If you think there's only so little you can do with a compact space to convert it into a home, you must have been living under a rock without an internet connection, to have missed out on the tiny living phenomenon. Tiny houses and mobile homes are the best examples of cramming in surprising amounts of functionality in a very compact footprint.
The tiny living trend started gaining ground in the early 2000s. And then again in 2020, when social and traveling restrictions, augmented by a looming financial crisis, forced people to seek alternative housing solutions. If the house can move with you as you travel for pleasure and work, all the better.
These days, tiny houses are considered the best solution for people who wish to travel and can work from home, but who are also preoccupied with reducing costs and lowering their environmental impact. They're like a one-for-all solution, as long as you can deal with their biggest downside: tiny houses are, as their name says, very small. Tiny, actually.
To make up for the compact footprint, many tinies will use a lofted layout to create the impression of a larger space below, in which you can add extra functionality. This means that sleeping areas are often relegated to the loft. This also means having to imagine a future in which you can't stand up in the bedroom to put on clothes or make the bed, and you have to climb stairs or a ladder to go to sleep. That's all fun and games until the night you're too tired to walk straight, or you get to that age of sore backs and wobbly knees.
Photo: Build Tiny
New Zealand-based builder Build Tiny usually does single- or two-loft tinies, but for Dark Horse, they went a bit off-script. This unit was completed in September 2020 after one of their clients was forced to back out of a contract, so they were left with an unfinished project they could experiment with. They decided to go in the direction of a single-level home that would put the bedroom on the main floor, and see whether they could still have the same kind of functionality.
It was a success.
Dark Horse sits on a triple-axle purpose-built trailer that can be removed from underneath the tiny, so you can plop the house on a standard foundation and still retain use of the trailer. It's 9 meters long and 2.4 meters wide (29.5 x 7.8 feet), and only 3.2 meters (10.5 feet) high, which means it's easier to tow than a lofted unit because of the height difference.
Photo: Build Tiny
If you have the bedroom on the main floor, you're going to have much less space to move around, that much is obvious. Still, you wouldn't be able to tell that by looking at Dark Horse. The builder used expansive glazing to create the impression of a much airier space, with bi-folding windows and double French doors that open up completely to the outside. Light-colored natural woods and plush textures help with that, creating a home that is elegant and sleek, yet still perfectly functional.
Not only is this tiny functional, but packed. For instance, there's a small dishwasher hidden in one of the cabinets and a microwave above the residential-size fridge and freezer. The gas stove is only half a unit with 2 burners, but you get a large gas oven, a deep farm sink, heaps of storage options, and about as much counter space.
The dining area is the breakfast bar by the window, so you can enjoy your meals with whatever view you're parked by. The small living area, with its beautiful macrocarpa floating shelves, can probably serve as a guest bedroom but will definitely work as the most relaxing place to… relax.
The bathroom is impressively large, with a shower room, a Bambooloo composting toilet, sink with vanity and integrated storage, and even a laundry station. Underfloor heating was installed throughout.
Photo: Build Tiny
The bedroom sits at the opposite end of the trailer, and while small, it too offers a surprising amount of storage, including in overhead cubbies and two side wardrobes, and underneath the bed. The French doors help alleviate any claustrophobic feelings you might get and can extend available space outside, if you add a deck.
Like all the other Build Tiny builds, Dark Horse was completed with an RV-style hookup but pre-wired for solar. It was listed for NZD155,000, which is approximately $97,500 at the current exchange rate and sold quickly. Today, we're looking at it as to an example of the creativity involved in tiny house building, and how downsizing doesn't have to mean climbing stairs and ladders at night to (literally) crawl into bed, or not having an elegant home. It's tiny home window shopping, if you will.
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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