90 | Little Place Ltd Tiny home pioneers going strong Little Place uses natural materials such as framing that is naturally bug resistant. A stand out feature is a round window seat sitting spot in the middle of the house. Karen Phelps BUILDING When Motueka based Little Place Ltd started around five years ago nobody had really heard of tiny homes. Now the company is busy making unique bespoke tiny homes and cabins year round, all through word of mouth, as the tiny house movement continues to grow. Owned by Lindsey Ellison and Demian Innes, Little Place was started as Dem, a builder by trade, no longer wanted to work with toxic building materials, and Lindsey was undertaking a sustainable practice qualification. “We were looking at the building industry and realised it’s really toxic and there is a lot of waste. So we wanted to do something different and wondered if we could make a really healthy space that was also really beautiful.” Little Place uses natural materials such as framing that is naturally bug resistant, woollen insulation and natural oils. It supports small local businesses and suppliers to create bespoke spaces that are completely different to anything else on the market. “We think about every single thing we use, the waste from it and footprint from it,” explains Lindsey. “When people walk into our homes they are immediately different and smell like wood and natural oil.” Clients are encouraged to have a hand in their build – from design to oiling the timber for their home. Lindsey and Dem consider this is important so clients feel they have helped to build their home. A home called ‘Torii Gate’ is a good example. The client wanted a feel in the home of a torii, which is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the mundane to the sacred. “Our clients wanted their home to feel like a place for a calm lifestyle.Being very passionate about qi gong, they wanted a beautiful space for their family. It was a pleasure to take the journey with them and explore what that could look like,” says Lindsey. She says that there was a lot to learn on the build, from an exterior clad with Shou Sugi Ban burnt timber (that won’t have to be oiled for ten years) to how to include a huge round sitting spot in a tiny house. Added to the mix were Covid-19 disruptions, materials shortages, bad weather and a crazy site location. Lindsey says that fortunately Little Place has really experienced talented craftspeople that work for the company. Lindsey says the home has a beautiful Zen feel abounding with symmetry and clean flowing lines. A stand out feature is a round window seat sitting spot in the middle of the house. Practical details include a toilet that slides below a full laundry sink to cater to three boys. There are two bedrooms upstairs, one of which has a dropped landing giving full head height along one wall of the bedroom and a full-length wardrobe. The home is complemented by two cabins on the site, which are the boys’ bedrooms. Lindsey says Little Place is dedicated to remaining a small family run enterprise. It undertakes just two builds at a time with Dem hands on building and designing and Lindsey taking care of customers and the important back end of the business. Adina Pe g lly Client Care : Quotes : Bookings : Tiny towing Solutions Ph 0272170712 Email adina@tinytowingsolutions.co.nz Mayb add :Speci lizing in Tiny home Transport Photo's there are heaps on our Website TinytowingSolutions.co.nz Tiny Towing Solutions Specialising in Tiny Home Transport 027 217 0712 adina@tinytowingsolutions.co.nz www.tinytowingsolutions.co.nz
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