GUARD DOGS IN T-SHIRTS

Dylan putting barbed wire into our first earth bag row in preparation for the Flemington Permablitz

Our first earth bag garden bed under construction in preparation for the Flemington Permablitz

Collecting some more clay from the building site in preparation for the Flemington Permablitz

Collecting more clay for our earth bag bed wall in preparation for the Flemington Permablitz

Snoozing guard dogs wearing t-shirts at the building site in Yarraville

Delivering clay to Nicholas and Minna of Permastructure in Heidelberg

Gracie looking into Nicholas and Minna's dome in Heidelberg

Dylan and Tom scaling Nicholas and Minna's Dome in Heidelberg

Cobbing on the earth bag dome made by Nicholas and Minna of Permastructure in Heidelberg

Clay and sand became a neat, slightly wrinkly, row of earth bags outlining our first garden bed. However, satisfaction turned upside down when we saw how quickly the pile of clay had diminished with so few bags. Luckily our friends Nicholas and Minna saved us by offering up their trailer to collect more clay.

We returned to the building site greeted by guard dogs in t-shirts, if their wagging tails and liquid eyes didn’t diminish the quality of their threat then their wardrobe sure did. The owners were kind enough to take photos of us at work, we noted that the number of people we owed a crate of home brew thank yous was rising.

As a thanks for the trailer we delivered a load of clay to Minna at her house in Heidelberg for cobbing. She and Nicholas have been running earth bag workshops in their backyard  and we were met with the glorious site of their earth dome rising proudly amongst post-war brick houses with ubiquitous tiled hip roofs.The contrast will make their dome all the more delightful when they have it rendered. I don’t think you’ll find a sauna like this anywhere else in Melbourne, it’s a shame!

You can see progress of their dome at their Permastructure website.

 

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