Just One Look at This New Tiny House Will Make You Want to Downsize

New Zealand–based Build Tiny just unveiled the Kingfisher—a new two-bedroom tiny house that’s at once stylish, practical, and flexible.

Text by

Laura Mauk

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When Build Tiny director and designer Gina Stevens devised the new Kingfisher tiny house, her priorities were practicality and flexibility. "The open-plan design suits a wide range of people," Stevens says. "And the bookshelves and the lift-up cubby storage in the loft are super practical—as is the tall wardrobe and the platform that allows you to walk alongside the bed rather than crawl, like you have to do in many other tiny house loft bedrooms."

The loft-style master bedroom has plenty of shelving and a tall built-in wardrobe.

One of the loft-style bedrooms features two sizable windows, and it accommodates a set of twin beds.

The Kingfisher’s appearance is practical, too—it’s sided with gunmetal vinyl punctuated with caramel-colored cedar on the front facade. "The cladding needed to be lightweight in order to be driven easily on the road," Stevens says. "Vinyl is light, and cedar is a lightweight timber." The cedar is as attractive as it is practical—"it was also introduced to give the house warmth and architectural interest," Stevens says.

Dark gray vinyl siding wraps around the exterior of the Kingfisher tiny home.

Stevens offset the vinyl with cedar siding on the front facade.

The two-bedroom, 215-square-foot home costs approximately $80,000, and it can be purchased with an $11,000 solar package. "The flooring is vinyl overlay, and the kitchen counters are laminate with a lightweight poplar core plywood substrate," says Stevens. "The solar equipment is stored in a special cupboard over the drawbar, and there’s lots of storage within the stairs and in both of the loft bedrooms," the designer adds.

Gray-toned vinyl flooring spans the open-plan kitchen and living room.

A storage-filled staircase leads to one of the loft-style bedrooms, while a wood ladder accesses the second loft-style bedroom.

According to Stevens, many of her clients seek out tiny homes in order to save money and time, reduce anxiety and environmental impact, and gain freedom and independence. They’re ideas she’s very familiar with. "I designed and built my own tiny house with my brother-in-law Jason," she says. "The whole family got involved, and we had so much fun in the process."

Stevens installed as many storage cabinets and drawers as possible beneath the staircase.

The sunlight-filled kitchen, which is adjacent to the bathroom, is outfitted with a dishwasher and laminate counters.

Stevens’s family enjoyed the process so much they decided to go into the tiny home building business together—and Build Tiny was born. "We specialize in custom design," Stevens says. "We don’t just tweak existing designs. We start from scratch with each client to make sure they get exactly what they need out of their tiny house."