She's got skirts!

 We had yet another successful, FUN and fruitful workbee last weekend, 

and the house now has her skirts!  

 We got far more done than we expected, since we had no idea how many people would show up.  Over 2 days the volunteer crew applied 2 coats of earth plaster on the skirting wall (on wood lath) and if you scroll down, you will see some photos of interior walls (upstairs) being worked on during the afternoon of the second day.  

WAY TO GO CREW! Thank you so much!

 We are yet again reminded of the power and beauty of community, and love that anyone, young or old, can help on a natural building project.  

Now that the house has her skirts, we are that much closer to being able to move in (sometime this winter, fingers crossed).  The skirting wall provides yet another layer or wall of insulation from the elements.  The house no longer looks like it's standing on stilts - it's connected to the earth, and now we have a really nice crawl space under the house, which will protect the plumbing from freezing, keep the main floor warmer, the root cellar cooler....all even temperatures as it should be.  And, I have a mushroom growing space within it too and time will tell if it will work or not (the glass blocks are for letting some light in).  The mushrooms I want to grow (Shiitake, Oyster, etc) in bags filled with sawdust  like temperatures between 1C and 10C and filtered light, so we shall see!  It's a good thing I'm short, but I might have to enlist the help of a gnome or elf to help...

The mushroom growing corner

Here are some photos to show off the work, the people and the fun we had!

MIXERS EXTRAORDINAIRE! The mix: 4 parts Sand (sifted), 1 part Clay (sifted), 1 part Horse Manure (fresh dried and sifted), 1/2 part Straw (chopped), water.  Mix with bare feet until it rolls out like dough.

Screening Horse Manure = Very Important Job!

 The work went so well, with so many people, that we were able to finish some interior walls as well, left over from the last Earth Plaster workshop in June.  This was a really nice surprise for us. The second coat was applied, which does not include straw.  

These guys really know how to have a good time, no matter what they're doing!

~ The list of thank yous is not short, and we are so so grateful to all who could come this time to lend a hand, to add food to the table to feed the workers, to learn, and to get dirty with us yet again!  Many repeats, so I think some of you are hooked!  Yippee, more people for the natural building revolution!  
Big and Life Long Thanks to: Jan Wilson, Angela, Odin & kids, Mariko & kids, Andrew & Regan, Marty & Ashley, Toby & Wren, Llew, Van & Eleanor, Zack, Roy, Ina & Phil, Travis, Stepha & Lynda, Robin, Josh & Gabi, Tina, Oliver & Jenine, dogs (Canyon, Shade, Morley and Blue), and Laurie for coming at the end for moral and beer support!  

To all who have helped from the beginning:

Let us know how we can return the favour! 

 love...gillian, swamp, jamie and koda