When Kate Rowe commissioned Jen and Jon Carroll and Malia Schultheis, the owners of Tru Form Tiny, to design a custom home for her dahlia farm in Sonoma County, California, she was planning her freedom. “When I asked Tru Form Tiny to build this home, I couldn’t afford to buy a traditional house, and I didn’t want to move into an apartment,” Rowe says. “I value being independent, and I’m not interested in sharing walls or having roommates—a tiny house was the perfect solution.”

Schultheis, lead designer for the Eugene, Oregon–based company, imagined a 346-square-foot home that would allow Kate to become a homeowner where she’d dreamed of living. “Because I have a tiny house, I’m able to live in this incredible, remote place, only an hour from San Francisco, without paying the high cost of property in Sonoma County,” Kate says.

The tiny home is located right next to a dahlia field, and it has uninterrupted views of colorful blooms, vineyards, and rolling hills. At one time, Kate grew approximately 400 types of dahlias and had 7,500 plants on 1.5 acres. “I intentionally placed the house so it’s filled with morning sunlight and partially shaded by a nearby barn during the afternoon heat,” she says.

Kate sold the dahlia farm last year, and she now works with Gather Flora, a technology startup, while living in her tiny house next to the farm she once owned. “I work from home, so it’s my office and primary residence,” she says. “In my new job, I help bring together small, local farms to sell on a single platform, making it easier for floral designers to access local, fresh, chemical-free flowers. The intention is to support small farms across the U.S.”

Now, Kate grows dahlias for herself. “I have a wonderful relationship with the new owner, and I enjoy the farm even more than I did before,” she says. “I added a deck to the front of my tiny home, and surrounded it with flower beds.”

The flowers’ bright hues stand out against the home’s tongue-and-groove cedar and charcoal-hued standing-seam metal siding. “The mix of materials creates a pleasing tension between the textures,” Schultheis says. “There’s the urban coolness of the metal next to the rich warmth of the wood.”

When Kate first approached Tru Form Tiny, she had a budget of $130K. While designing the residence, Schultheis asked Kate to determine what she could and couldn’t live without. “Kate initially wanted tile throughout the house, but after the purchase of a heating/cooling mini split, a washer-and-dryer combo, a full range oven, a dishwasher, and an expanded bump-out for her main-floor bedroom, tilework would’ve quickly and easily put her over budget.”

Kate’s decision to forgo tile also left room in the budget for a storage staircase, flooring crafted from solid hickory, a custom hydraulic lift–assist bed with built-in storage, a second storage loft over the bedroom, a large vanity and quartz counters for the bathroom, and a porcelain farm sink for the kitchen.

Schultheis finished the interior walls and ceiling of the tiny home with white-painted pine trimmed with Douglas fir. The kitchen is outfitted with soft-close pull-out drawers for the lower cabinetry and custom open shelving in place of upper cabinets to make the space feel airy. “It was important to me to have a nice tiny home,” Kate says. “If I was going to live on wheels, I wanted it to be nice.”

Kate couldn’t be happier in her custom tiny home. “People stop and want tours,” she says. “They’re constantly surprised at how big it feels inside.” According to Kate, the tiny home’s size makes it easy to keep clean—and there are also other benefits. “I’m intentional about what I have now—I didn’t need much of what I used to own,” she says. “It feels great to be connected to what I actually use, and I have nicer things because I have fewer of them. I relish living in this beautiful location, in a home I love.”

“Tiny homes are a unique and affordable option for people amidst the global housing crisis,” Schultheis says. “They significantly reduce environmental impact, and at less than 400 square feet, tiny homes require less energy and fewer materials to build. And with 15 to 20 percent down, a monthly payment for this home, for instance, is as low as $700 per month. People who buy from us want the experience of building their own home, and they want it to last.”

More from Tru Form Tiny:

This Custom Tiny Home Has a Clever, Space-Saving Elevator Bed

A Family Customizes an Off-Grid Tiny Home With Online Design Tools

Project Credits:

Design & Construction: Tru Form Tiny / @truformtiny