Vardo Carrettino

Vardo is the Romani word for a horse drawn live-in wagon. Carrettino is the Sicilian word for an elaborately decorated little cart drawn by a horse. 

Vardo Carrettino is pulled by a pickup truck. We built it by hand starting in the spring of 2016 making it road-worthy and fully functioning. Our happy little vardo traveled many miles during the 2016-2019 festival seasons and we're looking forward to the 2020 season. ​

This 7'x10' roving micro house serves as accommodations for the Island Girl team. The charming interior surprisingly includes a bed, kitchen counter with sink, shower & toilet, solar electric, plenty of storage and other amenities.

Shown here is a traditional Burton style vardo from Dorset, England. I designed Vardo Carrettino based on this design with a few exceptions. Traditional vardos were pulled by a horse and usually had a wood stove inside but no bathroom. Ours is a Ledge style vardo to increase interior space, it's pulled by a pick-up truck and does have a bathroom but no wood stove as we needed to keep the weight to a minimum.

Finishing touches, like the exterior decorative mouldings, are being added to Vardo Carrettino to more closely resemble this masterpiece.

You're welcome to visit Vardo Carrettino at any of the multi-day festivals we vend at. We're happy to explain the building process to eager listeners who are researching to build their own.