Natural Plasters and Finishes

3 day workshop covering different techniques of plastering with earth and other natural materials

Join myself and Yoshi Makino for a 3 day deep dive into learning about natural plasters and finishes.  We will cover plasters that are appropriate for an earthen building, as well as plasters and alis's that can go over the drywall in an existing home.  This course will include both plasters made from found clay, including how to find and source the clay, as well as plasters from store bought materials.  We will apply plaster to an existing earthen structure, a finish coat over a light straw clay wall, a sheetrock wall in a standard house, as well as on sample boards. 

WHEN

September 14th - 16th

Yoshi Makino

Yoshi Makino has been enamored by earth plaster, and Japanese plastering tools, since 2006. She got her start working on natural plastering crews around California, plastering natural building structures and the interiors of conventional buildings. She is particularly interested in the aesthetics and artistic possibilities of earth plaster, and is always excited to teach people about this fascinating medium.

Yoshi has taught plastering workshops for the California Straw Building Association (CASBA) and led work parties for private clients; she has also traveled to Japan to explore Japanese plaster and plastering tools. In addition, Yoshi has created and exhibited fine art pieces made of clay and lime plaster.

Yoshi has a BFA in Photography from California College of the Arts and an MFA in Studio Art from the University of California at Irvine. She is a middle school and high school art teacher at Geyserville New Tech Academy.

  • Earthen Plaster on Rocket Stove

  • Workshop students plastering garden wall

  • Bottle details

  • Earthen plaster sculpture

  • Earthen Plaster Mandala

  • Colored earthen plaster

  • Earthen plaster on Light Straw Clay cabin

  • Carving by Yoshi Makino

  • Carving by Yoshi Makino

  • Plaster by Yoshi Makino

  • Plaster by Yoshi Makino

LOCATION: Potter Valley, Ca

This workshop takes place on the land where we live and share with several other families. There is a pond for swimming when hot, and a barn where we will share meals. There are dirt roads and trails for hiking after class, and plenty of places to camp, either next to the barn, or up in the hills.

COST: Full price- $500

Early bird discount- Register before August 15th - $450

All meals provided starting with lunch on Saturday, through lunch on Monday. Much of the food we will serve will be from our garden, supplemented with other local, organic ingredients.

Camping available on site.

OTHER WORKSHOPS

  • Natural Building Camp on the Mendocino Coast

    May 24TH - May 28th

    This is a hybrid model of a cross between a workshop and a work party, with the focus on learning through doing. In the May Natural Building Camp we will be focusing on wall insulation, primarily in the form of redwood bark clay infill. We will also do some straw clay infill, mix a batch or two of cob, and other earthen building materials.

    WORKSHOPS DETIALS

  • Earthen Walls

    July 27th - July 30th

    There are many ways of building with earth to create everything from homes to ovens to garden walls to interior finishes. In this class we will use the same basic materials; clay, sand and fiber, to create a variety of different earthen building systems, including cob, adobe, Light straw clay, redwood bark clay, wattle and daub and earthen plasters.

    WORKSHOP DETAILS

  • Rocket Stove Cooker

    Oct. 4th, 5th and 6th

    In this workshop we will be building a Rocket Cook Stove. While this version of a Rocket Stove uses similar technology as a more traditional Rocket Mass Heater (RMH), it is specifically designed for cooking rather than heating. The one we will be building in this course will be built with earthen building techniques, including both cob and adobe.

    WORKSHOPS DETAILS