If you follow us on social media, you likely saw our announcement about our new project with popular YouTube creators, Trent & Allie!
Known for their adventurous videos about their life inside a remodeled van, traveling throughout South America, these two are no strangers to living “tiny”. So when they approached our team with the idea to build a tiny cabin, we were thrilled! The “tiny house movement” (and even more popular “simple living” movement) have both been intriguing to us for a while. We had been eager to help a client build a home with this “less is more” type of lifestyle in mind.
why trent & allie decided to go tiny
After spending the better part of 3 years living in their van with their adopted dog, Frank (who is adorable, by the way), the newlyweds decided it was time to lay down some roots. They were craving a more permanent home-base to come back to after their travels. To keep it from feeling like they were “settling down”, they agreed on building a small cabin in the remote and beautiful mountains of Utah. Although the final home will be just under 1,000 square feet (a far cry from the average 2,305 square foot home in Utah), it will actually feel big compared to their previous home on wheels.
starting a project from abroad
Because we met through social media (what an interesting time we are living in, right?) much of our initial communication was done online. In fact, even the property where they planned to build the home was purchased sight-unseen from afar!
Trent sent over a drawing of what they hoped the cabin would look like, and our team paid a visit to the site in person to evaluate the plans. After experiencing the location in person, Brittany (our Principal Architect) made a few changes to the design.
At first, Trent was a little apprehensive (as you can see in this episode), but ultimately realized that the changes were in place to help take full advantage of the beautiful views their lot had to offer!
beginning construction
Trent & Allie hired a local contractor to begin construction, and broke ground on their new cabin in June.
During the first few weeks of construction, they quickly realized they had a problem...a water problem! After digging out the basement, it soon became completely flooded. Luckily, this problem is nothing that a drainage system can’t solve. This is the kind of inevitable “bump” that can arise during construction - and it’s exactly why it’s important to have a team of professionals in your corner to guide you through and advise you on what needs to be done!
a race against utah's unpredictable weather
Together, Trent & Allie will be doing 90% of the actual building themselves - and no, they’ve never built a house before! But, these two are so driven and courageous, we have full confidence in their ability to get it done before the first snowflake hits the ground this winter!
You can follow along on their journey by subscribing to their YouTube channel, @TrentAndAllie. Stay tuned on our social media profiles as well! You can find us @uncommonarch on both Instagram and Facebook.