The West Cottage: Before & After

Before posting all of the sources and story behind the front tiny house renovation and makeover via a Home Tour (coming soon), I want to share some clear before and after photos of the space. We outfitted this second cottage to suit our evolving business and personal needs, and we hope it demonstrates to renters of small spaces (and folks working on a budget) how some relatively little changes can make a large impact.

On a side note, we hosted our first overnight guest (my life-long friend, Lindsay of Casa Joshua Tree) just days after completing the front house project, and she gave us the best housewarming gift ever-- a name for it! She suggested The West Cottage, because it's is situated on the West side of our "main" home, and it's primary use is oriented around our son, West. Simple and sweet. I love it.

So here it is-- "before-s" on the left, "after-s" on the right!

New custom bench/sofa/queen bed by Tumbleweed & Dandelion. Pendant and bench-turned-coffee table.

We removed the build-in desk and replaced it with two cozy reading chairs and an ottoman.

The bookshelf now stores books AND guest linens. Everything is contained in the overhead baskets or upcycled wine creates. Having West's books in the easy-to-carry jute baskets helps us stay organized. The new interior French door from saves space and lets light pass through, while still providing privacy between the main room and the bedroom.

The view from the front door. The most eye-catching difference is the absence of the oversized range-hood, and the wall cabinets. We replaced the hood with a ceiling vent, and the swapped the cupboards for exposed shelving by Tumbleweed & Dandelion. 

We removed the 90-degree counter turn in the kitchen, opening up the space dramatically. We added a pull-out trash drawer, a new sink and faucet, as well as new countertops from Cambria, installed by Giallo Stone. We recycled and adjusted the old wall cabinets doors for the updated base cabinets. An upcycled console table, counter stools, and vintage rug from New England Loom round off the kitchen.

We removed the wall cabinets, slid the sink space over to be centered with the windows. We then replaced the sink and faucet, and adjusted and replaced the countertops with Cambria via Gaillo Stone. 

We converted the only bedroom into a playroom for West. We replaced the overhead light fixture, refinished the walls and windows, and added elements such as a convertible crib/toddler bed, crib bedding from Parachute, a floor cushion from our neighbors at The Wolf Nest, a vintage reading chair, and a corner cabinet. Some fun touches include an oversized woven cactus, a sea turtle floor basket, and letters above his bed that are reminiscent of Venice's famous street sign. (All items above the bed are secured with earthquake putty.)

West's closet and porch doors used to crash open into one another, so we swapped the closet door out for a custom, handmade curtain from Luna Zorro. We added rattan mirrors on the little wall between the closet and the bathroom to reflect sunlight, and we set up a little diaper changing storage station via a low, windowed hutch.

We opted to save money and leave the bathroom as-is, other than updating the paint color from blue to Muscat Blanc by Dunn Edwards. We modified the accents within the tiny bath, adding a vintage rug from New England Loom, a linen shower curtain, a small accent table, and hanging baskets and plants.

Other posts about The West Cottage: 
• Solving the small space interior door issues
• The accordion bench/bed
 

The Accordion Bench/Bed

I've yet to share the full house tour of the front tiny cottage, but we're already welcoming our first overnight visitor this weekend, so I wanted to share how we adapt the space to accommodate guests.

Much like our Tiny Canal Cottage, this little house is under 400 square-feet and only has three rooms: the bedroom (with a narrow sliver of a closet), the bathroom, and the main room (which includes the kitchen). So the issue was this: how would we create a playroom for West in the bedroom, while ensuring that we also have a comfortable place for my parents to sleep when they visit for long stretches of time?  We knew we'd need some sort of Queen-sized sleeper-sofa option, but every style we explored either had a cushion that folded (which would eventually get lumpy), or chunky backs and/or bases, which would've taken up more inches than we could spare (and obscured too much of the window). We could've opted for an extra-high air mattress, but having a bed in addition to a couch would've overcrowded the room to a degree that would've made it impossible to navigate. We decided instead to have something tailor-made for our situation:

I contacted my friend Lizzie from Tumbleweed & Dandelion here in Venice to discuss the design and creation of a custom couch. Lizzie dazzles me with her wit, talent, positivity, and endless energy. I explained to her what we wanted, and what we didn't want. As we brainstormed, she drew up the perfect plan-- an accordion-style bench that folds out easily into a Queen bed platform:

Lizzie and her team brought the design to life, and the results are perfect for our needs. Keep scrolling to view the bench-to-bed set-up process, which takes us about 5-10 minutes. 

We keep the bed legs and guest linens within easy reach on the living room shelf, and in old wine crates.

The seat cushion can be stored beneath the bed once it's assembled, while the seat-back cushions function as a headboard.

The bed accordions out smoothly, and the extra legs twist on easily.

We had planned to use an air mattress on the platform for an ideal space-saving solution. But then we were surprised with the gift of this cozy new mattress to try for the guest bed. With this unique situation, and since West's narrow closet is almost completely empty, we slide the mattress upright in there for storage when it's not in use. Obviously most smalls pace dwellers don't have an empty closet available (ours is empty since this house is used mainly for my parents, West's playroom, and visiting camera crews), so for those folks seeking a compact solution and would prefer to try something other than an inflatable mattress, there are roll-up and folding designs out there. Or Tumbleweed & Dandelion can make a version with the folding cushion included. And an air mattress is always an easy option.

The entire set-up worked out better than I'd hoped. The bed is a comfortable and sturdy sleeping surface for my parents or our other guests, and there's still plenty of space to navigate the room. We don't normally need curtains on these windows, but two white tension rods wait at the ready in the window frames, so I just attach the curtains from West's old nursery nook to give our visitors some privacy. Lastly, we slide everything over a couple feet so the front door can open fully. Voila!