I went to the hardware store, wrote down some prices, and spent some time at the pro counter discussing a full sized trundle bed. I can’t float the bed over the existing drawers as I was planning, and I may waste more space under the raised floor than I can afford to. That is, unless I can figure a way to access all the nooks and crannies between 6″ floor joists without crawling into the space reserved for the stowed bed. I’m still plotting that one. I do like the ability to access storage from the outside.

The pro, being a pro, couldn’t give me a ballpark price for framing without detailed plans, which I don’t have. He did suggest someone who could draw up a nice set of professional plans for oh, ’bout $1,000 or so.  (That’s 1/4 the amount needed for the base trailer I’m saving up for – I don’t have that much for feasibility sketches.) He also suggested I look online and build based on what someone else has done. (Anyone out there seen plans that include a 36″ high raised floor over a full sized trundle-style bed? If so, point me to ’em, quick!)

The guy in kitchen & bath gave me some ideas to look into, and, after watching a few more Tiny episodes on HGTV, I went ahead & sent out a couple of emails. One builder says the ideas are decent, and I’m looking at up to $30k. That number’s not too scary – not doable at the moment, but not too scary.

Here’s the hardware store list so far: