Shedding is hot. Since the Netflix documentary 'Minimalism' we look differently for possessions and the books of the Japanese clean-up guru Marie Kondo have not been around for ages. Due to environmental considerations, the crisis but also personal peace, more and more people are trying to live with less resources.
A small and sustainable house on wheels
Similarly Marjolein Jonker who has been living in a Tiny House since May 2016 as one of the few in the Netherlands. It is a small and sustainable house on wheels that has its origins in America.
As a child, Marjolein grew up in a detached house with a vegetable garden where her father grew the vegetables that the Jonker family ate. Her mother baked bread herself. But when Marjolein grew up, such a home was not easily found. She decided not to work her whole life so that she could pay a very expensive mortgage and looked for alternative alternatives.
The wood-burning stove is roaring in its 20m2 sustainable house on a wasteland in Alkmaar. With her cat Hella, Marjolein pioneers as the face of Tiny House Netherlands, a small but strongly growing movement. She said her previous job and lives and works in her house that is fully equipped including sanitary facilities, a spacious kitchen, nice sitting area and wood stove.
"It takes a few hours before it is comfortable in winter. That is not bad, it suits me completely," Marjolein says while she is sitting in front of her heat source. For this the tiny house pioneer lived in a new house. A great place, but without any nature in the area. Marjolein: "That makes me happy: self-sufficient living in the middle of nature with trees and chickens in the neighborhood and a lesser focus on stuff."
In addition to being cheaper, the advantages of a Tiny House are that you produce less waste and use less energy and water.
The Tiny House Nederland foundation
The Tiny House movement has come over from America where it is popular. And although more and more people in the Netherlands need a simple and sustainable life and home, it is not so easy to get your own Tiny House. Marjolein informs interested parties with workshops, lectures and her website about the do's and don’ts of tiny living. "Because there is a lot of attention for Tiny Houses, people think that you can now just rent one. That is not the case, if you want a Tiny House at the moment, you should do a lot for it."
The difficulty of the tiny houses has to do with rules about land ownership, according to Marjolein who set up ''Tiny Findy', a website where providers and seekers of tiny house's and lots come into contact with each other. Municipalities should find their way in this. And, says: The people who want it, really do find a place.
On the website of the Tiny House Nederland foundation where Marjolein is the project leader, you can see how many municipalities are working on initiatives and research and where you can best start if you are interested in this alternative form of living.
If you have a Tiny House, it's all worthwhile, says Marjolein, who was looking for a suitable place for a long time by sending a note to the homeowners with a piece of land in the mailbox. "In exchange for rent or help, I wanted to use land to live on. I had no idea that this is impossible due to regulations. "
Tiny house in a green environment
Now Marjolein looks from one side of her house on a vacant lot and the other side a park. The scene comes close to the forest where she still hopes to live. For now, her doors are wide open in the summer, and she sits down in her cozy sitting area with a book in the winter.
For many things there is no room in a Tiny House, and that is fine, says Marjolein. "When I moved here from my previous home, I did not have much trouble with relaxing. Important for me was that there was a good, large kitchen - I love cooking (Maybe you also like: The Basics Of Slow Cooking)- and my books. Furthermore, I am actually happy with less. That feels very tidy."
The only thing Marjolein misses in her house is a greenhouse to grow tomatoes and cucumbers. "I would like to garden somewhere later. Or would I like to have a slightly larger house on the ground, mainly so that I have a cellar where I can store apples and potatoes. I think that's great, but until then it will be completely fine."
By: Nina Bogosavac
https://www.whatsorb.com/category/tiny-houses