Retired International School Bus Was Turned Into Cozy Tiny Home Using Recycled Materials

Conversions like this old school bus that has been transformed into a luxury tiny home by Tanya Nestoruk and Arya Touserkani, a couple from Canada who decided to live minimally and explore the world in a more sustainable way, show that all the sweat is well worth it. Their mobile dwelling is fitted with all the comforts a traditional home has to offer, including a cozy living room, a sleeping area, a gorgeous bathroom, a kitchen with modern functionality, and even a terrace on the roof.

Each bus conversion is a unique creative process, and this couple's home on wheels is proof of that. Their journey began in 2021 when Tanya and Arya decided to sell their four-bedroom house in Canada and embrace life on the road. They started their nomadic lifestyle in a van but wanted a bit more space, so they purchased a retired 2003 International school bus with up-to-date maintenance records, low mileage, and overall good condition for just $7,200 and spent seven months turning it into a dreamy motorhome with custom furniture, clever storage solutions, and plenty of personal touches that make it feel like a true home.

After gutting the bus, everything that they wouldn't use, from scrap metal and wood to seats, light fixtures, and luggage racks, was sold off or donated. The total cost of the skoolie conversion came up to over $40,000, and the couple used recycled materials and cheap items from Facebook Marketplace to keep renovation costs down. However, the end result doesn't look cheap at all. On the contrary, with thoughtful design choices and great styling, the interior of the bus looks fancy and luxurious.

The exterior of the skoolie boasts a light seafoam green shade with a white roof, and a solid wood door welcomes you inside. Next to the door, they installed a narrow fold-down table, which they use for barbecues and meals with friends.

The comfortable and practical interior is characterized by Scandinavian-style minimalism with lots of windows, an abundance of natural light, a neutral color palette, potted plants, and cozy textural linen and curtains that all help create a warm atmosphere that simply invites you to sit down and relax. In terms of materials, they used vinyl for the floors, whitewashed tongue-and-groove knotty pine for the ceiling, and basic spruce, pine, and fir lumber for the walls.

A curtain separates the front cab from the living space, and the bus's big windows make the interior incredibly open and luminous. One of the things that make this build stand out is the two skylights they installed - a massive one in the living and kitchen area and one in the bathroom. Apart from the aesthetic purpose, the skylights also have a practical role, as they were a cost-effective way to increase floor-to-ceiling height. Arya, who is 6′1″, wouldn't be able to stand up straight on the bus without them.

Right behind the driver's seat, the couple installed an L-shaped sofa with integrated storage under the seats. It's a custom-built couch that also turns into a guest bed when necessary, increasing the sleeping capacity of the bus.

Across from the couch, they installed a long, narrow table made from a piece of oak to use as a breakfast bar. It is foldable, so it easily gets out of the way when not in use. A Grizzly wood-burning stove further adds coziness to the space. It's placed on a custom-made stand crafted out of plywood encased in cement board for heat protection.

Next up is a minimalist yet fully functional kitchen with beautiful custom cabinetry that has holes instead of knobs and pulls, adding a clean, contemporary note to the cooking space. A beautiful accent wall with a handpainted motif, faux-concrete countertops, and a wood shelf complete the design. In terms of functionality, the kitchen is equipped with a big sink, a four-burner stovetop, an oven, and a fridge and freezer in a slide-out drawer. A large pantry closet behind the kitchen can hold plenty of dry food.

The bathroom is one of the highlights of this bus conversion and can be found in a small hallway past the kitchen. Hiding behind a barn-style sliding door made from wood scraps left from the ceiling, it boasts cement walls and floors that harmoniously combine with the wood-planked ceilings and some bronze and copper accents for a stylish overall appearance. The skylight above the shower cabin plays a vital role in creating a serene and calming ambiance, seamlessly inviting the beauty of the outdoors into the bathroom space.

The rear of the bus is occupied by the couple's bedroom, a true haven of relaxation with a king-sized bed surrounded by windows. Next to the bed, Nestoruk and Touserkani built a cabinet for the RV washer/dryer unit and clothes storage, as well as a custom ladder that takes up minimal space. Its wall-mounted steps lead up to the large rooftop deck.

A quite generous rear hitch deck made of cedar planks holds the couple's motorcycles, which they use as their daily transportation means. Four 200-watt solar panels mounted on the roof take care of the bus's energy needs, and the skoolie is also equipped with a 100-gallon fresh water tank under the bed and an on-demand hot water heater, enabling off-grid living.

Everything inside this charming skoolie, which is still Tanya and Arya's full-time home, reflects the couple's sustainability-focused lifestyle and their "reduce, reuse, recycle" motto. They both work remotely from the converted bus and have used it to travel across the US, Canada, and Mexico in the last two years. At the moment, the couple is exploring other tiny living options and are sampling life on the road in a truck camper, but they have plans to eventually settle on Vancouver Island.

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