Less is more (more or less)

Posted on | June 16, 2010 | 2 Comments

Small is the new big. ‘Just big enough’ is the new sizing label. It’s happened with cars and appliances. I wonder if it will happen with homes.

Already in America we’re seeing builders of new homes foregoing the formal living rooms that people used two days a year if that. Cathedral ceilings are making way for more reasonable overhead space. Homeowners are realizing that dining rooms are a waste of square footage. But I fear that vast spa-like bathrooms, clothes closets that span the size of half a football pitch, and offices – that 21st century necessity, now, in a home – may be cancelling all of those out.

Now I could be smug and crow about how our master bedroom is smaller than the kids’ rooms, how we can’t even fit a double sink into our master bathroom, and how I squeeze my clothes and shoes into a reach-in closet that’s dwarfed by myown daughter’s. But that would be ignoring the simple fact that I, like most of the population, despite my philosophy that a bedroom is for sleeping in, and a bathroom is not there to be lingered in, nevertheless can’t help but envy large expanses of space.

Cars may have gotten smaller, but limos are still for hire. Printers and laptops may take up a fraction of the space they did 10 years ago, and microwaves and dishwashers may be fitting neatly under our counters and kitchen islands. But we’re all in lust with our colossal flatscreen TVs, aren’t we? And which would you prefer: a small loveseat in the corner, or a sprawling sectional sofa?

When it comes to your home and garden, big is still kind of beautiful, size does matter, and space is still a status symbol.

Not so, though, for a lady I met recently called Patty Lyons. Sixteen years ago she quit her job in Indiana, turned her back on her 1800 sq ft family home, packed up her Toyota car and followed an inclination to head west. After a little coming and going and bouncing around between west and east coasts, she found herself in Tucson.

Patty’s home is a rented converted carport that doesn’t cover much more than 200 sq ft. It’s full, as you can imagine. She sleeps on a daybed that’s a sofa when not in use. She cooks on a small stove, hangs her clothes in one tiny closet, rotates books and keeps paperwork pared down. She’s continously editing her living space. Her mantra: “Reduce and simplify”.

And it’s not a bad deal. Her landlords pay her utilities and allow her one-day- a-week use of the laundry room. She also has free reign of their swimming pool. And, now retired, she ups and leaves in her camper van when it gets too hot or when her feet start itching again.

Patty – to be featured by yours truly in next week’s Arizona Daily Star – admits she bumps into things a lot. And she’d surely love more space for photos of her little grand-daughter and her kids. But she’s not just making do, she enjoys her space.

It makes me wonder if I’m spoiled. It makes me disgusted at myself that I’ve come to expect at least two bathrooms, if not more, in a home. It makes me resolved to teach my kids that anything goes, and that success is not measured by the width of a hallway or the presence or a bidet, for goodness’ sake.

(“What is that?” asked Munchkin when he recently saw his first bidet. It’s only when you try explaining its function that you realise what a ridiculous concept it is.)

I hadn’t met a lady so sprawling, comfortable and unconfined in a long, long time. Lyons has all the space she needs – in her head, on her hikes, and her frequent road trips.

And here’s something else to mull over: while Patty makes do with her 200 sq ft, and many billions of people celebrate the fact they have one inside toilet, DIYnetwork.com just announced a competition for dog owners to show off their skills in building a doghouse.

While I’m all for keeping doggies shaded and cool and happy in a garden, I draw the line at some of the designs these guys are showing off on their site. One has built-in air conditioning, heating and humidifier, plus LED lighting. Another has a speaker system so the mutt can enjoy ambient music and noise while its owners are out. Oh puh-lease. Pets (like kids) inherently know that less is more. Let’s not start spoiling them the way we’ve spoiled our grown-up selves.

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