Whilst over the water in England I try to keep in touch with the bay area by reading the local newspapers and blogs. This article caught my eye the other day as I read the rather liberal leaning sfgate site...always good for a laugh I find. I read the article as I am very interested in the rammed earth building concept as I plan to build in California at some time and this is a building technique I am interested in using. It is a technique that has been practised around the world (in England it is known as clunch or cob building) for thousands of years and is particularly suited for climactic conditions such as those in CA. I plan if possible to buy a house that has enough land that will enable me to build a guest house using rammed earth, coupled with various natural materials available...not that I'm a crusty eco nut...I just prefer building with stone and wood etc. The lady in the article seems to have spent rather a large amount on her project and as I'm a free marketeer at heart...that's fine. The only problem is...she seems to believe she has downsized,gotten closer to the earth and somehow become more in tune with the environment. A house the size of hers with yoga studio,exotic woods etc is not by any sense of scale ...living a simple life....ah!...life in Napa...lala land at its best....I can't wait to get back!
Tuesday 15 April 2008
The simple life.
Whilst over the water in England I try to keep in touch with the bay area by reading the local newspapers and blogs. This article caught my eye the other day as I read the rather liberal leaning sfgate site...always good for a laugh I find. I read the article as I am very interested in the rammed earth building concept as I plan to build in California at some time and this is a building technique I am interested in using. It is a technique that has been practised around the world (in England it is known as clunch or cob building) for thousands of years and is particularly suited for climactic conditions such as those in CA. I plan if possible to buy a house that has enough land that will enable me to build a guest house using rammed earth, coupled with various natural materials available...not that I'm a crusty eco nut...I just prefer building with stone and wood etc. The lady in the article seems to have spent rather a large amount on her project and as I'm a free marketeer at heart...that's fine. The only problem is...she seems to believe she has downsized,gotten closer to the earth and somehow become more in tune with the environment. A house the size of hers with yoga studio,exotic woods etc is not by any sense of scale ...living a simple life....ah!...life in Napa...lala land at its best....I can't wait to get back!
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4 comments:
Maravilha!
Thud, how about adobe? I just posted a photo of one myself.
Gives new meaning to the phrase, "Go pound sand!" I just worry about liquifaction in earthquake country,
I think the rammed-earth houses are nifty, and I also really like the idea of the straw-bale house. It probably won't work in every kind of climate, but a lot of people have had great results with them here in Texas.
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