Nacogdoches Co. couple enjoying tiny house

NACOGDOCHES COUNTY, TX (KTRE) - Evan Coulson and Gabrielle Hodges agree living in a home built on an eight foot by 20 foot trailer is a bit unconventional.

"The average home could fit about 20, about 20 of these in it," Coulson said.

Guests invited inside quickly learn a person can live with less.

"All we've done is we've taken all that in between space out of the equation and we just use our livable space," Evan Coulson said.

Natural knotty pine provides a golden glow to the surroundings, perfect for these two outdoor educators.

"Everything is made of plastic" Hodges said. "There's definitely a need for it and there are places it is used, but it's one of those things that I think is overused and I try to avoid when I can."

There's a space for everything. What you sit on is likely something more.

"So we have lots of storage underneath," Coulson said.

Shelves hold books and other valuable possessions.

There's even a second story in this tiny house.

"We have a ladder for that, but it's also good for kicking up to make sure the bed is made before company comes over," Coulson said.

After considerable thought about paring down, the couple gave away much of their combined households. That's tough for a collector.

"I'm still breaking that cycle of having that desire to buy stuff to make me feel good," Hodges said.

"It's fantastic to break that addiction to consumerism," Coulson said.

Drawbacks include be careful when you invite the gang over.

"Maybe nine at one time might be the most we had in the house and it's tight," Coulson said.

The two want to build a larger home someday, but for now they make this space their own.

"Probably the craziest thing about it is that I don't feel like it's crazy anymore," Hodges said.

"We kinda stopped thinking of it as a tiny house," Coulson said. "It is just home to us now."

Copyright 2012 KTRE. All rights reserved.