They're an intriguing family, the Vinbruxes. There's an Amish look to their hairstyles and clothing. You can put that down to home barbering and wardrobes from local op shops. From their conversation and the books on their shelves it's clear that they're well educated. Richard gained a degree in agriculture and qualified as a master baker in Germany and produces fabulous fare for the weekly Oamaru Farmers' Market while Christel holds a Masters in home economics from Germany and there's nothing she can't do with raw ingredients to make delectable meals.

Christel and Richard arrived in Oamaru in 1998 with the first four of their five children, bought 12.5 hectares of undulating farmland, set up an Icelandic horse stud to generate an income and began farming according to the biodynamic principles of Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner. Their home is built from logs and furnished with rustic German antiques. A reconditioned Shacklock stove cooks the food and heats the house. Pitch-roofed outhouses in the yard are painted in fanciful colours. One of these is a bakery with a wood-fired brick oven while another is a dairy equipped for producing cheeses, yoghurt, separated cream and milk. There's a brew house for making hooch.

Weekly grocery bills for the household of six plus a few Woofers (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) come to about $90, which covers such staples as flour, rice, salt, sugar and olive oil. Other than that, they eat what they grow in the vegetable gardens and raise in the paddocks. Most of the land is in pasture that supports the livestock: horses, sheep, cattle, pigs, hens, goats, bees, geese, turkeys, ducks and pigeons. There are any number of mouser cats with dogs for stock work and companionship. Over the years they've planted a 1.5-hectare mixed wood lot, a half-hectare orchard and another half hectare in vegetable beds.

Tessa Chrisp THE SIMPLE LIFE: "Most of the time we can live quite comfortably off the smell of the rag that was lying next to the oily one," Richard says.

Running a small farm like this is a full-time job for several people. Christel describes their daily routine: "Every day starts with a big German-style breakfast of good coffee, bread, meats and cheeses for all the family. Then at 8am Judy (14) and I go out to do the milking. When we return the cows to the paddocks Danny (17) is there to feed the pigs and bring the milk to the cheese house.

If Richard is not baking he might make cheese or just separate the milk and cream, then the shed is washed and cleaned. All that takes up to two hours. Then Judy and I feed the rest of the stock with hay or haylage. Milking and feeding the animals takes us to about 11am, sometimes later. After lunch Judy does her schoolwork and the rest of the day is for garden and kitchen work – that's usually me with help from Judy when she's finished her studies, while Richard and Danny do general maintenance and farming chores."

Richard gets up at 4 or 5am on four days of the week to make bread and pastries for the bakery in Oamaru which he set up to train their second son Jan (25) and on Sundays to stock Jan's stall at the Oamaru Farmers' Market. After the evening meal the family relaxes. They read, maybe watch a DVD, and are early to bed.

Tessa Chrisp BEE CHARMER: Danny takes pride in working with his imported Carnolian bees and doesn't bother to wear his apiarist's hat and veil unless he is doing something intrusive in the hives.

While eldest son Fabian (28) went through a conventional education, Christel and Richard home-schooled the other children. They made the decision after Sarah (now 19), who was born with an intellectual impairment, made much more progress with home tutoring than at school. "With home schooling you can tailor the lessons to the individual kid," says Richard. The young Vinbruxes read widely, are well grounded in the basics, bilingual in German and English and remarkably more mature than others their age. From their earliest years they have been articulate, confident and respectful around adults and well able to prepare and cook meals while still of primary-school age. "We sometimes have 20-year-old Woofers who can't cook even the simplest meal," says Christel.

The biggest risk in this way of life, they say, is depending on only one income stream and not being alert to other money-generating opportunities. That's why, in addition to the horse stud, they have established another niche for themselves with their self-sufficiency school. This offers both residential and day-long courses in different aspects of self sufficiency to people who want to get back to the land and to townies wanting to learn how to keep hens or make their own cheese. Or sauerkraut. Or bratwurst. Or…

The younger members of the family are also making or planning their contributions to the household finances. While Fabian lives and works independently, Jan lives in town and trains at the family-owned bakery in Arun Street. At 25 he is not interested in living in a big city. "I like small towns and Oamaru in particular. Besides the interesting people here, it's easy to get almost anywhere by walking but I'm also thinking of getting an electric bicycle."

