiences with you so that you don't have to waste your time and money figuring it out alone. You will learn how to:* Purchase your bus with confidence* Design the right floor plan for your unique lifestyle* Gut your bus and create your foundation* Build the interior from the ground up* Maximize your living and storage spaces * Install your own plumbing and electrical systems* Prep, prime and paint the exterior* Save money on your conversion without cutting corners* Get your skoolie dream on the reality road This DIY Skoolie Guide is your comprehensive road map-giving you a clear plan on how to convert your bus from start to finish. From basic planning to completion, this book walks you through each step of the conversion process so that you can create your dream and get it on the road.

Join the tiny house trend! The tiny house movement is a big trend with a very small footprint. Extremely small house, with less than 1,000 square feet of space, are environmentally friendly, less expensive than typical homes, and often movable. Tiny Houses Built with Recycled Materials is full of ideas for using reclaimed materials and upcycled goods to construct a tiny house that is good for the earth and truly unique. Ryan Mitchell, author of The Tiny Life blog, shows you how to repurpose everyday items to create your new home, including shipping containers, salvaged barn wood, and reclaimed shingles. Featuring profiles on tiny house owners with photographs and floor plans of the homes, ideas on where to find materials, and what to look for and avoid when selecting reclaimed materials, Tiny Houses Built with Recycled Materials is a unique book perfect for your biggest DIY project yet!