Commissioned to create a tiny house for Australian tourism and events company Visit Victoria, Ample came up with the charmingly named Stella the Stargazer. Looking like a rural farm shack from a distance, the off-grid dwelling's rustic appearance belies a comfortable interior with a neat trick up its sleeve: its bed can be pulled out to let visitors sleep outside under the stars.
Stella the Stargazer is based on a triple-axle trailer and has a length of roughly 10 m (32 ft) and a width of just under 2.4 m (7.8 ft). Ample made use of old sections of steel that were sourced from a ruined farm shack in rural Penshurst, Victoria, as well as reclaimed corrugated iron and hardwood, lending it a distinctive shed-like appearance.
The tiny house's most defining feature is definitely that stargazing bed. When the weather suits, visitors can raise the glazed wall and slide out the bed manually.
"To break away from the trailer footprint, we have incorporated fold-up corrugated eaves, large steel framed East-orientated glazing, and an operable gas strut window," explained Ample. "Through this primary aperture, our bed platform rolls out and cantilevers from the trailer base. This treehouse-like element is covered from above by the Kundig-esque window and protected from bugs by a mosquito net hung at points from the window frame."
Visitors enter the kitchen through a deck area and sliding glass doors, and are treated to a wood-burning stove that doubles as a hotplate, a propane-powered stove, a small fridge, sink, and shelving. The use of reclaimed hardwood and porthole-style windows adds a lot of character to the interior, plus another operable window opens onto the deck area, making serving food and drinks easier.
Elsewhere in the tiny house is a dining table, plus a snug living room area with a sofa. There's a bathroom tucked away behind the kitchen too, and this also embraces the shack-like aesthetic, with burnished steel and copper and brass plumbing fittings.
Stella the Stargazer runs fully off-the-grid with a solar panel system and batteries, plus a generator that automatically kicks in if required. It also has a rainwater collection system that can be topped up with fresh water, plus other tanks to store greywater and waste.
The tiny house will be situated in different locations throughout Victoria for eight weeks at at time. As of writing, it's about to head to Central Gippsland. If you'd like to spend a night under the stars yourself, bookings start at AUD 330 (roughly US$210).
Sources: Visit Victoria, Ample
