The second weekend of our straw bale construction workshop (led by Mark Morgan of Bearpaw Design and Construction ), we got a chance to try earthen clay plastering on the interior walls of the building. The first weekend, we troweled concrete stucco on the outside of the straw bale walls. […]
If there is one lesson I’m learning as I explore straw bale construction, it’s that there is no one way to work with straw bale. This form of construction involves a lot of craft, and experience is very valuable, but it is a form that is being re-invented all over […]
Straw as a building material may seem sketchy the first time you think about it. But the more you learn, the more it makes sense. I am in the middle of a 6-day workshop adding the straw bale component led by straw bale building master and local legend Mark Morgan […]
We thought finding windows for the barn would be a simple matter of a couple of trips to the ReStore. We did find the door from the barn into the greenhouse there – a lovely solid oak door with glass so old, it has gone rippley. But we were up […]
Straw is a natural material that can be sourced very locally. Isn’t it great to see examples of straw bale construction popping up all over the world? I can make such a grandiose statement because I have found a really cool application of straw bale construction in England. The other […]
Here is your chance to learn about straw bale in some great workshops coming up very soon that still have openings. Bear Paw Construction and Whole Trees Architecture and Construction are teaming up on the construction of a one-of-a-kind home – the Kara Woods Residence on the grounds of the […]
I was shocked when our timber framer, Mike Yaker, urged us to forget painting the inch-thick oak boards on our new barn. To me the prototypical barn was barn red. I have always loved to see red barns. They look great against a background or green fields, golden wheat or […]
So, here is my most recent publication, the cover story for this week’s Isthmus. Researching this piece turned me into a believer in the benefits of whey, and Tera Johnson has made me believe that her whey is best for both my body and my planet. Check it out: Tera […]
Green guidelines urge us to recycle and even better reuse. I did just that this week. Doug never throws out a nice piece of wood, and so he kept the old shelf when we redid our coat closet. It was stained that dark color so popular 90 years ago, then […]
GUEST POST BY DOUG HANSMANN This month marks the first plantings in the greenhouse Denise and I built on the south wall of our barn. The first, we hope, of many productive growing seasons. The concrete footings for the greenhouse were poured in the summer of 2007 when the barn […]
Digging in the Driftless 