Switching to SlateGSaturday, June 1st, 2013 Over the past few months, we have come to the realization that a thatched roof for our cottage just isn't in the cards. We're both in love with the idea, but making it a reality would be a massive undertaking, and right now, neither of us can must...
Reed Collecting for Thatching with Deanne BednarGMonday, January 14th, 2013 It's time for our reed-collecting workshop at last! With tools in hand, we enter a waving sea of phragmites reeds via a thin tunnel that Deanne has already cleared. As we make our way to the secluded collection area, I'm struck by how tall and be...
Reed Collecting Tools: Sickles and ScythesGSunday, December 16th, 2012 As our departure date to collect reeds for a thatched roof draws near, I've been researching the tools we'll need to complete the job. Namely, sickles and scythes. For centuries, marshmen (such as the one featured in the video below) have used thes...
Thinking about ThatchGSaturday, December 15th, 2012 This past October, on the way to our family vacation in Vermont, Tyler and I stopped at Deanne Bednar's Strawbale Studio. While we were there, we discovered an important detail about thatched roofing: reeds need to be harvested in the wintertime. ...
Thatching Research: Deanne Bednar's Strawbale StudioGThursday, October 4th, 2012 The second stop on our roadtrip to Vermont is to see a woman named Deanne, a natural builder, and the illustrator for several cob-related books such as The Hand-Sculpted House and The Cobber's Companion. Her land is home to the Strawbale Studio, ...
