Natural Building Program

This 10-week course empowered participants to build a structure from the ground up using sustainable techniques.

Through weekly hands-on sessions at SolFed Farms, students learned to construct a straw bale, roundwood timber frame building with rubble-trench foundations, natural plasters, and hybrid clay tile/living roofs.

By course end, participants were able to: explain natural building principles, safely use traditional tools, assemble timber joinery, and evaluate design choices like insulation vs. breathability.

Hosted at Earthcraft Skillshare

At our recent Natural Building class, participants learned how to retrofit an existing structure using natural materials to create well-insulated, beautiful, and breathable walls.

This hands-on workshop covered each stage of the process - From preparing the sill plate to cutting and stacking straw bales, to 'sewing' them in place and attaching a wire mesh substrate to support the natural plaster finish.

A highlight of the day (and the crowd's favorite moment) was the shredding of straw in a trash can using a weed whacker. The shredded straw was then mixed into a mud slurry in a wheelbarrow, forming the fibrous base for the first coat of earthen plaster.

Using locally sourced clay, sand, and straw, attendees got their hands dirty, learned by doing, and walked away with practical skills and a renewed appreciation for low-impact, community-driven construction.

The workshop embodied SolFed’s belief that everyone can be a builder, and that sustainable housing solutions should be accessible, affordable, and empowering.

Six years ago, founders Ondrej and Larissa Pekarovic began a journey to create something deeply intentional - a sustainable, natural home built entirely from locally sourced materials. The design, inspired by a moment of clarity during a vacation in Thailand, took the form of a round structure - chosen for its aesthetic beauty, wind resistance, and natural harmony with the land.

But this was never just about building a house.

It became a community movement, bringing together friends, neighbors, and volunteers who believed in the vision. People came not only to help - but to learn, sweat, and build together. With a deep, hands-on work ethic, they mixed clay, laid stone, raised walls, and shaped wood - many of them discovering new tools and construction methods for the first time.

This was a learning ground as much as a construction site. From timber framing and earthen plaster to solar systems and water catchment, new skills were picked up, shared, and passed on - turning the project into a living classroom.

Entirely self-funded and built off-grid, the home now stands as a symbol of what’s possible when passion, sustainability, and community come together. After five years of dedication and hard work, the result is not just a house - but a handcrafted story of resilience, creativity, and connection.