Stunning Scandinavian-Style in Off-Grid Tasmanian Tiny Home

When we think about living off the grid in a tiny house, I think what connects so many of us to that idea is a theme of freedom, of escape, of adventure, of doing something in life that's a little bit different. And here in the wilderness of Tasmania, we're about to meet a remarkable woman who has done just that. Hi Anna, how are you? Hi Bryce, I'm great. Nice to meet you. It is so lovely to meet you. And wow, this is quite a spot you've got here, isn't it? Yes, I'm very lucky. It's my little sanctuary. And your house here just looks so fantastic, beautifully nestled into this very rural setting. Yeah, considering it was built without having a spot in mind where it was going to be parked, it actually worked out it's made to be here, I think. Yeah. And what was it that sparked your journey into a tiny home and living off the grid in remote Tasmania? It was, funnily enough, a spur-of-the-moment decision almost. Basically, a friend of mine signed up to get a tiny house built. And I've always loved tiny houses, but never kind of took that step. I rented a three-bedroom house, but housing costs were going up and, you know, all of that anyway. So she signed up and I was like, oh, maybe I should actually look into this a bit more. So I went on Google, as you do nowadays, and actually found a company very close to here. Had the appointment, got a really good connection with the builders, lovely couple, and I really liked what they did. A bit of a, you know, Scandi style, which complements my heritage, I guess. Absolutely, because you're from Sweden originally. Yeah. And they just happened to have a trailer that was pretty much ready to go, that fell through with another person who was going to do a build. And I basically went home, slept on it, and the next day I signed on the dotted line. Amazing. And what was it that really made you fall in love with the idea of living in a tiny house? Probably my Scandi background coming through that less is more. I think I realised that I had way too much stuff to waste you down. And I really noticed that when I cleared out all my stuff to move in here, which I got rid of all my furniture, basically, except for the mattress. And I felt every load I, you know, gave away, or took to the tip shop, or whatever, I felt lighter almost. It was a very cathartic feeling, getting rid of stuff. And I haven't missed a thing since I moved in here. So I have absolutely everything I need, and probably still a little bit too much, to be honest. And this parking spot that you've found for the tiny house is so idyllic. What a spot you've got here. I was so lucky. Like, about four weeks out from the tiny being finished, I still didn't know where to park it. I even went and looked at the local caravan park to see if I could kind of slot in there, if need be. But then, as it happened, you know, someone talked to someone, and it was all happening down in the village close by here. And basically, from 9am in the morning to 11am, I had gotten a call, go and see this guy, they might have some land for you. Drove here, had a look. Lovely people, which are now my landlords. And yeah, it worked out really well. It certainly did. And you've got some really lovely gardens here as well. Well, it's a work in progress, let's put it that way. It always is with gardens. I started about two years ago to put a little bit in the ground here, so now it's slowly taking off. But yeah, I enjoy being out and getting, you know, down and dirty and digging, and hopefully get, you know, to reap my rewards later on from the fruit and veggies as well, and nice flowers around, and it's just, yeah. Absolutely. And I see you're totally off the grid with this tiny house too. I am indeed, and that's something I've never done before. So it's, you know, I really wanted to go off-grid when I did tiny, mainly because then you're more open to different parking spots, I guess as well, but also, you know, just to minimise my footprint. And, you know, it feels really good living off-grid. A bit tougher maybe, you know, you have to sometimes go out and drag your composting toilet around and place it in the sun and all of that, but, you know, part of life, and I'm really enjoying it. Yeah. And can you talk to me about the design of your tiny house? When I signed on the dotted line, basically my builders asked me for a wishlist, and that was mainly inside, but in terms of the outside, this is what my builders came up with, and yeah, it stayed like that because I liked it. It is a beautiful design. The black exterior with the hints of timber is just a very classic look, isn't it? And it especially fits beautifully into this natural surround. Yeah, I think I really like the darker colour because it does go well with the green surrounding, so that was something that I really wanted. And then the little timber accents around the windows and everything, that was a request from me a bit later on because I wanted something to break the darkness up, and the dark with the timber, like you said, it's just a match. Yeah, it just works. And what size is your tiny house? It's 10 metres long and two and a half wide. Great size. And I think the height is 4.3. And it's nice that you've got the brazier here too and a lovely little seating area. Yeah, you know, eventually I hope to extend the deck and make a bit more of a permanent awning as well, so you get like an extra room out here, but, you know, one thing at a time. And the little fire pit is actually a cut-off from when they make marinas, you know, those pylon things. Right. Yeah, so that's... What a cool idea. We use something, yeah. Actually, my builders had one at home and I really liked it, so that was what I wanted and, yeah. Well, already from the outside, I love what you've created here and I cannot wait to see inside your home. Can we take a look? Of course, come in. Thank you very much. This is just lovely. And I can definitely see some of that Scandinavian design coming through in here. To be honest, I didn't know I had it in me, but I obviously have when you look at it because that's what everyone says. And I think Scandinavian design especially is really well suited to tiny houses and the tiny house aesthetic. There's something about it which is cozy, which is welcoming, and yet also functions really well in small space design because