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Picture Tour 
The Strawbale Studio, a beautiful thatched roof cottage in rural Oxford
Michigan, was conceived in 1996 by friends Fran, Deanne Bednar, and Carolyn
Koch. None of these women are professionals, yet they were able with help,
guidance, and intuition to build this beautiful natural structure, which
today offers tours, workshops, and hands-on experience with natural building
materials. Books which inspired the project include Christopher Day's
"Places of the Soul: Architecture and Environmental Design as a Healing
Art," as well as "Timeless Ways of Building," and "Pattern Language" by
Christopher Alexander.
Due to the fluidity and flexibility of natural building materials, we were able to mold the studio around existing trees. You'll notice that even the shape of the studio is 'natural,' not boring, manufactured, and rectangular, but irregular, wild, and dynamic. It's very easy to mold natural plasters into any shape you desire, making it an art form as well as a building material! This makes for a very comfortable living space, and in fact, many people, upon entering such a natural structure, comment first not on how it looks, but on how it feels.
"Throw away the tape measure... this is a sculpture!" --
John Eisley, Stone Mason
"It already feels like home." -- Jason
Howard, upon entering the Studio for the first time.
These children are mixing mud, clay, and straw, to create a natural plaster
-- cob! Natural building is fun and easy, and we love to involve children in
the process. Even adults like to feel the mud against the bare soles of our
feet, let it seep and tickle the in-betweens of our toes! It brings back
memories of childhood, and yet something more primal, it reminds us of the
earth and our ancient connection to it. Our next big project on the Studio
site is a "Kid's Cottage." How empowering it must feel for children (and
adults!) to know they can play such a meaningful role, and see the end
result of their efforts -- a beautiful, ecological, and inspiring
shelter -- a place where people can live!
"When I put my feet in the mud, it brought me to life!" -- Jason
Howard
There are two types of strawbale structures: load-bearing and
post-and-beam. The studio is an example of a post-and-beam strawbale
structure, where a foundation is built of wood or other material, and straw
serves to insulate the walls. In a load-bearing structure -- the original
Nebraskan strawbales were load bearing -- the straw actually holds the
weight of the roof. Straw is stronger than you might think! In northern
climates (such as Michigan), where snow cover may weigh down the roof
considerably, load-bearing is a more practical option. Here you see the
wooden frame and stone foundation of the Strawbale Studio.
Playing in the mud is fun :) No matter how young or old you are, there is a certain feeling you possess when sinking your hands into rich, moist, cob, and creating a sculpture, or beautiful piece of art that you created out of the earth. It makes the older generations feel lively and youthful, and the youth enjoy learning and playing in the mud. More Photos:
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