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Resources

Nov 21
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Swedish Carving Techniques Book to be Reprinted!

By Resources, Woodworking
Swedish Carving Techniques Book: Wille Sundqvist

This praised spoon carving book is finally due for a reprint

One of the most highly praised and sought after spoon and bowl carving books in recent times is Wille Sundqvist’s Swedish Carving Techniques. I am terribly excited to have found out that the book is due to be reprinted, and will be available for sale from Taunton Press in mid-December of this year. A mere few weeks away, really. The book’s going rate for even a used copy is typically upwards of $120. I believe the new reprint will cost between $30-35, which is greatly appreciated.

UPDATE: The book is now for sale directly through the publisher, in limited quantities. At $24.95, it’s a steal!

Needless to say, I am extremely excited about this bit of news, as I have been searching the internet for a copy for a reasonable sum for months.

Nov 19
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Hand Forging Axes in 1960s America: A Short Film

By Resources, Video, Hand Tools
Forging an Axe By Hand

Forging axes by hand in America in the 60s

I recently enjoyed watching this insightful video about making and forging axes in Oakland, Maine in 1965 at the Emerson Stevens shop. This particular shop was the last surviving company to produce axes in an area once known for forging and blade-making. To watch these individuals work and to witness the process is a real treat, yet the film is permeated with a certain sadness as the filmmaker realizes that we are watching something that is soon to wither away into history.

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Nov 06
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Earthen Floors Book Due Spring 2014

By Earthen Floor, Media, Resources

Earthen Floors Book

Exciting news on the natural building book front — Earthen Floors, a book all about installing and living with earth-based floor systems, is due out April 1, 2014. Written by two very experienced natural builders, Sukita Reay Crimmel and James Thomson, the book is the first of its kind dedicated solely to the art of making inexpensive, durable, and beautiful floors made mostly of sand, clay, and fiber. There are a host of books that touch upon the topic of floors, but few that delve very deeply into the nitty gritty details. This will be a welcome addition to the natural building library.

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Oct 03
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Our Cob House, Gobcobatron is For Sale

By Resources
Gobcobatron: Cob House Interior

The current Gobcobatron interior

I promised some big news earlier, and here it is! Gobcobatron, one of the most recognized homes at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage in Missouri, is for sale. It is a cob house that’s been featured in Yes! magazine, Popular Mechanics, Parade Magazine, Treehugger, Lloyd Kahn’s Tiny Homes, overseas magazines, and other media.

The house is a great 3 season dwelling, and is currently being utilized for earning rental income. This house has a lot of potential for the right individual looking for a seasonal space, or for earning income while living in a popular intentional community.

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Oct 01
Love0

Minka: Short Film about Restoring Ancient Japanese Farmhouse

By Resources, Video, Traditional Building

While on the subject of the minka, or traditional Japanese farmhouse for a hot a minute, here is a fantastic short film & documentary simply titled Minka, describing the restoration of John Roderick’s well-known home in Japan. The restoration of the ancient farmhouse was led by the young and beginner (at the time) architect Yoshihiro Takishita.

This is a fantastic short film, not for just the story of the challenging re-construction of the minka, but the beautiful friendship between John Roderick and Yoshihiro Takishita himself. Very inspiring stuff. The short synopsis says it nicely: “A film about place and memory, a farmhouse in Japan, and the lives of the people who called it home.”

 

Dec 20
Love0

The Barrel Oven: A New Kind of Outdoor DIY Pizza Oven

By Resources, Cob Oven, Book Reviews

Outdoor Pizza Barrel Oven

There’s an up-and-coming outdoor oven out there: the wood-fired barrel oven promises some pretty compelling advantages over a cob or masonry oven, and it is the subject of Max and Eva Edleson’s latest Build Your Own Barrel Oven book. It’s the first I’ve heard of this particular design, and I must say, it has definitely captured my attention, and the Edlesons’ book does a fantastic job describing the plans and construction process of these relatively simple, efficient pizza and bread-baking wonders.

Have you been considering building an outdoor oven setup of your own, or are you intrigued by the idea baking pizza with wood heat? Read on for my review of the book and a better understanding of the advantages of building your own barrel oven.

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Nov 24
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Why You Should Read A Pattern Language

By Resources

Before you take your shovel to the dirt and start digging to build your own home, before you even take pen to paper in sketching designs, I advise you to read Christopher Alexander’s A Pattern Language.

If you want to understand what makes a good building good, and a particular space work well, this book will teach you the “pattern language” derived from timeless architectural problems and their solutions. A Pattern Language presents compelling design practices and ideas that will make your space more functional and pleasant.

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Nov 21
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Help Turtle Island Preserve: Community Raided For Code Violations

By Resources

Turtle Island Preserve

Turtle Island Preserve is an educational center that focuses on primitive and traditional living skills, including natural building. They have been operating for 26 years. Recently, they have been subject to a harsh government raid for apparent code violations.

Once again, the government demonstrates complete hypocrisy and hatred in the face of positive change, and my compassion goes out to Turtle Island.

Read their urgent letter below, and support them by signing this petition!

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Oct 03
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Topsoil Quantity Calculator: How Much Soil For Your Green Roof?

By Resources, Living Sod Roof

Here’s a handy tool if you happen to be building a living roof, or doing berm or other earth construction work. This topsoil quantity calculator will give you an idea of how many cubic feet / yards / tons of soil you will need for your project.

A 30×35 roof at 4″ thickness will require 3.5 tons of soil, for example. Wow.

In building our own green roof, it has been fun to try to guess how many buckets full of dirt we will need to use… although it’s pretty hard to keep track.

Well, there ya go!

Aug 28
Love0

Top 5 Natural Building Reads on The Year of Mud

By Resources, Strawtron

reciprocal roof frameIt’s fun for me to track the content on The Year of Mud to see what people are reading and sharing the most. It is definitely the how-to articles that attract the most attention — here are the top 5 natural building posts on The Year of Mud:

As the building season dies down and time becomes more available to me, I have plans to travel backwards in time to create more how-tos, and detailed posts about all of the building we’ve done this year — timber framing, straw bale building work, etc. Look forward to more articles about our adventures with the new straw bale & timber frame home!