it's simultaneously expanding somehow. Definitely. I've never had the opportunity to really put my stamp on a building before. I mean, I did own a house back in the day and I painted it inside, but to actually be able to choose every little thing down to whatever cupboards or knobs on the cupboards, and I loved it. Absolutely. To start from the very beginning and make it just yours is a really wonderful thing to experience, isn't it? Definitely. And you've chosen to go for a single level design in this tiny house. Yes. I guess I'm no spring chicken anymore and the thoughts of stairs and things going up and down didn't really appeal to me, to be honest. And I really did this build for me, designed it for me, and that's it. That's such a great way of designing. And all around the home here, you've got all this wonderful artwork. Yeah, I have a lot more actually as well, but this is the pieces that fit it in and that I like, and they come from different stages of my life as well. So at least I can keep a little bit of old stuff, so to say, around me. And I've kept a lot more artwork. So if I feel the need, I can swap it out. You know, I have it all up in the back storage. Brilliant. And down the end there, we've got your bed. And that is an especially lovely, cozy looking space, isn't it? It is. I love my bedroom and I love the open plan feel. And I've kept my queen size mattress because I do like to have that space and it kind of doubles as a big, super big lounge sometimes. And it's very comfortable. And I also like that I have windows at both sides of it. So when I lay in bed at night, because there's no interfering lights out here, if I tilt my head a little bit back, I can see the stars outside and it's really beautiful. And waking up in the morning, because the sun rises in the other window, you have that against the trees and you can just lay there with your cup of tea and just, you never want to get up sometimes. Beautiful. And you've got the TV there as well? Yeah, and it's on a rotating arm. So I can start out on the lounge and then move on to the bed or vice versa, whatever I feel like doing. So yeah, it worked out really good. Yeah. And it looks like you've got a lot of storage under the bed there. Certainly have. You know, that was one thing that was really important to me, to have enough storage. So there's drawers everywhere. And even under the mattress further back, there's little pockets I can lift up like you have in boats. So there's drawers on the first half and the second half, there's storage for things that I don't use very often. Like I have old photo albums or, you know, extra bedding if a guest comes and all that kind of stuff. And is that a wardrobe that you've got over to the side as well? Yeah, that's a hanging wardrobe because I needed something, not just drawers and stuff. You need some place to hang some of your clothes and things and a bit more storage. And it also works really well as a divider between the living area and the bedroom as well. Dual purpose. Very nice. And of course, really adding to the super cozy aesthetic of the home is the roaring Meg there. That is just such a lovely addition. It was a later addition to the house, actually. It wasn't in the plan. I got it about a year ago and had it installed in July midwinter last year. And it's been a game changer. It's just such a nice heat. And the size is perfect for this size of house because it doesn't get too hot. I know a lot of other people who have bigger, more traditional wood burners kind of overheat the house. They have to open everything up. But this is just perfect. I can even put a little kettle on top if I want and boil my tea water. So it's a great addition. And then moving into your lounge area, this is just such a cozy and welcoming looking space. Yeah, I wanted an L-shaped lounge. And it is wide enough so you can actually have it as a guest bed as well. And the table is actually quite a feature because it actually moves around. You can push it either way. You can swirl it around, even though it's stationary because it's actually bolted to the floor, which might be a negative thing. But it works really well. I work from home full time. So that's where I take my monitor down and have my computer set up during the week. And then I pack it away. And then we've had people around here. You can easily sit four or five people around there with a couple of extra stools because you can move it out. Brilliant. And I really like the way that you have created this space that does still look really cozy and comfortable as a lounge, has nice deep cushions, and it looks like a really nice sofa. But then you've got this wonderful, dedicated dining space as well. And it sort of seems to be one of those transforming spaces that does two jobs really well, which is quite unusual. Yeah, because again, when I said I designed this for me, the deep couch, I definitely wanted that. Not one of these little tiny things that you can, you know, I like to veg out there with my dog in the evenings watching telly or whatever. But at the same time, I do like to cook and, you know, occasionally have people over. So you want somewhere that you can sit this and then you don't have to kind of crouch on the floor or whatever. So yeah, it's worked out brilliantly. It certainly has. And it looks like you've built some storage in under here as well. Oh, yes. What did I say? You can never have too much storage, right? Oh, of course. Three drawers under there as well. So one is business things, you know, paperwork, stuff like that. One is a drawer for my dog. And the other one is just sheets and bedding and stuff like that. Very nice. And then your kitchen, this is so nicely done. I love how you've gone for the galley style here with things happening on both sides. The kitchen was important to me because I like to cook and, you know, hopefully I won't be working too much longer and can spend even more time in the kitchen cooking and preserving and doing that stuff. So I wanted, you know, a proper stove, proper oven. I wanted a proper washing machine and a fridge and all of that. So initially, I think my builders were like, oh, that's going to be a bit difficult. But, you know, it all worked out in the end. It certainly did. And you really have gone for nice, very full-sized appliances here. Yeah, because, you know, if you bake or put something