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Lobelia is the name of our 864-square-foot two-bedroom straw bale home. Named after a native wildflower, Lobelia was built with many reclaimed materials, including all framing lumber, most doors and windows, and even the kitchen cabinet.

The straw bale exterior walls are protected by earthen plaster inside and out. Outside, the hip roof and wood shingle skirt, made from pallet wood scraps, along with a coat or two of raw linseed oil, help protect the exterior plaster from the elements.Š

–Alyssa Martin and Tony (AKA Papa Bear) Barrett

This is Sneak Preview #14 from our forthcoming book, Small Homes, to be published in spring, 2017.

Here’s the local influence for Sea Ranch home design. Perfect. Farmer architecture.

Too bad most of the houses (over 600 of them) out there turned out to be such clunkers. Why do so few architects ever get it right?

The best thing about Sea Ranch is the landscaping, by Lawrence Halperin; he left it completely au naturel.

This is at Stewart’s Point on Highway One.

• www.lloydkahn.com/…

Master builder Vin Jon Gorman’s colorful, exquisitely crafted small home in progress. (See pp. 204–205, Builders of the Pacific Coast for his eucalyptus pod–shaped redwood sauna).

This is Sneak Preview #13 from our forthcoming book, Small Homes, to be published in spring, 2017.

My name is Pete Robey and my wife Blythe and I live in Tasmania. The little island attached to the bottom of Australia. Thought I would share with you that our house is the first approved cordwood home in Australia. It is currently featured in Australia’s Owner Builder magazine. You can get a link here at the bottom of the page: www.thehousethatworkedout.com 

I bought your 3 books: Shelter, Builders of the Pacific Coast, and Home Work early on before we had even confirmed style. The Baird House from page 28–31 of Builders of the Pacific Coast just grabbed me. Thanks Mike Baird and to you too Lloyd (House) for this inspiration. We designed our home with the same ideal: every room and every area of the home can pretty much engage with every other area of the home. The village TeePee idea. We have a massive 4 ft. diameter, 2  ft. long tree holding up the earth roof and our 2nd story doesn’t go all the way to the middle so we have plenty of space. We don’t have stairs, preferring to use a gym rope as exercise — see this post from our blog: ‌www.thehousethatworkedout.com/…

Catch you later.
–Pete

From www.lloydkahn.com/…

Kitchen in Guner Tautrim’s wooden home on California coast

Interior woods were all milled on site and include a floor of black walnut, kitchen cabinets of silky oak and black acacia, wainscoting of red gum eucalyptus, red ironbark eucalyptus, and yellow acacia; as well as kitchen counters made from large slabs of swamp eucalyptus…

This is Sneak Preview #11 from our forthcoming book, Small Homes, to be published in spring, 2017.

Scarf joint in barn on Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Photo by Lloyd Kahn

From our Tumblr

This is Jay’s cabin, on a little island near Seattle, it’s like a hobbit house — buried under the dirt with a large south window. He lives on this land with his sons. Beautiful garden, see view. Secret place the civilization with Barbie concrete homes are being built around the land.

• www.yogan.over-blog.com
• www.yogancharpentier.com
• www.menthedesbois.blogspot.fr

This is my friend Travis in Olympia. He made this trailer for $7,000. He lives in it full time so he can move it when he wants. He is an excellent wood carver as well as a metalworker.

• www.yogan.over-blog.com
• www.yogancharpentier.com
• www.menthedesbois.blogspot.fr