2008 was a busy building season. Projects are listed below, with missing photos to be added one of these days! & reports.

Midland, ON:  Bale work and plastering on the cabins was done in the spring of 2008.

Westport, ON: Bale raising supervision, bale work, and plastering of this creative and beautiful retreat centre. We are fond of round walls!

Brighton, ON: Bale work (alongside Havencraft Homes) and plastering of 2 storey home in country setting. Bale work is almost complete, and plastering is scheduled for October 13.

Burleigh Falls, ON: Bale raising, bale work & plastering of home built with reclaimed timbers. Rustic, charming, and still in progress.

Wolfe Island: Bale work and plastering still to come on this saltbox style home.

Arnprior area: Bale work to commence soon, hopefully with some camels assisting owners, and then yet another building to plaster

Midland, 2007

Jim Gleason and some of the camels did the framing on this gorgeous round retreat centre close to Midland. Framing of five sleeping cabins also continued into the snowy fall.

Morton, 2006

This beautiful home, designed by the owners, was our first full-on earthen plaster, and it was a blast! The ability to work with bare hands if one chose, the fact that the clay came from the land, and the idea of not having a mixer running all day was, well, delightful! Eco-house prima-sil dispersion paint (clear) was painted onto the walls, but the colour is sheerly natural, exactly what Karel & Elaine wanted. Karel & Elaine worked closely with us on all stages, including doing bale work, cobbing, and hands-on plastering. Straight walls with angular window openings was desired, and achieved, thanks to laser levels and excellent trowellers (Monica, Chris, JD, Pete!).

Buckhorn, 2004

This owner-built load bearing building was built in the summer of 2004, near North Bay. After a hard, long, rainy summer, Albert and Martha finally finished all of the prep work, and hired Camel's Back to plaster their home. We were treated extremely well, with lodging taken care of with the owners, and Martha prepared meals for us. We had a great time up there!

North Bay, 2004

This owner-built load bearing building was built in the summer of 2004, near North Bay. After a hard, long, rainy summer, Albert and Martha finally finished all of the prep work, and hired Camel's Back to plaster their home. We were treated extremely well, with lodging taken care of with the owners, and Martha prepared meals for us. We had a great time up there!

El  Dorado, 2003

Hunter House, 2003

This off-grid passive solar home was completed in 2003. The north east and west walls are straw bale while the south wall is all windows. The owners and family were heavily involved in all aspects of construction, and have a lovely, modern straw home on 100 acres in the country.

For more information and pictures visit The Straw House Blog.

Peterborough, 2002

This house is just on the outskirts of the town limits of Peterborough. The first storey is load-bearing, with modified post & beam on the second floor. There is an interior bale wall in the house with two arched doorways, a carved bookcase, and a couple of niches carved into the walls. Radiant floor heat keeps this home cozy and warm in the winter, with little consumption of propane. General contracting was shared between the owner and Jim Gleason Contracting. Jim Gleason's crew framed and roofed the house, while Camel's Back did all of the bale work and plastering. Karen painted the exterior (and interior!) with a pigmented paint by Eco-House, a small Canadian company.

Interior shot. Karen chose to have an interior bale wall, which allowed for arched openings, a built in bookcase, and a niche to house her antique clock.

Norwood, 2000

Robin's Nest, Norwood, Ontario: Gail and Brianís house fronts as both a bed and breakfast, and a retreat center. They lay claims to having North Americaís largest load-bearing straw bale building. They bought their land in April 2000, and the interior is now finished. Building your own home doesnít always take years! To see more about their house and the bed and breakfast, check out their website:

Robin's Nest Retreat

Centreville, 2000

John and Anita have always dreamed of having a house with a tower....now they have it! On the cover of Harrowsmith magazine in the fall of 2003, the house stands out in a class of its own. John grew his own house...as an organic farmer, he was able to grow the organic wheat that they used for the bales. The roof of the tower was built on the ground and then hoisted up with a crane. And as for plastering it...they rented a sky-jack for access around the otherwise difficult to reach surfaces.

Mississauga, 2000

Mississauga, Ont. This large home in Mississauga has been a work in progress for the last two years. The house, comprised of 6000 sq. ft., will be shared by three people, with a combination of shared and private space.There is an extensive array of solar panels on the roof, and the dwellers hope to be able to sell power back to the grid someday. Each product that has been used in the construction of their home has been researched carefully, in order to create the healthiest environment possible

Orillia, 2001

Jack and Connie's house is quite lovely. They have rounded interior doorways, and lime plaster as a finish on some of their walls.

Largely their own design, the house has turned out beautifully. This is a 2 storey load bearing building.

Smithville,1998

A bale house can look as funky, or as straight, as you want it to. This house would be at home in any subdivision, but it is actually in a lovely setting in a country field.

Bancroft, 1999

Pat and Sherriís house, in Bancroft, Ont. is a post & beam structure. Largely owner-built, Pat & Sherri have put many hours into finishing their home. Their house has been featured on Cottage Life Television. Pat has also made beautiful kitchen cabinets out of straw board with concrete counter tops. Pat builds straw bale homes,works with cordwood, does spectacular custom cabinetry, in addition to installing radiant floor heating.You can find out more at: www.strawhome.homestead.com. 

Pat, Sherri & son Andrew are adamant about not having any straight walls in their house, and have worked creatively to achieve stunning results such as these:

• Interior Wall
• Arched hallway

Elora, 1999

This is a lovely woodworking shop, surrounded by cornfields. The framing of this building was done with recycled telephone poles, and the building sits overtop of an old stone foundation.