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Tiny Houses

Small living goes old-school with the Shepherd Hut

By Adam Williams
November 03, 2014
Small living goes old-school with the Shepherd Hut
The Shepherd Hut will set you back around CAD 32,900 (US$29,146) (Photo: Güte)
The Shepherd Hut will set you back around CAD 32,900 (US$29,146) (Photo: Güte)
View 23 Images
The Shepherd Hut will set you back around CAD 32,900 (US$29,146) (Photo: Güte)
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The Shepherd Hut will set you back around CAD 32,900 (US$29,146) (Photo: Güte)
The interior of the Shepherd Hut sports modular furniture to make the most of what space is available (Photo: Güte)
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The interior of the Shepherd Hut sports modular furniture to make the most of what space is available (Photo: Güte)
The interior includes a folding hardwood desk, a butler's cupboard and countertop, a sofa bed, bunk beds, shelving units, and a bookcase (Photo: Güte)
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The interior includes a folding hardwood desk, a butler's cupboard and countertop, a sofa bed, bunk beds, shelving units, and a bookcase (Photo: Güte)
The Shepherd Hut rests on cast iron wheels (Photo: Güte)
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The Shepherd Hut rests on cast iron wheels (Photo: Güte)
Güte told Gizmag that the firm generally works with a customer to create an interior to suit (Photo: Güte)
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Güte told Gizmag that the firm generally works with a customer to create an interior to suit (Photo: Güte)
The firm has designed some pieces of modular furniture to make the most of the Shepherd Hut's small space (Photo: Güte)
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The firm has designed some pieces of modular furniture to make the most of the Shepherd Hut's small space (Photo: Güte)
The folding hardwood desk (Photo: Güte)
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The folding hardwood desk (Photo: Güte)
Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
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Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
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Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
The wood siding (Photo: Güte)
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The wood siding (Photo: Güte)
The sofa bed, in bed mode (Photo: Güte)
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The sofa bed, in bed mode (Photo: Güte)
The Shepherd Hut measures 2.1 m (7 ft) wide and Güte recommends a length of either 3.6 m (12 ft) or 4.8 m (16 ft) (Photo: Güte)
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The Shepherd Hut measures 2.1 m (7 ft) wide and Güte recommends a length of either 3.6 m (12 ft) or 4.8 m (16 ft) (Photo: Güte)
The sofa bed, in sofa mode (Photo: Güte)
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The sofa bed, in sofa mode (Photo: Güte)
Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
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Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
The Shepherd Hut is wired to plug into a battery, generator, or extension cord and it can also optionally operate off-grid (Photo: Güte)
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The Shepherd Hut is wired to plug into a battery, generator, or extension cord and it can also optionally operate off-grid (Photo: Güte)
The Shepherd Hut can sport a cedar or corrugated steel roof (Photo: Güte)
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The Shepherd Hut can sport a cedar or corrugated steel roof (Photo: Güte)
Furniture designed for the Shepherd Hut includes a folding hardwood desk, a butler's cupboard and countertop, a sofa bed, bunk beds, shelving units, and a bookcase (Photo: Güte)
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Furniture designed for the Shepherd Hut includes a folding hardwood desk, a butler's cupboard and countertop, a sofa bed, bunk beds, shelving units, and a bookcase (Photo: Güte)
The Shepherd Hut is wired to plug into a battery, generator, or extension cord and it can also optionally operate off-grid (Photo: Güte)
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The Shepherd Hut is wired to plug into a battery, generator, or extension cord and it can also optionally operate off-grid (Photo: Güte)
(Photo: Güte)
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(Photo: Güte)
A wood burning stove can also be fitted as an optional extra (Photo: Güte)
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A wood burning stove can also be fitted as an optional extra (Photo: Güte)
Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
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Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
Exterior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
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Exterior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
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Interior shot of the Shepherd Hut (Photo: Güte)
View gallery - 23 images

Canadian company Güte recently designed a prefabricated trailer-like hut that's suitable for use as a small dwelling, office space, or guest room. Its old-school looks notwithstanding, the Shepherd Hut can be connected to an electricity supply or operate off-grid, and features a nice finish and some space-saving furniture inside.

