All About Cob

Date: July 16 - 20

Workshop starts with Wednesday supper and ends after Sunday lunch. Cost: $425. All meals and camping provided.

Daily Schedule
About Our Site
What to Bring
Register for a Workshop
About Bringing Children

General outline of the workshop

All About Cob - July 16 - 20 $425*

This 4 day workshop will teach you all you need to know in order to start your own project. You will learn how to find the right materials, how to mix them and how to build structures with cob. Previous participants have built benches, ovens, garden walls, and even complete cob cottages! Mornings are spent mixing and building, while most afternoons we will teach about cob and cob related topics, such as design, foundations, plasters and floors. As part of the building experience, there will be hands-on practice with putting in electric wires, windows, doors, making arches, niches and other sculptural work. This workshop will also briefly cover earthen plasters and floors.

Daily schedule

Here is a basic idea of the daily schedule, which changes regularly, depending on the weather, the progress on the building site and the topics of discussion:

First thing -- light snack, coffee, tea, juice
Then: morning cob mixing
Breakfast
Cob construction and curriculum
Lunch and afternoon nap time
Afternoon presentation #1
Snack and afternoon building session
Dinner

Evening programs will vary, depending on people’s energy. Some days we just hang out and socialize, other times there will be slide shows and/or short discussions.

About the site

This workshop well be held at our homestead outside of Jacksonville, OR.There are a great variety of natural buildings as well as a beautiful garden, composting toilets and many different solar technologies. The setting is a serene pine and doug-fir forest in the mountains of Southern Oregon, just 30 minutes away from both the Medford airport and Ashland, and 15 minutes from the historic town of Jacksonville. Camping on site is provided as are delicious vegetarian (vegan option) meals, with lots of produce from our own garden. People need to provide their own tent/bedding. The weather in July will be hot and dry, with temperatures varying between 80 and 100 degrees F. Occasionally we get a rainstorm or thunderstorm this time of the year. Click here to read more about our homestead.

What to bring to the workshop

Tent,
Sleeping bag/pad, pillow
Enough clothing for the workshop (clothing will get dirty, small hand-washings on-site are possible, closest Laundromat is a 20 minute drive)
Protection from the sun (hats, sunscreen, etc.)
Water bottle
Pictures, drawings, plans, ideas, questions
An 8' x 6' woven polypropelene (”blue”) tarp for mixing cob. Larger is fine, we will cut it to size
Lotion or cream for your hands and feet
Bathing suit and towel (we may go for an occasional dip in the nearby river)
Work gloves. We like the cloth ones with rubberized palms (One brand is called "Atlas.")
Musical instruments
For sensitive feet (optional): An old pair of sneakers, duct tape or diving booties. We will be mixing cob by foot. To toughen up your feet a little, we highly recommend that you walk bare foot as much as possible before the workshop starts.

Registration

To secure your spot for this workshop, go to the registration page and follow the simple instructions. We require a $200 non-refundable deposit per person, which can be paid with a check or money order. The balance is due at the time of the workshop and can be paid on site in cash or with a check/money-order. Click here to register for a workshop

About bringing kids

Almost without exception, children and youth have been a great addition to our workshops. Our youngest participant was 6 months old at the time! Depending on their age and interest, kids build, listen and observe, play with the sand and clay, read, etc. They often also team up with other kids on the homestead, notably Julian (11) and Rosie (8). We see a lot of good in exposing your children to natural building and community living and like to think that we can make a difference in the way they see life. This is also a great way to enjoy the workshop as a family and to prepare your family for being at a building site together. Needless to say that you will loose some workshop time while you are attending to the needs of your child; we cannot provide day care for you. The cost for children is: 0- 4 years old: Free (we are counting on you bringing breast milk and/or baby food); 4 - 12 years old: $15 per day (just covering our food and infrastructure cost); 13 - 17 years old: half price. These prices may not apply to all workshops. Please check with us in order to make special arrangments. We want to make it possible for you!