California Straw Building Association

presents the

The Building with Straw Bales Workshop

October 5-6, 2019

  Seeds of Life Chapel
Tracy, CA


Taught by Amanda Fischer and Myles Danforth

Learn how to build with straw bales at the Seeds of Life Chapel in Tracy, California. This is a two day workshop which will focus on how to use bales as insulation in a rounded, stick frame construction which will eventually serve as a community chapel. Learn how straw bales increase the insulation value and beauty of the building. Participants will participate in bale stacking, notching, bale resizing, and applying clay slip. A mix of instruction time and hands-on experience will provide you with the basic knowledge of straw bale building to start your own project. Evenings and meal times will allow for additional question/answer time and presentations.

This chapel is being built by Skillful Means. Amanda Fischer and Myles Dansforth of Muddy Hands & Reclamations Natural Building Inc, will be instructing. They are a natural and sustainable design-build team out of Nevada City. Instruction during the workshop will cover the basics of building with straw bales, foundation details, windows and doors, roofs, carbon sequestering building materials, environmentally conscious building and more. We will cover lots of good information on options for building with straw bales and touch on finishing the bales with plaster. To learn more about the art and science of plasters join us for our upcoming Clay Plaster Workshops onSeptember 28-29 in El Sobrante.  

The goal of the workshop is to accommodate every participant’s interest and skill level. Each participant can expect to participate in the various aspects of the straw bale construction to ensure the broadest possible hands-on experience.

Cost:   $80. 

Accommodations:

Simple meals, beverages and snacks are included in the workshop fee and will be provided in the community dining area. We will have a washing area and toilet facilities. If you are coming from a distance, we have a some guest rooms available on the site for $30 and space for camping. There are limited hotels/motels in the area.  Information to these will be provided when requested. Site location, driving directions and other information are provided with confirmation of registration.

For additional workshop info contact Jenna Yu at jenna@skillful-means.com or 510-541-7753.

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