In the beginning of 2012 somehow I ran into a movie about earth friendly architecture and, out of all the existing methods, fell in love with cob homes.
The real appeal to me was the artistic expression in these cob homes. I always loved building and making things and a long time ago I earned a construction engineering degree. Yet, the conventional construction method is limiting in its form of expression.
Cob homes have no strict shapes and are not reduced to the straight lines and angles of conventional materials. Besides, they are ecologically friendly, as the impact of building with materials on the site is less abusive on nature: less pollution from moving materials around and less use of wood/trees. Should I also mention the reduced cost of building your own home, expressing your own creativity, instead of paying a bank 2-3 times the cost of the loan over the life of the that loan? So you end up with the house you create, not the one anyone else has: the look alike box.
In the summer of 2012 we decided we would love to learn how to build ecologically friendly artistically sculpted homes. We chose a work shop in Oregon, as the architect and teacher has many years of experience with cob construction and a famous book/manual (The Hand Sculpted House) co-authored with partners Linda Smiley and Michael Smith. We practiced building cob with Ianto Evans, while retraining our minds and rethinking our truths under the guidance of this special and loving old soul.
Ianto Evans and Linda Smiley, along with all of the August, 2012 class impacted us in a deep and meaningful way. I highly recommend the class as a new way of thinking about life, finances, people, food and nature, as well as for a good physical exercise and as a mental/psychological retreat.
Here is the link to my favorite teacher’s workshop classes: http://www.cobcottage.com/workshops
Since I live in a desert, I’ve always wanted to build a strawbale. It doesn’t make sense at this point to build myself a house, as mine is almost paid off. However, I still want to build a studio for my wife to do pottery, yoga, or whatever she would want to do in her own private space. With hand sculpted walls and deep window wells, a strawbale or cobb house have such enriched character. They truly feels like a living objects of art. Add some timber framing and I’ll have a perfect space that hugs the inhabitant.
Both methods could work for you. Site and foundation are of utmost importance. Use some colored bottles, etc. for some decorative light as well, and mold in some artistic shelving and seating. Here are a few picks of strawbale being incorporated into a small cob structure. With your artistry in building and woodworking, it will look great. Look forward to seeing it!