For our grey water waste from the Octagon, we decided on a natural green water filter. Since there isn't enough space by the structure for a large pond, we made two small ponds. The first and larger pond has a worm bin where the water enters the pond. This is the initial filter for the… Continue reading Small Greywater Ponds
We completed our outdoor shower project at the end of last summer, with the Tadelakt plaster and Fresco mural. We decided to line the walls of the area that gets wet from the shower with Tadelakt. We happen to be lucky to have a subsoil made out of sharp granite sand and limestone, which is… Continue reading Outdoor Shower: Finishing Touches – Tadelakt Plaster and Fresco Mural
In August of 2022 we embarked on a basic renovation of our barn. Our intention is to have the barn function as a communal space with a lounge area, a pool/ping-pong/dining table, and a simple loft sleeping area for spill-over guests. We were able to complete it in a few short months by enlisting the… Continue reading Basic Renovation of the Barn
Since the creation of the Hugelbed, we have added seeds. Basically, we bought a bunch of random packets and threw them on. Some plants are starting to grow—mostly watermelon plants so far. We don´t expect to get tremendous results right away, since it takes time for the Hugel to get established. We also added two… Continue reading Hugelbed: Growing Food
While we were having a series of wonderful family visits, our friends who are living on the land with us finished cobbing the outdoor shower. I then did some trimming, and added the niches in the showering space. Tal then added her decorative touches with a mosaic that echoes the spiral structure. She is also… Continue reading Outdoor Shower: Walls, Plaster & Decor
The last few months have been very busy with family visits. We rushed to finish the goat barn before Tal's sister arrived, so that she could try out the new shelter first. After she left, we had to get cracking with the rest, since we had two goats waiting to join our homestead. We started… Continue reading Goat Barn: Plaster, Interior & Goats!
We have been planning on putting in an outdoor shower, in preparation for summer volunteers. Having friends living on our land with their caravan has pushed us to expedite those plans. We decided to build a cob shower, in order to gain some experience with tadelakt water-resistant plaster. It is spiral-shaped, Fibonacci inspired.I started by… Continue reading Outdoor Shower: Getting Started
We finished the cobbing and the roof on the goat barn, and Tal has started adding her finishing touches while the wall is still moist. I am waiting for the walls to properly dry before I plaster them. Some cracks are appearing at the posts that are buried in the cob, and I want the… Continue reading Goat Barn: Almost finished
I finished my very simple green roof design. I went very low-budget on it since it is a goat barn, and I am curious if we can get away with it. First I sliced some 2-inch tubing open and clamped it on the side of the roof, for the plastic and fabric to go over… Continue reading Goat Barn: Green Roof & Walls
We have been steadily cobbing the goat barn and as usual, other small projects keep popping up in between. It became clear that we needed better access to the goat barn from the terrace above, so I built a rock staircase. Not quite up to my trail building standards, but this does not need to… Continue reading Rock Staircase and Access Road
Homiyah 