Beautiful Rua Tiny Home With Macrocarpa Cladding Envelops You in a Soothing Embrace

In terms of design, tiny homes have come a long way, and the model we're going to look at here is a great example of how moving into a smaller living space doesn't have to mean compromising on comfort and quality. Though there are people who would never be able to get used to living in a micro-home, dwellings like the Rua have the potential to become forever homes for those whose life values align with the principles of minimalism and intentional living.

Rua is a 30-foot (9-meter) long and 9.8-foot (3-meter) wide tiny house on wheels crafted by Waikato, New Zealand-based Heart and Soul Tiny Homes. It sits on a triple-axle trailer and boasts a classic timber-clad exterior that makes it fit just right in the middle of nature. There is something about it that draws you in right away and envelops you in a warm and soothing feeling, and that's mainly due to the eye-pleasing aesthetics achieved through the use of Macrocarpa timber cladding, a beautiful and naturally durable timber cladding grown in New Zealand.

A large sliding main door, black-framed windows, and a steel gable-style roof complete the exterior design.

The interior of Rua is equally inviting and designed to be as livable as possible, with a ground-floor master bedroom, a spacious open-plan living area, a gorgeous kitchen, a modern bathroom, and a secondary lofted sleeping space. Large windows throughout open up the interior to the outside world and allow residents to live in tight connection with their surroundings.

Moreover, the interior walls are clad in light-colored Euro Poplar plywood with negative detailing, and together with the high vaulted ceilings, they give this tiny home a light and airy feel.

All the areas inside this home are characterized by a neutral color palette and clean aesthetics that give the interior an organized and neat look. The designers took advantage of the available square footage efficiently to bring maximum utility to the space and create a space fit for practical everyday living.

A seamless indoor-outdoor flow has been a priority for the designers, as the large sliding glass door is centrally located and opens up the living room and kitchen area to the outdoors. The spacious living room includes a plush L-shaped sofa with integrated storage, and it seamlessly connects to the kitchen, making it the ideal space to hang out.

The only separation between the lounge and the adjacent kitchen is a sleek breakfast bar that can also serve as a dining nook. It is an integral part of the kitchen counter, so it can also be used as extra cooking space when needed.

The high-specced kitchen is the hub of this house, strategically located at the center, and is roomy enough to fit storage cabinets galore and a slew of modern Bosch appliances, ranging from a gas cooktop and microwave/oven combo to a fridge and dish drawer. A wine fridge for seven bottles is also included.

In terms of sleeping arrangements, the Rua tiny house stands apart from run-of-the-mill models with a comfortable and well-laid-out master bedroom on the ground floor and a roomy sleeping loft, providing residents both the privacy of a traditional bedroom and the openness of a lofted sleeping space.

The downstairs bedroom fits a king-sized bed and a huge wardrobe, and various details make it look and feel sumptuous. Besides ample space to walk around and full standing height, this comfy bedroom offers complete privacy from the rest of the house, but it doesn't feel secluded, as two large windows bathe the interior in natural light and open it to the outdoors.

The loft bedroom can be accessed via a pull-down ladder and is spacious enough to fit two twin mattresses. It is completely open to the downstairs, with no railings or walls, and a skylight enhances its coziness.

Another highlight of the Rua is the ample storage it offers, which enables a zero-clutter ambiance and makes this model suitable even for growing families. There is a large wardrobe and plenty of under-bed storage in the master bedroom, storage underneath the five-seater couch, and even more space for storage in the bathroom.

Heart and Soul Tiny Homes is a relatively new player on the tiny house scene, and it only has a couple of models in its lineup. However, the owner of this family-run business, Dean Selwyn, is a Licensed Building Practitioner with 20 years of building experience under his belt. He and his wife Rhonda first delved into tiny houses in 2020, when they built the Tahi model for themselves, and then started designing and building tiny houses for others.

The company offers two variants of the Rua tiny house on wheels - a more affordable version with iron cladding and basic features priced at NZD $169,000 (which is approx. US $102,900) and the model shown here, which features Macrocarpa siding, wool insulation, eco materials, and is move-in ready with all the necessary amenities and extras. The latter starts at NZD $230,000 (US $140,000).