![](\"https:\/\/www.the-sun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2023\/09\/001165c7-2c4f-4763-bfb9-9ca952e0e17a.jpg\")
\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.the-sun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2023\/09\/i-build-tiny-homes-847969030.jpg\")
<\/p>\nA HANDY woman left behind a materialistic life of high pay and pricey treats to build tiny homes she rents out for cash.<\/p>\n
Her lucrative career may have paid for a house, a car, a mini pet pig, and all the Magnum ice cream she wanted, but now she makes small B&Bs with her brother and has learned a ton about off-grid living.<\/p>\n
\n<\/p>\n
Aimee Stanton, 30, from Melbourne, spent years working in the male-dominated plumbing industry before she became the co-founder of Tiny Stays.<\/p>\n
She and her brother Ben Stanton, 35, both decided to quit their high-paying careers to build tiny holiday homes.<\/p>\n
Aimee said: \u201cI quit my plumbing job because there was more to life and I felt that I could be more creative.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI went traveling for a bit, and then my brother quit his accountant job because he was sick of the nine-to-five grind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wrote down a list of what we\u2019re passionate about and what we\u2019re good at.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat involved working with your hands and traveling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOut of that, we were like why don\u2019t we build tiny houses and rent them out as short-term accommodation?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThen we\u2019re waking up every day doing something we are passionate about and helping people to escape their bosses and their emails and get back to nature which we love doing as well."<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n The sibling duo has been in business together since 2018.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I love about my and my brother's relationship is we\u2019re so alike but so different," she said.<\/p>\n \u201cI think partnering with someone who has different skills to you is the way to go. Ben has to do so much research, everything has to be perfect.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe does research for days, whereas on the other hand, I\u2019m let\u2019s go, let\u2019s smash this out. It makes a really good balance.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes I\u2019ll be like, 'Let\u2019s just do it,' and he will be like, 'We need to research it for 15 hours first.'<\/p>\n \u201cIt has caused conflict before, but we have a great relationship and he\u2019s like one of my best mates.\u201d<\/p>\n Their dad, who is a professional builder, often does work for their business without asking to be paid.\u00a0<\/p>\n Aimee was expelled from school and considered becoming a beauty therapist like her friends before her dad inspired her to become a plumber.<\/p>\n She was inspired after her dad joked that only plumbers can afford Magnum ice creams.<\/p>\n She soon had a house, car, and even a miniature pet pig called Constable Crackles.\u00a0<\/p>\n Aimee said: \u201cI was making good money.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI was buying so many Magnums, I was very materialistic and I stepped back and realized I had everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAll the Magnums in the world, a house when I was so young. I wasn\u2019t happy though.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s when I made the transition to building tiny houses and decided to chase my passion.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the reasons I quit was because I looked at the older guys on site who had been working so hard every single day 10 hours a day for their whole life.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI promised myself I\u2019m not going to turn out like that. I want my life to be about family, flexibility, and doing things I love.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s when I thought I might as well give it a crack because I can always walk back into the job later on if it doesn\u2019t work out.<\/p>\n \u201cThe best thing about tiny houses is it\u2019s just a little bit from every trade, so you learn how to tile, lay floors and kitchen cabinets.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAll of that kind of thing, the carpentry aspect and interior design.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t get sick of it because it\u2019s just like we\u2019ve tiled half of this wall then we can move on to painting.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve learned a lot about sustainability and off-grid because that\u2019s a huge aspect of tiny houses that they are completely off-grid.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFinding the perfect land is one of the hardest parts because you get such an array of people that would be happy to rent out their properties but we\u2019re looking for something completely secluded.\u201d<\/p>\n Tiny Stays has seven properties that each accommodate just two people and prices start at $233 AUD ($150 USD) per night.<\/p>\n Aimee said: \u201cWe get lots of people who come for proposals and wedding anniversaries.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAnd if they\u2019ve tried one tiny house they will most likely book another one in a different place.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThere are so many locations and they all have such different vibes.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOur main goal is to get people to take a step back and realize your company isn\u2019t going to go into liquidation.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd you\u2019re not going to get fired from work if you take one or two days of annual leave every so often to go on a midweek break.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSpend time with your loved one and just disconnect from your phone. That quality time together makes a huge difference.<\/p>\n \u201cNormally two to three nights is the ideal amount to stay.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe get one-night bookings but it\u2019s not enough, we really to promote immersing yourself in nature.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYes, take that picture for Instagram and tag us, but then put the phone away and really get back to the simple life.