Roofs

Heating with the Sun

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Using the sun to heat your house has got to be the most economical and ecologically benign way to keep comfortable when the temperatures drop. There are a number of common strategies for doing this. My favorite method is passive solar design, where there are no “active” fans or pumps to contend with. Most passive … Read more

Natural Building and a New Sense of the Earth

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This nearly one hour video program features some of the luminaries of the natural building movement and is well worth watching. In addition to the many interviews are some luscious images of the process and result of fine natural craftsmanship. Meet Linda Smiley and Ianto Evans who pioneered cob building in the U.S. and who … Read more

The Carriage House

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About 15 years ago I built the “Carriage House” using a prefabricated steel vault as a supporting structure for earthbags filled with scoria as insulation. It is a two story affair, with the lower one being a garage/shop and the upper one an office and storage space. I located a new 34′ X 16′ steel … Read more

How We Built Our House – Part Two: The Grass Roof

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“It’s been ten years since we designed and built our house, so it seems appropriate to start an occasional series about it all. Building your own house has to be one of the most exhilarating and exciting things anyone can do in their lives. (It’s also expensive, exhausting and stressful too, but we wont go there for now…)

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Weaving Studio Plan

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In the early 1970’s I was commissioned to design and build a small weaving studio on property located along the coast in Bolinas, California. The client was a weaving apprentice with my sister, who was living on rented property with her family. There was room on that property to place a small studio separated from the main house, and that is where she wanted me to build the studio. Obviously it would be foolish to place a permanent structure on rented property, so I suggested that I design it in such a way that it could fairly easily be dismantled and moved elsewhere if necessary. She liked the idea, so that is what I did.

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