MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Summer 2018

110 ML BLUE SUMMER 2018 work he did. Of course some days we cranked the tunes, and laughed the whole time, and left feeling accomplished, while other days we had our disagreements, didn’t get much done, and felt pretty crummy about it.” “I’ve learned a lot along the way,” says Collin. “I don’t have any kind of building background and it’s been really, what did you call it?” “Active design,” replies Zoe. “Design as you go.” “So yeah, we get up in the morning and start brand new things,” says Collin. “I figured things were gonna fizzle out at some point, but we kind of got past that point. We had a few challenges along the way.” “That’s an understatement,” says Zoe. Those challenges included things like framing in the entire structure only to realize the windows wouldn’t fit. Or buying three different kinds of flooring that didn’t work together. Or installing the ceiling tiles incorrectly then having to rip them out and discard them. Materials were upcycled when possible to keep costs down. “A lot of it was salvaged,” says Collin. “Windows and stuff that we scrounged, Kijiji, whatever we could do. People donated their stuff and their time and told us how to do stuff that we didn’t know how to do. Friends helped wire it, a neighbour down the way plumbed it for us. We couldn’t have done it without the help and knowledge of others.” Now parked in a local RV resort, like most home builds, it isn’t quite finished. There is always something more to be done. Final tallies on cost are at about $25,000 right now, but Zoe expects it will end up at about $30,000 once all is said and done. She has been living in it for the past couple of months and is loving her new home. “I didn’t actually think we were going to build something so cool,” she says. “I thought it would be like a fort on wheels, but this is pretty legit.” Legit indeed. Complete with an inspiring story of determination, persistence and good old-fashioned elbow grease. “Some days we cranked the tunes, and laughed the whole time, and left feeling accomplished, while other days we had our disagreements…” "We couldn't have done it without the help and knowledge of others..." The tiny home interior.