The 15th-century Chhode monastery is tucked into a side valley of remote Mustang, a district in northern Nepal. The monastery, with walls formed of clay and gravel, blends in with the wind-beaten cliffs; its towering roof is held up by wooden pillars. Inside the monastery, a monk is performing a ritual prayer ceremony before a … Read more
When Pete Holmberg wanted a log house on some property in Minnesota he found a company that could build such a house with logs sourced from an old-growth forest of red pines planted in 1831, more than 120 years before the evergreen became the official state tree. “I was originally going to do milled logs, … Read more
Reva and Ranjan Malik have built a solar-powered house of rammed earth in Bengaluru, India. The couple used mud, sand, lime and chalk materials and mixed them along with some cement to build their dream home. It took them eight months to complete the construction. They wanted to build and live in a home that … Read more
There are various types of insulation products, depending on where you want to position them – roof, walls, floor. Most are available as rolls or boards, which are fitted between wall studs and roof joists. Mineral wool (aka Rockwool) Available in slabs, stone wool is easy to lay vertically or horizontally. It’s denser than fiberglass, … Read more
Forest Garden Yurts, near Galena, Missouri, are wooden yurts designed and built by Bill Coperthwaite in the 1970s for Tom Hess and Lory Brown as a home and pottery studio. Tucked away in 4 acres of Ozark forest, the yurts are simple in nature yet abound with artistic details. The home yurt has a kitchen, … Read more
The longtime Big Sur residence of late architect Mickey Muennig comprises three curvaceous, glass-roofed structures situated on 30 acres overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Muenning was a pioneer of California’s organic architecture movement; from the early 1970s, Muennig amassed a portfolio of striking houses with unconventional forms that frame scenic views and blend in with the … Read more