Tessa Chrisp MILKING TIME: The cows munch grains while they're being milked, and the ducks take advantage of the spillage.

Danny will open a butchery next to the bakery this year, having recently spent four months in Germany learning to make traditional small goods. Judy milks four goats by hand and says, "After I've finished my schooling and when I'm 18 I plan to go to the Swiss Alps and learn more about breeding and running goats and how to make more and different cheeses. Then I want to have my own goat herd here on the family farm and make my own cheeses and sell them."

Sarah loves baby animals and it's her job to feed the lambs and calves, the dogs and pups. She stacks the breakfast plates every morning, sweeps the floor, hangs up the washing, folds laundry. She says, "Every morning I go with Mum to tame the foals."

Christel smiles. "She's very quiet and patient with the young horses and gently introduces them to wearing the halter." The family agrees that Sarah is a joy. Every morning she wakes up singing.

Tessa Chrisp WILLOW WONDER: Danny learned the art of weaving live willow garden structures from local willow artisan Mike Lilian.

This life of self-sufficiency requires commitment and dedication. "On one level you are far freer than other people but on the other hand there are a lot of things that have to be done – like milking twice a day," says Richard. "We take one day off in the week but someone needs to feed the animals and milk the cows so we take turns and try to finish up by 11am. We never take a holiday as a family. The children go to stay with friends and family both here and in Germany."

Richard and Christel have taken trips to Germany, but not as a couple. There always needs to be one or other at home on the farm. Nor can they afford to eat out as a rule, but world-renowned restaurateur Fleur Sullivan wishes them a happy wedding anniversary when they turn up at Fleur's Place in Moeraki for their annual seafood dinner.

Richard sums up their way of life: "If anyone wants this life they need to be able to live very simply. If we were prepared to pay for the things we'd like to have we'd need to find jobs off the property. But this is the life we have chosen and we still choose it every day. We would rather work for ourselves than for money."

HAVE YOU GOT WHAT IT TAKES?

Would they recommend this life to other people? "Only if the whole family is behind it and you really love to do these things," says Christel. "And," adds Richard, "you don't think physical work is demeaning." There is no drudge work on the Vinbrux farm. Living self sufficiently is grounded in a philosophy where manual work is enjoyed and celebrated. Richard says, "Getting rich was never a big part of our life plan. If we didn't have the self-sufficiency base we wouldn't be able to sustain ourselves financially. Most of the time we can live quite comfortably off the smell of the rag that was lying next to the oily one. You need to set yourself up so that you can do with very little money if things are not going well. We can make do with about $20,000 for a few years in succession but not for ever . Sometimes we have a windfall that brings in another $10,000 or $15,000 and that allows us to make repairs, build or buy something we've done without before." Christel adds,"But we eat like kings even if we don't have lots of money."

HORSE STUD

Christel and Richard brought four mares and a young stallion with them from Germany to set up a modest Icelandic horse stud that would give them a regular income in New Zealand. Christel is the horsewoman in the family. She estimates that she's put about 100 horses "under the saddle" over the years. Because of their peculiar flowing gait ( toelt ) and gentle nature, Icelandic horses are popular among people who ride for pleasure. Christel explains: "They have been bred for more than a thousand years and all the bad-tempered traits like bucking, biting and kicking have been bred out of them. If a horse didn't behave it got eaten, whereas with other breeds if the mare didn't behave people said, 'Oh well, we'll just breed with her' and those characteristics showed up in future generations." These stocky, placid Icelandic horses live to about 30 and can be ridden until the age of 18 or so. They sell from $6000 to $20,000 for an imported stallion.

This article features in the March/April 2015 issue of NZ Life & Leisure. For more like this, subscribe at mags4gifts.co.nz.