Tiny House's Retractable Sunroof Opens It Up to the Heavens

One of the remarkable things about tiny houses is that they are often intimately personalized—no cookie-cutter tedium from the variety of tiny house climbing walls, elevator beds as well as all kinds of mind-blowing transformer furniture to make the most of a small space.

French tiny house builder Optinid is making its mark with the Cecile (also known as La Tête Dans Les Etoiles or "head in the stars"), which features, of all things, a retractable sunroof, which can slide away to reveal the heavens above.

As the company describes, the manually operable sunroof is part of the design strategy to open things up, literally:

This new sunroof can increase the total height of the tiny house and can add to the windows on the main mezzanine. As you can see, we have once again favored large openings, which gives a great brightness, "enlarges" the interior space and allows heat recovery as soon as the sun comes out.

The outside of the 6-meter (20-foot) long, and 2.55-meter (8.3-foot) wide Cecile is clad in fir siding and lightweight black polycarbonate that actually imitates metal siding quite well.

Inside, the lounge has a custom-made sofa that incorporates storage nicely, and can sleep one guest here.

Above the lounge is the secondary, ladder-accessible loft, which can sleep yet another person.

It serves as a comfortable lounging or reading spot as well.

Here's a view looking down the length of the home.

Beside the sofa is a small table that's integrated as part of the staircase: there are movable storage-holding steps just underneath, and the table acts as an intermediary landing just before the steps going up to the main bedroom mezzanine.

The subtle use of pattern along with the texture of the wood adds interest and a bit of fun to the otherwise minimalist look.

How to sleep under the stars, while never leaving the comfort of home?

The kitchen is simple but features just enough counter space for a sink, gas stove, pantry storage, and an extra table surface for prep or dining that rolls in and out of the way.

The bathroom is also pretty straightforward: vanity sink, composting toilet and shower with glass door, all closed off with a space-efficient sliding door.

Pricing for the Cécile starts at €54,000 (around US$62,500), and the home can be powered by a mobile array of solar panels that can be set up on the ground (this can be more convenient because you can park your home in the shade and install the panels in a hot, sunny spot). It is insulated with recycled garment insulation and uses a central gas heating system equipped with water radiators. To find out more, visit Optinid.