Every Friday, learn about one of our speakers or exhibitors at the 4th Annual BIG MAssachusetts Tiny House Festival! Subscribe to our email list or RSVP on Facebook to get each new update.

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Miranda Aisling (ash-lean)’s mission is to reconnect art to daily life, a purpose you can see throughout her work as an interdisciplinary artist, community organizer, and entrepreneur. She built her tiny house, Aubergine, in 2015 as a public art project. Over 50 people helped build it while over 100 artists made work for inside. She is the founder of Miranda’s Hearth which, since 2013, has hosted the annual BIG Tiny House Festival in Massachusetts.

What first brought you to the tiny house world?

I first found tiny houses in 2013 for pure economic reasons. I had just completed my master’s degree, just started Miranda’s Hearth, and was trying to find a sustainable future where I could pursue community art. I came across an article that described a couple out in Portland, OR who had done the math and realized that in 10 years together, they had spent $60,000 on rent.  That’s when they decided they wanted to live in a tiny house. I did my own math and realized that in just two years in a tiny grad school apartment, I’d spent over $15,000, which is particularly staggering when you’re a part-time educator making $16,000 a year.

As I started to get more immersed in the tiny house world, I realized that this was something I was already prepared for. As a child, I lived in Stamford, CT, a town full of large, mostly empty houses. I could feel the difference between the rooms that were inhabited daily and the ones that were just passed through, and I made a promise to myself that I would never live in a house where I didn’t use every room, every day. That’s a lot easier when your house is basically one room!

How has living tiny changed your day-to-day?

The biggest life shift came a year and a half after I moved into the tiny house. During that time, I’d been working full-time, building my savings back up after spending all of it on my house. But as my job escalated while my business escalated, I was forced to choose. I looked into the tiny house world and realized that I was one of the only people I knew who lived in a tiny house and worked full-time for someone else. Last December, I quit my job in order to work full-time on my business because I finally realized that when you drastically change your cost of living you can change for necessary income as well.

In terms of the space itself, I had never lived in anything much larger than a tiny house. From college dorm rooms to city apartments, my personal space didn’t allow for the accumulation of stuff. However, I had gotten accustomed to city life. In order to find a place for my house, I went about 40 minutes north of the city and I now find myself falling asleep to the sound of crickets, leaves rustling, and wind passing through. While there are pieces I love about it, it’s taken me a long time to adjust to being surrounded by nature again!

What are some of your favorite things about your house?

Aubergine was built as a public art project, which means that over 50 people helped build her and over 100 people made works of art to go inside. When I walk into my home, I am surrounded by the stories and care of these 150 people, all in just 160 square feet! This is why in addition to being my home, Aubergine is the prototype for the community art hotel that Miranda’s Hearth is working on starting. Just like the tiny house, this functioning hotel will be a place where everything around you is handmade by local artists, who have workspaces that you can visit inside the same building.

The artwork in Aubergine ranges from a scarf that my mother made for my grandfather when she was 12, which he wore until just before he died when he gave it to me, to an impressive handthrown sink made by David Pellerin of Indikoi Sinks. My front door was handmade out of mahogany by Jon Schmalenberger and then fitted with a beautiful stained glass window of a hearth made by Craig Elliott.

Why are tiny houses striking a chord right now?

As housing costs rise and urban centers become more populated, people can’t find a place to live that they can afford. The lack of starter homes available, because builders are focusing on building the largest house possible on the smallest piece of land, is leaving young people, retirees, and many others behind.

Tiny houses provide an alternative answer, reminding people that for most of human history and to this day in most of the world, we lived within our means. We created personal spaces that answered our personal needs and spent the rest of our time out in the community. This self-sustainability coupled with community engagement is at the core of the tiny house movement.

Hear more from Mirandaand our other speakers at 4th Annual BIG MAssachusetts Tiny House Festival on Sept 28-30! Subscribe to our email list or RSVP on Facebook to get each new update.

Buy your tickets in advance to save $5!