in the oven, I wanted a good-sized oven. So it's a nice Italian stove and the fridge is an inverted one, I think they call it. So they're a bit more energy efficient. And the washing machine, I know you can get the smaller ones, like four kilos and whatever. But then if you can't do all your bedding at once or whatever, so then you kind of use more energy and water for that. So it just didn't make sense. Yeah. The fact that it's a bit up, so it sits on a drawer, that wasn't in the plan initially. So that was an improvement on the plan. That worked out really well. And the dishwasher was another on my must-have list. I hate doing dishes. Who likes doing dishes? And lots of storage in here as well. I like how you've got the overhead cabinets here. And then, of course, the full-sized pantry there as well. Yeah. Again, storage, you can never have too much. And I love my pantry. That is one of my, oh, the best things of the kitchen, I think. Another thing I especially like about this kitchen is the blend of the stainless steel tops with the timber tops. That is such a nice mix. Yes. Initially, I think we had the stainless steel on the other side and the timber here with a stove, but then it didn't make sense to me to have the timber by the stove because here you can just put your hot pots and whatever on here. I agree. And I didn't want it to be just stainless steel because then it looks a bit, I don't know, the timber just warms things up, I think. Yeah. So obviously I have to maintain the timber, but that's all right. It's a very comfortable space to work in. It certainly looks it. It's a very cute little tea shelf you've got there too. Yeah, I do like my teas and they take up some space. Initially, that space was actually going to have another cupboard in it, but then as the build evolved, it kind of was obvious that's going to make the space a bit too enclosed. So then we came up with that little shelf and it serves its purpose beautifully. It's a great solution. And beyond the kitchen, we've got your bathroom. Can we take a look at that? Of course. All right. Hey, this is really cool. I have never seen towel storage like that before. That's such a cool feature. I hadn't either until I found it. You know, storing towels is such a waste of space. It would take one whole drawer at least for those towels. And I just happened to find this when I was, you know, searching online and I love it. I like it a lot. It sort of becomes a feature on the wall, doesn't it? And it also softens it. Yeah. I like that a lot. And then you've got the composting toilet here. Yes, I do. Again, learning process, but it works brilliantly and I use the compost out of my fruit trees and stuff. Yeah. Perfect. And here in Tasmania, we're in drought at the moment. Composting toilets just make so much sense, don't they? Oh, it does. And then you've got a nice size shower too. It's actually a really big shower in there, isn't it? It is. It's probably the biggest shower I've ever had, I think, in anywhere I've lived. Works really well. Just simple aqua panels on the walls. I hate cleaning tiles, to be honest. And this is such easy maintenance. Just make sure you dry it off. And yeah, it keeps very nice. Great. Lovely little vanity unit there as well. Yeah, it certainly does the trick. There's no storage above the vanity, but instead I have the storage underneath and that works really well. Perfect. And so you've been living in this tiny house now for two and a half years. How are you finding tiny house life? I love it more every day, I think. It was definitely a learning curve from some aspects, but a learning curve I've really enjoyed and I'm embracing. And yeah, I can't wait to see where it takes me, basically. I don't think I realised how perfect tiny life living would be until I actually was living it. It's amazing how good it is for both your mind and body and soul kind of thing. Sounds a bit corny, I know, but I really find it's been so good for both me and I'm outside a lot more and being closer to nature, you know, just grounds you. What would you say your biggest learning curve has been? Oh God, there's been a few, I think. Definitely the off-grid with the solar and stuff because where I am parked, I have quite a lot of tall trees around. The first winter was a learning curve because I had to get myself a generator and run that fairly recent. And now last winter, I had some trees taken down, so I have a bit better, but just you become so much more aware of what you're using in terms of electricity and how much you have stored. So you have to really, you know, prioritise what you do in winter, basically. And I maybe can't run the dishwasher one day, so I actually have to do the dishes. God, horror. But yeah, I think that's probably the biggest learning curve with the electricity, the solar and how to use it responsibly, so to say, in winter. Yeah. And can we talk about the cost that was involved in building this home? Yeah, I have a fairly large spreadsheet because I was actually, because I was putting all my savings into this, I had to budget quite strict. But all in all, including the solar, including the water tank, including the earthworks that had to be done, it was around 160,000, 165,000. That's brilliant. Yeah, considering what only the solar setup was and everything, I think I've done fairly well. And you're so well settled into your beautiful tiny home now. What does the future hold for you? Well, you know, upwards and onwards, extend the deck, build a pergola, so I have like a little outside room and then just work on the garden, basically. More veggie growing, you know, maybe some chickens, some goats maybe, who knows? Set up the tiny homestead. Yeah, definitely. I absolutely love that. Well, Anna, this really is just such a charming home that you've built for yourself here. This is a wonderful spot for you. Thank you so much for sharing it with me. My pleasure, Bryce. This is such a beautiful home that Anna has created for herself. And it's a home that gives her so much beyond all of the simple things like shelter, a beautiful place to live. It's also given her a brand new adventure and that's what I think I love about this. Learning to live off grid, now growing her own fruit and vegetables and living in this kind of beautiful, wild, natural landscape is just such a gift and I love that she has created that for herself.