We are pleased to announce that Frank Meyer from Austin will join us at the Cob & Straw Bale Workshop in May.

With over 30 years of experience in sustainable building, Frank has extensive knowledge of straw bale construction. He has participated in building over 40 straw bale structures, including the first load bearing straw bale building in Texas. Some of Frank’s projects have been featured in Natural Home and Southern Living magazines. For more information about Frank, visit his website at www.thangmaker.com

The workshop will take place May 12-19, 2006 outside the small town of Shamrock, Oklahoma. You can find more details about the workshop at www.sustainablegreencountry.org/main/?p=29

[ May 12, 2007 2:00 pm to May 19, 2007 9:00 am. ] Join us for a week of natural building construction and education in NE Oklahoma. Our 7 full days of workshop activity will cover cob and straw bale construction from start to finish including siting, design, foundation, wall construction, windows/doors, roof, plasters, arches, niches and relief sculpture.
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COB HOME BUILDER- MAY 12-19, 2006

Shamrock, Oklahoma

A week of educational and hands-on work, lectures, slideshows and fun! The workshop will start on Saturday evening and will conclude the following Saturday morning after breakfast.

Overview

Join us for a week of natural building construction and education in NE Oklahoma. Our 7 full days of workshop activity will cover cob and straw bale construction from start to finish including siting, design, foundation, wall construction, windows/doors, roof, plasters, arches, niches and relief sculpture.

Workshop Description

We will be constructing a small rustic cottage intended to shelter one person or a very friendly couple. Workshop activities will emphasize the skills necessary for participants to build their own cottage including: design, siting, foundations, material selection, mixing, building techniques, roofs, floors, finding and installing salvaged materials, rainwater collection, plasters, round-wood framing and sculptural finishing. Participants will leave with the skills and knowledge necessary to undertake their own cob projects from start to finish.

The Hand-Sculpted House is the basic text for the course. Please bring a copy with you. Other valuable references will be presented throughout the course.

Our workshop plans for six days full of physical activity. If you are unaccustomed to daily physical work this will be tiring, but we encourage everyone to stretch, breathe and work at a comfortable pace. Natural building creates an opportunity for us to encourage the strength and health inherent in our bodies!

Schedule

Saturday, May 12

8:00 am – 12:00 pm arrival and camp set up

6:00 pm opening meal followed by fire circle

Sunday, May 13 – Friday, May 18

Typical Day

7:00 am – 7:45 am Coffee, Tea, fruit

7:45 am – 12:00 am morning building session

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm lunch and break

2:00pm – 5:30pm afternoon building session

5:30pm – 6:30pm dinner

6:30pm – guest presentation followed by discussion

(Friday includes closing ceremony in place of guest presentation)

Saturday, May 19

9:00am – 11:00am breakfast

pack-up and travel day

Meals

All meals are vegetarian but will include dairy, eggs and honey. We will purchase organic and locally grown ingredients whenever possible. Please advise us of any allergies or dietary restrictions in advance. Each meal will include options or variations for those with special needs. We will try our best to accommodate special diets, but please understand that we cannot cook individual meals for each person. Our day will generally begin with a light breakfast just before the first work session. Lunch and Dinner are eaten as a group and provide an excellent opportunity to share project ideas and interrogate the experienced builders on site. We will also provide plenty of filtered drinking water- please bring your own water bottle.

Attire and Personal Supplies

Cobbing is by nature, well…dirty. Please wear and bring clothes that can handle dirt and rough treatment. We highly recommend long pants (that can be rolled up) and closed toe shoes (not sandals!) for working on this natural country site. Depending upon the weather, there may be ticks, mosquitoes and/or chiggers. Items that you may wish to bring include: hat, sunscreen, bug repellent, towel, paper & pencil, camera etc. We encourage everyone to mix barefoot during the first day, however after that you may wish to use a pair of water shoes or dive booties to dance cob in.

Accommodations

Camping. Please bring a tent, stakes, ground cloth, bedding and flashlight. You might also find that a sleeping pad and earplugs can increase your comfort. We have made arrangements for inside sleeping arrangements in case of sickness or extended inclement weather.

Showers are available, but limited. If you prefer to bathe everyday please bring a solar shower.

Several composting toilets will be set up for the workshop. We will instruct everyone on the use and care of these facilities. We know you will be pleasantly surprised by the freshness of the air and comfort of our simple systems.

Workshop Players

The cob workshop is organized by Keeshi Ingram and Konstantin Popov of Sustainable Green County (www.sustainablegreencountry.com) and conducted by Kindra Welch of ClaySandStraw (www.claysandstraw.com) and Frank Meyer of Thangmaker Construction Co. (www.thangmaker.com/about.htm ).

Kindra Welch, educated in architecture, completed an apprenticeship with the Cob Cottage Company in Oregon in 2004 and worked with many natural builders, including Cobworks and HouseAlive! After a decade of travel and education she has returned to her hometown of Austin to fuel Texas’ natural building movement as a professional builder and instructor.

With over 30 years of experience in sustainable building, Frank Meyer has extensive knowledge of straw bale construction. He has participated inbuilding over 40 straw bale structures, including the first load bearingstraw bale building in Texas. Some of Frank’s projects have been
featured in Natural Home and Southern Living magazines

Sustainable Green Country (SGC) is an organization of committed citizens in Northeastern Oklahoma that focuses on bringing together and unifying rural, suburban, and urban facets of sustainability.

Guest presenters include:

- James Johnson of Evergreen Associates – to critique our passive solar design and discuss the use of solar, both passive and active.

- Reid Coffman, a founding member of the International Research Committee for Greening Rooftops for Healthy Cities will give a presentation about green roofs and be available to comment on our roof project.

Other guest presenters will be listed on the website as they are confirmed.

Cost

The cost for the workshop is $625 ($575 early registration before March 31st), includes tuition, vegetarian meals, lectures, handouts and camping accommodations. Discount for couples.

Registration

To register for the workshop, please download, print and fill in the Cob Workshop Registration form.

Questions

For any questions about the cob week, contact Konstantin at 918-289-3061 or kipopov@gmail.com.

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Cob Workshop – Trench Digging
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SGC Kick-off Party Album

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SGC Kick-off Party Album

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