Past Projects
Louisa's Van
(Betty)
Betty is an absolute stunner!! Louisa came to me last year with a very precise brief. A professionally compiled brief with mood boards, inspiration pics and detailed instructions of what she wanted from this build.
Louisa is a Sydneysider, and lived in a beautiful apartment with furniture and decorations that meant a lot to her. She wanted to maintain that homely feel and vibe that her apartment offered, and sent me lots of pics of her apartment to help me get inspired.
From the bone inlay floor to ceiling mirror to the chevron timber cabinet at the rear, these are all items of furniture that Louisa owns, and we managed to incorporate them all into the design.
Louisa has started a new business and can work from the road, so this van also must be a home office, and natural light was high on the agenda. Lots of windows, skylights and bright fresh cabinetry make being inside this van a joy, no matter what time of day it is. The camphor Laurel timberwork, and brass hardware give this van a subtle luxury vibe without being too pretentious. And with a huge 200ah lithium system, toilet, shower and gas cooking, Louisa can now work wherever she wants....when she's not being distracted by the beautiful views from those windows.
Tim & Jessica's Coaster
Tim and Jessica are no strangers to bus life!! They created a huge coach conversion in New Zealand a few years ago, but since moving over the pond, haven't had a converted bus to enjoy. After making the decision to do it all again, they opted this time to not do the conversion themselves. So they contacted us and we were so pleased to work on this project.
From a floorspace point of view, this is a huge space for a conversion, with over 5.2m in interior space length, plus the cabin space, this truly is as close to a ‘Schoolie’ as most of us will get in Australia. A caveat of the coaster is its limited headroom, which is considerably less than a high roof Sprinter. A finished ceiling height is only 1.8m, but is a great compromise for those that don’t mind the low ceiling, to get such a large floor area and up to 1.9m in width to allow comfortable East to West sleeping.
The design concept for this bus was an area the was user friendly for their two children that require stimulation in their space and ability to climb around all areas of the bus and feel like it’s as much theirs as their parents.
Also creating an extra couch area up front was a game changer for this build. The front passenger seat was removed and a little reading nook was created, whilst still allowing access beneath it for the engine bay, fuse box and washer wiper bottle. A styling concept of a barn was decided upon early on, but with a more high end finish. We opted for French oak wide planks for the ceiling and rear cabinetry, and black shaker cabinet lowers with complimentary white shaker uppers to lighten the visual space at eye level. A mixture of brass and black hardware contrasts wonderfully with the black and white cabinetry, liming white stained countertop and Tasmanian oak trim, and those timber look tiles!!
Another large part of the brief was to maintain as much of the windows as possible, but to cover as much of the steel structure, creating a softer feel that sometimes you need to look twice to realise you're inside a bus.
A large rear adult bed creates a large garage area, allowing for a huge pull out drawer that turns that comfy lounge/dining area into a kids double bed in less than a minute. And you can't miss that massive skylight that allows for stargazing at night or just flooding the bus with natural light during the day.
Storage is abundant in this bus, with those huge underbed drawers that even open with the lounge upholstery in place, its all about the ease of use. And forward facing drawers can be a problem with opening whilst travelling, so an electro magnet setup keeps those drawers tightly locked, whilst minimising visual locking mechanisms that would spoil the clean detailed finish of this space.
200ah of lithium, 540watts of solar, 40amp DCDC, 40 amp AC charger and 2000w inverter make this bus quite the weightlifter when it comes to power setup. And a portable toilet and outdoor shower meet the usage needs of this family, and maximising the space inside as much as possible.
Brass coach lights, Kensington style front door and warm lighting throughout make this the cosiest space whilst maintaining a very high end finish, and the huge awning with pull out Webber BBQ mean that there's plenty of room to play, entertain and just relax in and around this absolutely stunning rolling home!!!
Alex & Emily's Van
("Rosie")
Rosie is a Renault Master with a family getaway style fit out. The brief for Rosie was to be able to accommodate a family of four (two small children) for extended periods away camping, but not for full time living. Whilst being practical, they wanted Rosie to stand out in style, and be worthy of those Instagram pics we see everyday on our news feeds.
Being a LWB Renault master, she's not as long in cargo space as a Sprinter, and the need for two extra seat belted seats for the kids meant getting clever with the layout to allow for comfortable daytime use whilst being able to sleep all 4 without the need for time consuming setups for night time use.
