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I’ve been obsessed with tiny houses and living small for years now. Last year (2018), around April, I found out that there was going to be a tiny house festival near where I live! I HAD to go! So I looked up their information, got the tickets, and at the end of April, my husband and I headed to Pink Hill, North Carolina for the Tiny House NC Street Festival. There, I got experience my first tiny house festival.
The Houses
We arrived bright and early so that we could try to tour all of the houses before the big crowds poured in. I’m so glad we did. By getting there early, we were able to tour most of the houses and not have to wait in line. The festival did become pretty crowded but by the time the crowd grew large, we had already toured the builds that we wanted to.
There were a variety of homes there to tour. We started with the actual tiny houses that were mostly models from small companies to show what they offer. Most of the tiny houses had living areas, kitchens, sleeping space, bathrooms, and everything a normal house would have.
Even though each one had the basics of a regular house, they were all so different in the layout, features, colors, and design. I enjoyed looking through them for ideas and inspiration. After going through several of the tiny houses, we headed to what we were most excited about…the school buses, aka, the Skoolies!
Skoolies
The very first school bus conversion that we stepped into was that of Derrick and Amy’s. They are The Frugal RVer on Instagram and I’ve been following along with their journey ever since the festival. They live fulltime in their bus with their little girl, Payson, and adorable dog, Britches. We toured their bus and then chatted with Derrick for quite some time. He was super nice and answered all of our questions, although I’m sure he’d answered the same questions at least a hundred times over the weekend! Derrick and Amy really got me thinking about a school bus conversion instead of a tiny house to potentially live in.
Next, we saw a short bus, then several full size buses, a bus with a roof raise, a bus from the company, Skoolie Homes, that converts and sells buses, and finally, another cute, short bus.
I was in love with them all and so fascinated that almost all of the people we talked to with buses lived in them fulltime! That’s what I wanted to hear about, the people who built their homes themselves and lived in them most of the time, if not, fulltime.
Unique Builds
After leaving the awesome Skoolies, we decided to see the rest of the tiny houses at the festival. Although the school buses won me over, I still felt we should look at the rest of the houses. Not that the rest of the houses weren’t amazing. It’s just that after seeing the school buses and meeting the people who live in them, I was convinced that one day, I’d join their Skoolie community.
We continued on with our tour and saw more gorgeous, tiny houses that local companies had built and that were for sale. Among the tiny house models though, were a few houses that people had built themselves, or at least weren’t models for sale. They were really interesting to see. This one was at the festival and is pretty popular on social media. They travel the country in it often.
There was another tiny house that an older lady had and it was so eclectic! She even had a small piano in her tiny house!
Tiny houses and buses weren’t the only types of builds we saw there. One guy was in the process of converting a box truck to a home on wheels. I always wondered why I hadn’t seen a box truck being converted before. The idea is becoming more popular though, as I found out at the festival.
Another tiny build was actually a mobile church and the owner conducts weddings in it! He was the nicest guy and he was so passionate about his adorable, little church and wedding business.
There was even a yurt set up at the festival and so I got to go inside a yurt for the first time!
The People
While touring all of the tiny houses, buses, box trucks, etc. was so much fun, one of the highlights of the day was talking to the people who’ve decided to embrace the tiny lifestyle and live in a tiny home. The Skoolie people in particular were my favorites to talk with. As I mentioned before, Derrick and Amy, aka, The Frugal RVer, welcomed us into their bus and talked with us for a long time. We eventually left their bus because so many people wanted to see inside it. However, if it hadn’t started to get crowded on their bus, they probably would’ve had to kick us out, ha!
We also just happened to walk by another tiny house/box truck conversion and noticed a crowd around it. The crowd of people were listening to Derek Diedricksen explain the box conversion build so we decided to join in and listen. Then, the next thing I know, we became part of an experiment to see how many people could fit inside the box truck! The crowd started piling inside. Around 18 or 19 people managed to fit into the box truck conversion tiny house!
I seriously love tiny house people.
Then we met Michael Fuehrer who is, Navigation Nowhere, on social media.
His bus is a popular build online and I had actually been following him on Instagram for a while before the festival. So it was really neat to be able to actually tour a bus that I had only seen online up until the festival. It’s easy to see why everyone loves his bus. His layout is beautiful, simple, and one I could easily live in.
Did I mention that this bus has two couches, a full size stove, a large refrigerator/freezer, a bed, and bathroom in it? You don’t have to sacrifice everything to live in a small space. You just have to get creative, which is what Michael Fuehrer has done. He was also a super nice guy and welcoming with everyone that toured his home. We also talked to a couple who have a short, green bus. They were also very welcoming and answered all of our questions.
All of the people that I talked with who live this tiny lifestyle were so kind and happy to share their lives and homes with others. It really showed me just what kind of people make up the tiny lifestyle community and made me want to be a part of it.
The Best Part of the Festival
The school buses and the people who own them…they were my favorite part of the entire tiny house festival in Pink Hill, North Carolina. I wanted so badly to just have them all gather around and tell me about their buses, their families, their adventures, and the ups and downs of living in a bus. Every bus was unique and so were the people in them.
Going to the Tiny House NC Street Festival in Pink Hill, North Carolina was such an eye-opening experience for me. It’s one that has showed me that it’s okay to be and do things a little different than everyone else.
If you ever hear of a tiny house gathering/festival near you, I would highly recommend going. It’s such a unique experience and I can guarantee you’ll meet some pretty awesome people as well.
Have you ever been to a tiny house festival/gathering? If so, I’d love to hear about it! Comment below and let me know all about your experience.
How do you feel about the tiny house movement? I’d love to hear your thoughts on it in the comment section below!
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