This Is The Dutchess, an Old and Battered Horsebox Turned Gorgeous Log Cabin on Wheels

You see, The Dutchess isn't as much a van conversion as it's a tiny home on top of an old and battered horsebox. It serves as the main home of builder Guy Williams and is also the first conversion he did for himself, as opposed to building it for someone else.

Williams is the owner and founder of The Fat Pony Social Club, a mobile bar and event space that travels from location to location and which, why yes, is also built on top of a horsebox. He's previously made headlines within the tiny house community for Val, a spectacular Ford Iveco Cargo conversion that features a lounge area that converts into a bedroom and a bathroom with a jacuzzi-style tub hidden in the floor. Let's see your house do that!

In fewer words, Williams is very, very skilled with his hands, and his work – and home – speaks for that. Look no further than The Dutchess, the home he built for himself and ended up traveling in throughout Europe. To this day, Williams still lives in it.

The Dutchess is named this way because it was bought on a whim after a wild night after seeing it on a Dutch auction site. The year was 2016, and Williams had already tried his hand at vanlife, ditching the rat race, selling his apartment, and downsizing into a van conversion. The horsebox that would become his current home wasn't much of a drain on his budget since it cost him less than $1,400.

The 1981 Mercedes 508d horsebox was less than in an ideal condition when he bought it, which you probably imagined given its low price. But Williams only needed a solid base and a good, reliable drivetrain, so he flew to the seller's location and drove the rust bucket back home to the UK – without it breaking down once!

He would end up spending another $9,000 on the conversion over the next 12 months. Most of the materials he used for The Dutchess were reclaimed, something he made sure to turn into a habit with his next projects.

The layout was designed with single occupancy in mind but with the possibility to entertain parties as large as six people, with a couple of these staying over for the night and sleeping in the lounge area that converts into a queen-size bed. The bedroom is at one end of the box, in the cabover section, with the dining area slash lounge slash guest bedroom at the other, on an elevated platform that hides the garage.

The dining area is comprised of a curved sofa seat around a four-person massive table, but if you lower the table, the whole space becomes a comfortable bed. This space also converts into a private cinema thanks to a projector and a screen that lower from the ceiling, or into an open-air lounge in warm weather, thanks to the drop-down wall.

In between these areas is a full kitchen and a bathroom, both styled much like you'd see in a log cabin. The kitchen has running water from a 170-liter (45-gallon) tank, a four-burner gas stove and an oven that runs off the LPG system, and a 12V fridge and freezer that runs on solar.

The interior is done entirely in hardwood – thick slates of Douglas fir – and plush fabrics chosen by Williams' mother, mixed with vintage pieces upcycled or repurposed to fit the needs of a modern nomad.

The overall vibe of the place is that of a log cabin, cozy, warm, and with plenty of personality. The only thing Williams wishes he'd done differently about it is putting double-glazed windows because he can feel heat escaping on cold winter days. Otherwise, The Dutchess is insulated and can – and did – withstand harsh weather, even in the mountains.

Since Williams is a creative guy and The Dutchess is his home, work on it never ends. The latest additions to the mobile home include a sundeck on the drop-down wall, which extends the lounge inside to the exterior in balmy weather and doubles as a most ingenious workspace.

At his HQ in Swansea, Williams built a different deck so he can drive The Dutchess right next to it, a greenhouse with a gorgeous bathtub, and a firepit with a most impressive lounge area.

Williams says that he understands other builders' decision to sell their conversions after some time lived in them, but he'd never part with The Dutchess. Seeing how beautifully styled it is, no one could ever blame him for that, that's for sure.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Guy Williams (@thefatponyworkshop)