To save on countertop space we went for a portable induction cooktop, which is intended for use whilst connected to shore power. This suits the purpose of use for the majority of the time, as the kids enjoy being at the big 4 caravan parks and having all of the entertainment and facilities that come along with that. For off grid camping, an outdoor gas stove can be used under the awning for al-fresco style cooking.
An internal shower was pretty much impossible in order to maintain the adequate seating and facilities inside the van, so an outdoor shower serves as a next best solution for the more extended trips away without being at the caravan parks. An Electric hot water system heats up a 10ltr tank and offers plenty of hot water for those much needed refresher showers when camping.
A double bed for the parents and the smallest of their children serves as the main sleeping area, while a clever fold out wall bed adds a higher bunk, which sleeps their eldest child with almost zero setup time.
A huge farmhouse sink and a 95ltr fridge adds to those comfort appliances which make storing plenty of food and cooking for the family less of a chore.
A huge pull out table at the rear creates a wonderful outdoor dining area to enjoy meal times with an amazing view, and the custom finishes inside of the van with subtle tones and copper hardware make the interior a very stylish area to spend time in.
420 ah of AGM battery and 720 watts of solar allows for a comfortable 3-4 days off grid camping without requiring any external charging source, and in instances of sunny clear days this van can go for much longer than that. 100 ltrs of fresh water also means the ability to get away from civilization for much longer than your average weekender style fit out.
Check out the custom screen next to the farmhouse sink, it’s actually the initials of all of the family members and adds that touch of personalisation and home comfort feel, and truly makes 'Rosie’ feel like a home from home.
Renee's Van
(SaVANnah)
Renee’s Van is a 2019 Mercedes Sprinter 414 CDi LWB High roof. This van is jam packed with the best features. Renee sold her house & hit the road so she wanted to maximise the comfort of tiny home living.
A dining room that converts into a double bed was a non-negotiable for Renee. The comfort of sleeping couldn’t compromise the ability to host a dinner party or social gatherings. Renee’s got style, and she wanted the same with her van. Beautiful tiled backsplash and a complimenting brick wall, a rustic barn door on the shower, clean white timbers and Hamptons style furniture and hardware, this van could be on the cover of a glossy magazine.
A state of the art 200 amp hour lithium battery system, 1600 watt inverter, 40 amp DCDC charger, 45 amp solar controller & a huge 600 watts of solar, this van packs a punch in the power department. A shower, toilet, 110 litres of fresh water, oven & stove make this little home a place to feel at ease wherever you may be, and the maxxair fan and two sirocco fans will keep you cool even in the hot Queensland summers.
Martin's Van
(Jacaranda)
Martin is a surfer and came to me with a specific brief, ‘Keep It Simple’
Martin lives in a tiny house and this van is an extension of that lifestyle.
Simple yet meeting Martin's needs, this van is the perfect example of form vs functionality. A surfboard cabinet that stretches the entire length of the van allows for two boards to be carried without affecting day to day use of the van space, and the ability to carry two more boards on the ceiling means he can get away for those longer surf trips and have the versatility of his entire surfboard collection on board.
A small adaptable couch area can be used to lounge, relax, or even have guests over for a few sunset beers after a day in the surf. A 30 ltr drawer fridge is a perfect addition to this little weekend getaway vehicle, and the flip up bed allows for quick transition between sleep mode, and the ability to still carry cargo when required.
A modest 140ah AGM battery with the ability to upgrade to 280ah and 300 watts of solar is plenty of power to run this vans appliances, and a Victron solar controller with bluetooth makes for easy monitoring of the electrical performance and history.
A pull-out kitchen that transforms into a substantial amount of cooking space means this van is perfect for those extra-long weekend breaks to be fully off grid and self-sustaining.
Edna
Edna is a 2012 model Ford Transit LWB high roof. Edna came to me as an ex removals van, with really low kms and a good clean blank canvas.
Although Edna has less than 6 square metres of living space, we managed to pack in almost every feature you could ever want in a tiny home on wheels.
With a toilet and shower, hot water heater, aircon, 100 litre fridge, two 4.5 kg gas bottles, an oven and stove, TV, coffee machine, lagun table, awning, 450 watts of solar and 480 amp hours of battery, this little van has the feature list of a luxury home.
