“In a small forest in France’s Dordogne, self-taught carpenter Menthé built his home with a living roof and mud walls, plus hand-carved wood from the surrounding forest shaped according to ideas from 16th century French architect Philibert de l’Orme. The result is a charming and very cozy home that fits perfectly into the woodland.”
DIY
Underground Greenhouse – Bozeman Montana
“This is a partially underground greenhouse we use at Saddle Peak Farm & Vineyard to start, grow, overwinter, and propagate plants. This year we have tomatoes using the extra summer space, hoping they last until December. In this update, I show them off, as well as some dwarf citrus trees, water plants, and carnivorous plants (Venus Fly Traps and Pitcher plants). Enjoy!”
How to Build with Strawbales
“Student How-To Video on how to build a strawbale building. University of Washington.”
My Favorite Natural Home
Over the years I’ve had the great pleasure of viewing thousands of homes built with natural materials such as sustainably harvested wood poles, earth, straw, stone, and recycled materials. So which natural home is my personal favorite? I’d have to go with Simon Dales’ woodland home in Wales. Not only is it absolutely stunning from many different views, it’s also very low cost (3,000 pounds or $4,500), practical to build (4 months by 2 workers) and live in, and super energy efficient due to the thick straw bale insulation. The cost is very important. Almost anyone can afford a home like this.
Making a Farm Table with Salvaged Wood
“Build your own furniture, a dream of many but a reality for few. In this video I show you how I make farm tables. This is one made for a customer for a new house. It’s 10 feet long and made from red oak, sawn from a dead standing tree. The base is made from (reclaimed) spruce and yellow pine. It is constructed with mortise and tenon joints, using a hollow chisel mortiser and a tenon jig I made for the table saw.”
£10,000 ($15,000) Straw Bale House – Wales
“Brian Stinchcombe built his own straw bale house for only TEN THOUSAND POUNDS, as shown in this video. According to an article in the Independent, this house was due to be demolished in 1997, because the ‘planners’ (bribe takers, in other words, who work for the building industry, while pretending to work for the council) didn’t approve.