Optinid’s Marie-Ange Tiny House Is a Rustic Dream Under the Open Sky

The tiny house movement, as we noted on previous occasions, kicked off in the early 2000s, and today is regarded as a viable solution to downsized living and an unparalleled sense of freedom. Because most of these houses ride on double- or three-axle trailers, owners can theoretically pack up and move to a new location whenever they get tired of the current one.

In addition to that, tiny houses are also good options for summer homes or even backyard guest houses/work office, assuming your backyard is big and your wallet deep enough to afford it. And this brings us full circle: the price on these mobile living units.

Most tiny houses are still impossibly expensive, which has generated justified pushback for longtime RV-ers. For those who can afford them, though, the array of choices available has just gotten a tad more interesting.

French maker Optinid makes tiny homes that are halfway between a rustic wooden cabin and modern spaces. A few in their line have a very unique feature that helps them stand out: a sliding roof above the bedroom, which offers owners the chance to sleep under the open sky or, weather not permitting, quickly and efficiently ventilate living space.

The latest from Optinid also comes with this sliding roof: Marie-Ange was built last year and delivered to its new owner in Landes last fall. It’s a two-person tiny home decked in its entirety in wood, which makes it look homey and rustic, much like a mountain cabin would.

The exterior is Douglas fir exterior with polycarbonate accenting, with isolation to make it all-season. For that same purpose, Optinid put underfloor heating inside, which frees up space and renders it a suitable choice even in the cold season. “The warmth of a heated floor also prevents overheating in the mezzanine, which is unpleasant with conventional convection heating systems,” Optinid notes.

Marie-Ange measures 6 meters (19.6 feet) in length and sits on a standard double-axle trailer. You enter into the living room/dining room/office, where you can find a desk for two that doubles as dining table, workspace, and step-toward-the-bedroom area. Because most of the pieces of furniture here are double-use and thanks to considerably sized glazing, you get the impression this living area is larger than in most tiny houses. For the sake of comparison, the total interior floor space is 19 square meters (204 square feet).

At the opposite end of the staircase is the kitchen, with room for a fridge, plenty of storage, a kitchen, and dedicated cooking pace. The first Marie-Ange delivered is empty, as you can see in the photos in the gallery, so it could be that the owner wanted it that way so they could furnish it according to their liking.

Also on this ground level, you have a small bathroom with sink, toilet, and shower. It is not pictured in the gallery.

Up the stairs is the sleeping area, which is fairly standard for tiny homes. The difference is that Marie-Ange opens up completely, thanks to the manually operated sliding roof. If not used for stargazing, ventilation, or preventing overheating, this sliding roof comes in handy for simple and mundane tasks like flipping the mattress or making the bed – “without breaking your back,” as Optinid says.

Power comes from an RV-style hookup, but a solar panel array of two 300-W panels by Les Ateliers Verts du Solaire is placed on the roof to help reduce reliance on the grid, “without falling into the ecological aberration of a system with batteries.” That is to say, the Marie-Ange doesn’t do off-grid.

Pricing is not included in the description of this tiny house, but for reference, the other, better-specced tiny that it bears resemblance to, Head in the Stars, starts at €54,000 ($65,620 at today’s exchange rate).