Katy Krebs and her husband, Michael, were looking for a home to call their own when they came across an old shed that used to belong to Michael’s grandparents.

For approximately seven years, the Krebs had been renting. When the coronavirus pandemic struck, they thought it was time to find a place to call home, especially because they were growing older and had two children, Carolina, 7, and Harper, 3.

They didn’t have to wait long for an answer.

Michael’s grandparents had left the couple 70 acres of land near Fayetteville, Texas. The property comprises agricultural land as well as a small, dilapidated shed.

“We thought the shed would be the perfect thing to fix up and turn into a tiny home, where we could live while saving up for the forever house,” Krebs, a stay-at-home parent, told Insider.

They want to live in the little house until they have saved enough money to restore and relocate to the larger house, which was his grandparents’ home.

However, it was not a simple process. The 280-square-foot shed was erected in the 1980s and used as a storage room. The paint was flaking, and there was no plumbing or an adequate electrical system.

Nonetheless, Krebs had lofty expectations for what the shed could become.

“I’ve always been fascinated with little houses. “I used to spend a lot of time watching tiny-home shows on TV,” Krebs explained. “It was like a dream come true when my husband took me to see an old shed his grandparents had.”

With a limited budget, the pair did the majority of the remodeling work themselves, such as building partition walls, adding windows, and fixing the roof.

They began demolishing the inside walls after clearing up the residual stuff in the shed.

“We took the plywood walls and the plywood ceiling off, and it still had great insulation,” Krebs added. “We were also able to keep the original flooring because it was in excellent condition.”

The shed had three windows at one time. The couple opted to build two more to increase ventilation and natural light.

“They were old aluminum windows, so we just popped them out and put in new vinyl ones,” Krebs explained.

They vaulted the ceilings in the living room and kitchen area as well.

On the outside, the pair applied a fresh layer of galvanized paint to the roof to protect it from rust and corrosion.

The outer walls of the shed were also repainted.

“You can tell the shed was definitely old, and the paint was dry-rotting, so we had to scrape all of that off,” Krebs explained.

To conserve money, they attempted to repurpose existing materials on the land, such as timber.

“We put in a beam that we found in an old barn out in the pasture on the property,” Krebs explained. “We also took all of the wood off of that and used it as our ceiling.”

They also reused an old barn door as their new entrance door.

“Because the door was in such good condition when we found it, I just sanded it down and put a window in it.” Krebs said, “I didn’t even paint it.” “I thought that would be perfect for the tiny house.”

The shed’s entrance was initially on the rear side, but they wished to modify the building’s orientation.

“What we did was cover up the old entrance and cut a hole in the front side of the building for the new door,” she explained.

One of the most difficult obstacles the couple faced throughout the restoration was constructing new walls to divide the area into rooms.

Krebs and her husband had to first settle on a floor plan. The couple separated two rooms from the integrated kitchen and living area to create a bedroom and a bathroom where there had previously been one open space.

After they got that out of the way, it was time to get down to business.

“We spent a lot of time on YouTube figuring out how to do this and how to do that.” “We did all of the framing ourselves—just me and Michael, with our two daughters by our sides,” Krebs explained. “It’s a good thing my husband knew exactly what he was doing.”

In addition to the original shed, the couple added an 8-foot front porch, something Krebs had always desired for her family house.

“The porch added about a hundred square feet to the house,” she remarked. “The girls can go outside and play even if it’s raining.” It’s a great place to hang out, especially in the evenings as the sun sets.”

Friends and family members pitched in wherever they could.

Krebs estimated that the remodeling took roughly nine months.

“We started in September of 2020 and finished in May of 2021,” she explained. “Our family and friends assisted us with various aspects of the renovation, so it was a fun project for everyone.”

The couple hired an electrician to connect the house to the main power supply, but they performed the rest of the wiring themselves.

Krebs has been recording her tiny-home experience on TikTok, where she has around 9,500 followers.

Krebs thinks that they spent around $16,000, which was within their initial budget.

“We knew we wanted to stay under $20,000, so thankfully we finished it before the price of everything went up,” she explained.

Despite renovating during the coronavirus outbreak, the couple encountered no serious supply-chain concerns.

“Building the home during the pandemic really wasn’t that bad, probably because we reused a lot of the old lumber and other materials that we already had lying around,” she added. “We also have a local home improvement store, and thankfully they weren’t too backed up on supplies.”

The finished little house features three rooms and primitive furnishings.

“Right when you walk through the main door, the open kitchen is on the left and the living room is on the right,” Krebs explained. “Then we have a doorway that leads into the 70-square-foot bedroom, and then to the left is the bathroom.”

There is a shower, a toilet, a vanity, and a closet hidden behind a curtain in the bathroom.

“My husband’s cousin tiled the shower in about a week, while my husband built the closet area by installing shelves into the wall,” Krebs explained.

The small home’s new septic system was constructed and linked to the larger house on the site by an outside vendor.

“We have one full-sized bed and one couch that folds out into a bed, so we don’t really have a set place somewhere where everybody sleeps,” Krebs explained.

She explained that some nights she and her girls would be in the main bedroom, while others would be on the couch, she explained.

While this flexible sleeping arrangement works for her and her family, it has received criticism from other TikTok members.

“I’ve gotten a few negative comments about where my kids sleep, and I tell myself, ‘It’s OK.'” I’m confident they’re safe. They have a secure home and a bed,’ she explained. “But I always tell people that it won’t last forever.” They’ll have their own room in the main home in the future; this is simply a temporary arrangement.”

The farmhouse-style kitchen is Krebs’ favorite room in the house.

“I’ve always wanted a kitchen like that, and you don’t have to spend a lot of money to get it,” Krebs remarked. “I wanted a farmhouse sink and shiplap walls, both of which I could have in my tiny house.” You may have a wonderful lifestyle while still living in a little space.”

Krebs has some advice for anybody considering building a small house from the ground up. Before you begin, sketch up all of the floor layouts.

This includes specifics such as the positioning of electrical outlets and light fixtures.” We wanted our air conditioning in the bedroom, but it ended up in the living room. “That hampered our plans since we now have this large galvanized pipe in the front where the porch is,” she explained. “At first, I didn’t like it, but now I don’t notice it as much, but it’s a good reminder to have everything planned out before you start.”

The family has lived in the residence for about a year. Krebs says the experience has been good for all of them, especially her daughters.

“They downsized on a lot of toys, and they don’t stay cooped up indoors every single day,” she explained. “They can go outside and ride, and we have our own chickens, cows, pigs, and dogs, so it’s nice for them to be outside and explore.”