SingPeace! Pilgrimage for Peace and Global Harmony
Pushkara Sally Ashford, a resident of Whidbey Island in Washington, commissioned this handcrafted gypsy vardo which was built by Steve Habersetzer in collaboration with many many other artisans. Habersetzer built his first tiny home over 25 years ago and describes them as “a boat that goes down the highway.”
Pushkara designed the house during a workshop at the Port Townsend School of Woodworking called, “How to Build a Gypsy Wagon,” taught by Jim Tolpin and Habersetzer. The home measures 8-feet wide by 14-feet long. It has lots of storage, a comfy bed, hidden away composting toilet, functional kitchen, photovoltaic electric power, and propane stove for heat.
The SingPeace! Pilgrimage for Peace and Global Harmony will conclude with a visit to the 2010 Northwest Regional Folklife Festival in Seattle in May 2010. But I suspect this is nothing close to the end of her journey for peace. Her goal has been to bring people together to talk and sing about peace. The gyspy vardo added an additional layer that may help inspire “people who are looking at intentional community options as a way to solve the housing crisis”, says Ashford.
I want to thank Dan at Mangrove Seed for tipping me off to this story. Thanks again Dan!
Wow, what a great find Michael, I love all the intricate work and modern styling in an old style vardo. I may have to share this one on the Tiny House Blog too 🙂
More the merrier Kent! Have at it… this is a great story that deserves as much retelling as possible.
Nice piece of craftsmanship. Where’d you find that cool stove?
Hi there, Michael,
Thanks for posting the SingPeace! wagon at Tiny House Design. Just returned from Whidbey Island’s Earth Day celebration where a steady stream of visitors stepped through it’s door. I counted at least 300 smiles, today. Comments included: “the photos just don’t do it justice,” and “I had no idea!” The rumor that the journey ends at the end of May with the NW Folklife Festival is odd, as we’ve only just begun. We have an expanding troupe of Singer/Songweavers and attract the Exuberant Play crowd with the Barefoot Sensei, Mick Dodge’s Earth Gym practices. Ours is an Earth Pilgrimage, touching soles to the ground and reaching souls through song crafting. You have our web address. Please share your blog and event posts, songs, and photos with us.
Pushkara
A couple of post scripts: Jay asked about the stove. It’s a french import, Le Petit Godin (oval), which can be ordered in wood, oil or propane. I went for the propane. The smaller version is round and would have fit the space better, but they don’t make it for propane. The hearth is a big part of the hominess and welcome of the vardo. I’m happy for what it provides. There are some cautions about the use of propane in RVs. I get plenty of ventilation through the windows and keep a CO alarm on hand.
If folks have other questions they can contact me at http://singpeacepilgrimage.ning.com
Peace and blessings,
Pushkara
Very beautifally made. I see the composting toilet, is there a shower?
I don’t think there is a shower. I didn’t see one.
I would so love to see the floor plan for this vardo. I’ve been trying to design one for my family of four, mostly for recreational use for now, but would love to be able to move into a mobile tiny home full time at some point.
Personally, I love this ledge-style Vardo! I have been thinking about someting along these lines for quite a while now. Really only a couple of questions that I have. I’m thinking the stovepipe would catch passing trees, being on the right side like that. And i was wondering about where the pv is mounted. With a curved roof, it seems like you would have to use the film-type pv.
From what I understand, if you bend a film PV around a curved roof, you get problems similar to ‘shading’. I.e. not all the panel is at the same output at the same time, which can drastically reduce your overall output.
One idea is to use very small panels, and some sort of controller that can deal with different ‘zones’ relating to bands of panels at similar angles.
I have built quite a few curved roofs, so this problem has floated around my brain on a few occasions.
The vardo is absolutely wonderful!