The Shepherd Hut measures 2.1 m (7 ft) wide, with the length determined by the customer, though Güte recommends a length of either 3.6 m (12 ft) or 4.8 m (16 ft). It's designed to withstand a harsh Canadian winter so should be suitable for those living in chilly climes, and features a hardwood or steel chassis, wooden siding and floor, and a cedar or corrugated steel roof.

Available furniture includes a folding hardwood desk, a kitchen unit, sofa bed, bunk beds, and a bookcase. Güte also offers a hand-pumped solid brass sink and a brass Welsh miner's lamp.

The Shepherd Hut measures 2.1 m (7 ft) wide and Güte recommends a length of either 3.6 m (12 ft) or 4.8 m (16 ft) (Photo: Güte)
The Shepherd Hut measures 2.1 m (7 ft) wide and Güte recommends a length of either 3.6 m (12 ft) or 4.8 m (16 ft) (Photo: Güte)

The Shepherd Hut is wired to operate from a battery, generator, or extension cord. It can also run off-grid with an optional solar array and battery bank. A wood burning stove or an ethanol fireplace can be fitted, and the firm told us that a composting toilet can be installed, but that a building permit may then be required.

The furnished model featured will set you back around CAD 32,900 (US$29,146), plus delivery, though additions like the PV array, ethanol fireplace, and the wood stove cost extra.

Source: Güte

View gallery - 23 images

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Tiny HousesOff-grid
11 comments
Adam Williams
Adam Williams
Adam scours the globe from his home in Spain in order to bring the best of innovative architecture and sustainable design to the pages of New Atlas. Most of his spare time is spent dabbling in music, tinkering with old Macintosh computers and trying to keep his even older VW bus on the road.

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11 comments
EddieG
Cool looking, but no crapper, so of limited value.
Buellrider
Love the looks. Reminds me of what I'd think a Gypsy would live in. Usually folks that would be into that kind of lifestyle are quite handy and would be able to build their own for a fraction of the this dwelling's cost. I find it amusing the prices most of these wheeled micro house/sheds supposedly command. The type of off the grid folks these dwellings are report-ably trying to attract would surely like to buy one of these nice looking abodes but would surely laugh at the price. A second hand camping trailer can be had for a song these days. One other thing is the ridiculous metal wheels that seem to limit this thing to time travel fantasies.
Noel K Frothingham
This design wasn't created with your concept of 'value' in mind, Eddie.
Mous
a doll house for pretend sheep herders & shepherdesses to escape the trials of urban life.
Jonathan J Kim
When one use the word "Living" as in Tiny Living Small Living, one must account for what constitute living. This is not a Small Living space. It is just a Modern Hut. NOT LIVING. Living includes actual living space, kitchen and shower and a toilet. Let's start distinguish little crappy space to a little crappy living space.
Bob
If you have ever pulled an old implement on cast iron wheels, you know that this thing would shake down to kindling wood after a short haul. The retro look is beautiful but not very practical. Other than a quaint weekend cabin by the lake or a stage set for a Gypsy movie, I don't see much appeal for most. Certainly not overly liveable unless you are really into primitive living and frosty outhouses. Then the price tag would scare you away.
Misti Pickles
Then you hand over thirty grand for a rolling garden shed Mr. Frothingham! You seem to have a pretty poor grip on value.
bergamot69
Agree with Bob on this.
Another factor is the lack of levelling meaning you'd have to do a fair amount of digging or placing objects under the wheels to get the thing properly level.
'Modern' versions of the gypsy caravan, or 'vardo' to give it it's proper name, usually come with simple leaf spring suspension and pneumatic tyres. Ridiculous to think that this company should offer such an expensive yet rudimentary product without it.
Incidentally you can buy a real used but virtually pristine vardo in the UK for between £5000 and £15000- not cheap, but when you look at the quality of the build, and the elaborate and colourful paintwork, you can see why they are not cheap.
chidrbmt
Everything is 50% higher in Canada. That's why they come down to the states to shop in droves.
exodous
I really think the tiny house movement in large part caters to the uber rich. The only people who will puchase this have BMWs in all the garages in their many vacation homes scattered throughout the world that they only drive for a few days every few years. These will sit in back yards of these mansions and be a quaint conversation piece. No one will live in them.
People who really want to downsize for whatever reason go to a workshop to learn how to build a tiny house and then make their own. Building a tiny house is less than half of the purchase price and unless you make $200+ an hour it is worth your time to do so.
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