Meet the parents who built a magical storybook resort – and sell fairytale playhouses to celebrities like the Jonas brothers for up to £118k ($150k).
Audy Leavitt, 37, and her husband, Tyson, 39, create themed cottages right out of their favorite fairytales and childhood memories.
Tyson made his children – Emmet, 14, Miles, 13, Lydia, 12, and Wynn, four months – a crooked playhouse and displayed it at a local garden show.
After the love it got, he built a Rapunzel tower the following year and started to become inundated with requests for the magical builds.
The couple set about creating castles and playhouses for celebrities and their families – including Kevin Jonas – and sell them for £29k to £118k ($36k to $150k).
The family decided to make a resort filled with the storybook cottages for guests to stay in – for those who couldn’t afford to buy a unique playhouse.
Now they have a site of 11 houses – including a gingerbread house, Belle’s cottage and Hook’s pirate ship.
Audy, a co-owner of Charmed Resorts, from Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, Canada, said: “Tyson built a kids crooked house for a landscape display.
“People loved it.
“We thought ‘this could be a business.’
“Now each playhouse gets crazier and bigger.
“It’s an amazing endeavor. It has been the greatest job and dream.
“It feels like my childhood dream come to life.”
Tyson previously owned a landscape business and was looking to do something more creative when he made the playhouse for his children.
The couple decided to sell the playhouses after they were loved by everyone and set up their business together in 2015.
In 2020 – after seeing a dip in sales – they decided to make a resort of the unique holiday homes.
Audy said: “We wanted to create something that all families could enjoy.
“We had created a product we couldn’t even afford to buy.”
Their first build for the site – Midsummer cottage – is inspired by Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and was booked out straight away.
Now the family have 11 cottages and plan to build an additional six.
Each playhouse can be built in three weeks, and each has a unique feature – such as a slide or swing.
Audy said: “The Captain Hook cottage has a map with clues to find something hidden in there.
“The Lost Boys treehouse has a to do list to go around the cottage and tick off.
“There are interactive elements inside each cottage.”
Prices start from £174 ($221) per night to stay in the themed properties.
Audy said: “My favorite is the Wendy townhouse.
“We try and outdo ourselves each time.
“We’re building a Madhatter house right now.
“There is joy in constant creation.”
The couple hope the fairy tale homes can be an escape for guests.
Audy said: “It’s a place for families who are having a hard time.
“They can come and forget about the rest of the world and their problems.
“They can feel like they are stuck in a storybook.”
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