She Turned a Shed Shell Into Her Dream Home for $47K

This video is sponsored by #MrCool. Learn more by visiting their website here: https://bit.ly/mrcooltht Margo's Instagram: Instagram: margo.does.stuff Margo's Website: https://www.margofairchild.com/ Check out our other social media platforms! https://linktr.ee/tinyhometours Join our newsletter for all things living tiny! https://bit.ly/THT-Newsletter Take our quiz to find what tiny is right for you - https://bit.ly/tinyhomequiz Interested In Being Featured On The Channel? : https://bit.ly/THTTourApplication VIDEO DESCRIPTION: Margo built her entire DIY tiny home for under $47,000, and inside you will find a queen-size bed, a full-size bathtub, and a diner booth that seats four. She did almost everything herself, from the electrical to every single cabinet, and the result is 240 square feet that feels nothing like a compromise. The kitchen layout was dictated by the bathroom. Margo knew early on that the bathtub she wanted would determine how much room she had everywhere else, so she made every inch count. She has a full-size oven (she loves to bake cookies and was not willing to give that up), an elevated good-size refrigerator, a lazy Susan, and a custom pantry tucked into the wall that holds everything she needs. The cabinets are prefab, painted by hand. The details throughout, like Victorian pulls gifted from an 1800s Portland home and a hammered metal backsplash, give the kitchen real character without the price tag. Margo sourced a piano cover from a junkyard and a cabinet from a thrift store, keeping her eyes open for anything with charm. The design of the lounge started with one decision: chartreuse and teal wallpaper. Everything else, the apricot custom-made couch, the cabinet colors, the warm lighting, all came from that single anchor. The couch is custom made to fit (slightly under six feet) and is the most-used spot in the house. Margo recessed the TV into the wall after realizing a flat-mounted screen at that distance was not going to work. A European-style window opens inward and vents from the top, bringing in natural light and airflow. The MrCool mini-split handles Central Virginia's humid summers and Margo says she would not be able to live in the house without it. Just across from the lounge is the diner booth. It seats four, doubles as a craft table and office, and is where her dog Lola spends most of her time. Above it is Margo's queen-size bed, which she calls non-negotiable. At 5'10, a twin was never an option. A skylight adds nine extra inches of headroom and a blackout roller shade keeps mornings dark. The channel-tufted headboard is about five inches deep and houses a fire extinguisher, a skylight-breaking tool, a small ladder, and a sound machine. The wardrobe and pantry share one custom-built unit. That is the only reason both could fit. The bathroom has two matching four-foot windows (about $75 each), a regular toilet, a medicine cabinet, and the full-size bathtub Margo refused to cut. By orienting it end-entry rather than side-entry, the whole layout clicked into place. THE DETAILS Home: DIY shed shell, self-finished Builder: Amish-built shell (Margo self-completed) Year: Shell purchased fall 2020, completed and moved in 2023 Dimensions: 12x20 (240 sq ft main level + approx. 32 sq ft loft) Shell cost: $8,800 All-in cost: ~$47,000 Monthly: $500/month (family property, utilities included) Plumbing: ~$10,000 (only part she hired-out for) HER ADVICE "As a woman in my twenties at the time, there were some moments I would kind of get into my head, you know, who am I to think that I can build this entire house by myself? But once I started looking at it from the perspective of it being a thousand tiny projects that needed to be completed, it was a lot more easy to manage. I didn't need to know how to do absolutely everything all at once. I just had to go down the list and chip away at it one by one." SHOT BY: Instagram: sagetraveling EDITED BY: Instagram: sagetraveling TINY HOME TOURS LINKS: Business Inquiries - [email protected] Subscribe - tinyhometours Facebook - Facebook: Tinyhome.tours Instagram - Instagram: tinyhometours Newsletter : https://bit.ly/THT-Newsletter Podcast : https://bit.ly/tinyhometourspodcast Apply for a tour : https://bit.ly/THTTourApplication