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27 contributions to Living Earth Structures
Hi all! 👋 New here and happy to find this group
I'm a builder based in southern Utah — would love to connect with any other Southwest folks in here! I recently got to work with Sir Cobalot, which was a great experience, and I'm looking forward to going deeper — his cob oven course is next on my list. Has anyone here done an oven yet? I'd love to hear how it went! Feel free to say hi as well 👋 I attached a photo of a recent sculpture I did out of cob that I'm very proud of!
Hi all! 👋 New here and happy to find this group
4 likes • 24d
@Valerie Østvik Happy to add my congrats and appreciation, Valerie, for showing us your pictures and details about your very-wise-sounding more-3D-sculpting method we can all now see will add longevity to your winged sculpting beauty! One of my favorite ideas about cobbing is to offer to add cob to any existing home in a fire-prone area, since fire-resistance can be such a MAJOR factor in people wanting to add cob to an existing home. I don't think we have to be as incredibly talented as you appear to be, Valerie, but your images prompt me to encourage ALL of us who are still waiting for a PLACE we can build an actual cob anything could get to practice and make some money by offering services of cobbing onto buildings for fire-retardant purposes. Super cool to brainstorm with any and all in this virtual cob course about such ideas. @Michelle Caron @Martin Stenflo @Nina Larbalestrier @Nathan Schroering @Aziel Fearon
Cobin site. Has anyone done a greenhouse roof with a cobin?
Hello, this is a picture of the site for my cobin that will be my greenhouse and Art Studio in colorado. I'm currently leveling the ground and digging out a trench for a french drain since the site is at the bottom of a hill. I'm also collecting pallets and I'm planning for the roof to be part living room and parts triple layer polycarbonate to let light in. Has anyone done a roof like that before?
Cobin site. Has anyone done a greenhouse roof with a cobin?
1 like • Aug 9
@Kira Hipull ++: While working on rectangular cobbins with Miguel, he told me that rectangular are often MUCH faster and easier to build than "round" cobbins, which makes sense with all the added steps we see, especially for roofing, when doing 8, 10, or 12-side cobbins that look round. Also, building into earth can be easy if you have a slope, digging out only part of what you need, and using what you dig out to fill in around when making-filling in a living roof that blends into the surrounding land. He used various kinds of quite thick pond liner and other similar materials that I can't name by memory, but are in more of his recent (early summer) course videos of the many cobbins he made in spring-summer 2026. Hope that helps add more info. and @Ursa Shapla : I wish I had a good imagining of what you mean, 1. (I don't have time to look up what a zome roof is at the moment), and once that is known, 2. how you seek to add an overhang? plus 3. How that could like like a huge ice cream cone. Did you draw up your plans at all? Have you started so you can share photos??
1 like • Aug 9
@Kira Hipull - hoping this helps you see my prior comment.
For offshoots
Hi. Working on clay slip mix and cob for offshoots on trunks1st. There is no where I have seen any 1 doing this and tired of pruning offshoots. Hope this solves that. Made video on this. Short is here, full is on my Tuby. https://www.instagram.com/reel/Db4iAUex5VQ/?igsh=eHRnbnV3d2UyMWkw
For offshoots
2 likes • Aug 9
Your second post here seems related to your questions on the group call a while ago, @Nina Larbalestrier. What I saw Miguel do is a FRACTION of the amount of clay/soil/sand & water as the straw addition, and as the LAST ingredient added. In big tubs full of cob, he added maybe a 5-gal bucket-full of straw and then went back to stomping. He tried buying smaller-pre-cut straw, but then wished he had put it through his branch shredder (what he does with normal straw) because otherwise larger pieces of straw will stick out of the cob and be hard to pull off/out, cut away or cover with plaster. If you only have 5 gal of cob, I think you add at most 2-3" in a 5 gal bucket (since it is so tall) but put it out on a tarp to mash it in with your feet or shovel or whatever your preferred method is. As well, I learned that with still-planted tree trunks that are less than 3 feet tall, you can saw into the top of the trunk a big X, at least many inches deep. I think loggers then put something toxic into the cuts (which we would NOT want to do) but there may be some non-toxic growth-retarding addition to consider... I would sit in meditation WITH while "ASKING the rooted tree trunk" what IT wants you to do, if anything, to get to use it as is, and to stop having to prune offshoots. Also ask if it or its devas can communicate with you to let you use it without the Tree trying to keep growing (and restore itself as a bigger Tree.)
Here is a stage/amphitheater.
Ideas for your community or if you built as a cobber to earn. I love ramps so if this was made from cob ramps intend of steps as it is easier for all! Use boards than cob over to unless stone is available. https://www.instagram.com/p/DZiejV_kS7D/?img_index=4&igsh=eDA0ZDB2ajZmZm11
2 likes • Aug 9
GREAT images and impressive woodwork. Seeing Miguel's ability with wood was very helpful, especially for the roof features. Using palettes as he teaches is woodwork in an interesting way that most people can't imagine till they see it, I found, as many friends and new people I met who were learning showed in their responses. Scaffolding and other BIG construction needs come up with anything so tall, but that is not hard, just different from the basic cobbin-building use of ladders. Great Share, @Nina Larbalestrier
Cob'in 😉
Non profit women's collective with the Mudgirls 😁 3rd year on this project. This year we put in the floors and plastered the walls inside built a pizza oven and a half of a wall outdoors, muddy and happy
Cob'in 😉
0 likes • Aug 9
So much fun to see!! Well done, Mudgirls!!
1-10 of 27
Monica McGuire
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@monica-mcguire-2119
Self-Healing Lifestyles Coach : "Expanding on the Health You Have" with hundreds of approaches for people to explore for cherry-picking ease

Active 12d ago
Joined Apr 2, 2026
Santa Cruz, California
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