<\/p>\n \u201cI think for people wanting to live in tiny homes, they feel with house prices and interest rates and things like that they could have a house on a hill and spend more time outside.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think in general, especially after Covid, people want to get outside more and do these experiences.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey want to travel and tiny houses are a way to get back to the simple life without being stuck in a cold tent.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou still have the luxury of a hot shower, kitchen, and a beautiful space but you feel like you\u2019re sleeping out in nature with all of the windows.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe get a lot of people who want to live in a tiny house.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey come to us and I\u2019m like, \u2018Hold up, before you buy one, maybe stay in one a few nights and see if it\u2019s your vibe, then go from there.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re building them purely for B&B purposes, they are set up differently to how you would live in one.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have a bed that\u2019s in a loft with three massive windows so you can look out to the stars, very different to if you were going to live full time in one.\u201d<\/p>\n Aimee explained that building a tiny home is similar to building a regular house and they can take between three months to a year to build.\u00a0<\/p>\n She said knowing how much gas and the size of the water tank was difficult to decide when they first began.\u00a0<\/p>\n She said: \u201cWe get our trailers specially made for the tiny house and then the flooring goes down.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe build them basically like a normal house.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou put the frame up and then the windows in. They are all the same layout but we\u2019ve tweaked them and put more storage in.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe hardest part is choosing a color.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI remember the second one we built, me and Ben had the idea of painting it bright orange, we thought it would look sick.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe started and was like, no, we\u2019re not going with bright orange, and we repainted the whole thing.\u201d<\/p>\n She and her brother have learned to warn guests not to bring things like hair dryers, rice cookers, and air fryers because they can trip the power.<\/p>\n Alongside running Tiny Stays, Aimee is set to launch a workwear brand for women and welcome her first baby.\u00a0<\/p>\n She said: \u201cI used to get mine and my dad\u2019s work trousers mixed up.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d go to work like I'm not sure if these are mine.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI surveyed 1,000 women in the trade and only seven percent were actually happy with their workwear, so I thought if no one else is going to do it I will myself.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey are already in a male-dominated industry, might be the only girl out of 200 people, and having pants that don\u2019t fit you doesn\u2019t help.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m so excited to launch Zadie workwear.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been so lucky and blessed to fall pregnant, but at the start, I was like, 'Oh crap, this is a busy year with a lot going on.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve come to realize it\u2019s all part of the journey and I\u2019ll just learn how to do things with one hand, dig a trench with one hand.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s another journey that is going to challenge me but I\u2019m sure it\u2019s worth it.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe have seven tiny houses and our plan is to just focus on them while I\u2019m going through a type of maternity leave.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe will start building them again and also focus on potentially buying our own land as well as having the rentals.<\/p>\n \u201cNow I have such a variety in my life whether it\u2019s in the office or in the tiny houses doing the plumbing or the building work.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI do miss the banter and having that massive community as a plumber, when you work by yourself or just with one person sometimes you feel isolated.<\/p>\n \u201cBut my husband is a plumber as well and he still works for the company so I get to hear all of the stories through him.\u201d<\/p>\n Aimee said Tiny Stays\u2019 most recent build has the \u201cbest sunset in the whole of Victoria.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The small green-colored house is on 1,000 acres and has 360 views of nature.\u00a0<\/p>\n She said: \u201cI want people to realize you\u2019ve got to take a break from work.\u00a0<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/KS_COMP_FERGIE.jpg\")
<\/picture>FERGIE’S AGONY <\/span><\/p>\nHeartbreak for Man Utd legend Sir Alex Ferguson as wife Cathy dies age 84<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/RB-COMP-Gavin-Plumb.jpg\")
<\/picture>‘KIDNAP PLOT’ <\/span><\/p>\n35-stone security guard in court charged with Holly ‘murder plot’<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/tp-composite-Holly-Willoughby-new.jpg\")
<\/picture>HOLLY KIDNAP PLOT <\/span><\/p>\nHolly Willoughby under guard after man is arrested over ‘kidnap plot’<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/tp-composite-ally-ross.jpg\")
<\/picture>ALLY ROSS <\/span><\/p>\nAlex Beresford full of himself? Celebrity Race Across The World proves he is<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.the-sun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2023\/09\/i-build-tiny-homes-847968939.jpg\")
<\/p>\nRead More on The Sun<\/h2>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/newspress-collage-24301516-1696583709157.jpg\")
<\/picture>![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/6f8bd5ff-3615-42b9-be3f-2051f05402ba.jpg\")
<\/picture>![](\"https:\/\/www.the-sun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2023\/09\/i-build-tiny-homes-847968940.jpg\")