≡ Menu

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her funky tiny home (Interview + Tour!)


This post contains affiliate links.

This is the story of Shelley’s 40-foot shipping container tiny home in Russell Island, Southern Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. Yes, she recycled a container and turned it into very own tiny, but not too tiny, home.

Grab a coffee or tea and enjoy the photo tour, read our exclusive interview with her, and learn about getting a rare opportunity to book a vacation in Shelley’s 40-foot container home if you’d like to. Short stays only.

Please don’t miss other exciting tiny house stories like this – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter for more!

Shelley’s 40-foot Shipping Container Tiny Home in Russell Island – Interview, Tiny House Tour, and How You Can MAYBE Stay Here…

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 001

Where are you from?

Russell Island, Southern Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 002

How did you first become seriously interested in tiny homes?

About 10 years ago my interest grew in tiny houses, to have a lesser footprint on the environment, be affordable and enable me to move into my retirement having already ‘right sized’ my possessions. In part, this arose because of my love of sailing and the need to live ‘tiny’ on a yacht.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 003

What type of tiny house do you have or are you working on?

A contemporary one bedroom, container home set amongst nature. Built from a 40-foot shipping container in 2016, the home is very liveable especially with its bi-fold doors that open onto the enclosed deck.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 004

Why did you do it?

Affordability and lifestyle. The home is in a bushland location enabling me to enjoy nature and to do things I enjoy without me having to be committed to a lot of house cleaning and maintenance like a normal home.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 005

How long did it take you to finish your container home?

The container home was imported and installed on site with the finishing taking about 6 months.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 006

Did you do it yourself or hire a builder?

A builder installed the container, built and closed in the deck and carport.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 007

What sort of foundation is it built on?

The container is mounted on footings.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 008

What’s been the most challenging part about your tiny house so far?

Figuring out how to wisely use the living and outdoor space.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 008b

What benefits are you experiencing from it so far?

Minimal utility bills, little maintenance, and cleaning. More time to do what I want with my time.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 009

What helpful piece of advice would you give to others who are interested in going tiny? What mistakes could you help them avoid?

Try spending a few days in a small or tiny house to see if it may suit you. If you are a person who spreads out all of their possessions over their home and does not follow the routine of storing things away being in a small space may not be a positive experience.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 0010

Do you have a website, blog, or social media pages where we can connect with you and follow along?

No. However to share the experience of living in an island container home I am offering it for short stays. The Bird House.

She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 0011 She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 0012 She turned a 40-foot shipping container into her tiny home 0013

Images via Shelley

Learn more about getting an opportunity to stay here:

Our big thanks to Shelley for sharing!🙏

You can share this using the e-mail and social media re-share buttons below. Thanks!

If you enjoyed this you’ll LOVE our Free Daily Tiny House Newsletter with even more!

You can also join our Small House Newsletter!

Our Tiny Houses For Sale Newsletter!

And finally – share YOUR tiny house!

More Like This: Tiny Houses | Vacations | Shipping Containers | Small Houses

See The Latest: Go Back Home to See Our Latest Tiny Houses

This post contains affiliate links.

The following two tabs change content below.

Alex

Alex is a contributor and editor for TinyHouseTalk.com and the always free Tiny House Newsletter. He has a passion for exploring and sharing tiny homes (from yurts and RVs to tiny cabins and cottages) and inspiring simple living stories. We invite you to send in your story and tiny home photos too so we can re-share and inspire others towards a simple life too. Thank you!
{ 10 comments… add one }
  • Robert Aulicky
    April 4, 2019, 12:38 pm

    Hi Shelley,
    Looks like you ARE home. Very nice indeed.

    • Alex
      June 11, 2019, 8:36 am

      Glad you enjoyed it, Robert. And big thanks to Shelley for sharing it w/ us.

  • SC
    April 6, 2019, 4:13 pm

    Very nice. It looks like the sort of a place someone would go to if they wanted to write the first draft of a novel……Alright, someplace I would want to go to fulfill my writing dreams.

    • Alex
      June 11, 2019, 8:35 am

      I love that idea…😊

  • Lee Ann
    April 9, 2019, 4:38 pm

    I love that screened porch. A house is truly a home when it has a screened porch. 🙂 Also love the layout of the place. Wonderful home you have. The views, too!

    • Alex
      June 11, 2019, 8:35 am

      I love the screened porch too. It’s almost a must where I live because of mosquitos during the summer.

  • Sheila Plourde
    November 7, 2019, 4:28 pm

    Wow Shelly, Love the outside colors, inside is beautiful. Very well thought out. Thank you for letting me see this.

  • Nita Hiltner
    September 9, 2020, 3:54 pm

    Very nice!!

  • Sheila
    September 9, 2020, 5:44 pm

    Beautiful!!

  • Stephan of Arkansas
    February 4, 2021, 7:50 pm

    What a lovely home! Well done, Shelley. I love the idea of living “in the bush” as the Australians say. I am not trying to be a “Debbie Downer” from SNL, but my questions: 1. Is your island subject to the terrible wild fires seen in parts of Australia? 2. What kind of venomous snakes inhabit your island? (Friends of mine living in the wilder parts of Thailand keep dogs or cats or geese on their properties to deal with snakes that are tempted to slither onto the scene. And they tell me that a flock of geese does the job very well.). Thank U. Stephan of Arkansas

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.