Interior designer Marcia Wolff wanted a house that's energy-efficient, ecologically sensitive, fire-resistant and, above all, beautiful. So she chose a building material that might surprise some ...

BROOKINGS, S.D. -- How far would you go to get a house that only costs $1.25 a day to heat in the winter? Better question: Would you live in a house built with straw bales? That idea, which began in ...

The straw bale home of Elise Lang and her husband, Michael Pierce, was finished in 2001. SPECIAL TO THE TELEGRAPH Winding under the canopy of trees shading the long driveway, goats and sheep peered at ...

Dear Jim: I want a natural way to build an energy efficient house without plastics, foams, adhesives, etc. Straw bale houses seem to be natural. Is the straw bale construction efficient for low ...

Properly constructed and maintained, the straw-bale walls, stucco exterior and plaster interior remain water proof, fire resistant, and pest free." According to a DOE Web page, straw construction in ...

A University of Michigan green building class plans to unveil a sustainably-built, straw-bale house located at the Campus Farm next Monday, May 29. Led by Joseph Trumpey, an assistant professor of art ...

Traditional building techniques and modern technology come together in the House in Berne, a self-sufficient straw bale house in Graben, a Swiss village located less than an hour’s drive north of Bern ...

Just beyond a curve in Kendig Road in Conestoga, the Pellman family’s farmhouse-styled home rises, a mix of expansive farmland views and rustic tradition. Get up close to its rough exterior, and ...

Straw bale houses of the western Nebraska prairies were comfortable places built where there were no trees or sod. In Lancaster County, straw - the leftover stalks of wheat, rye, oats or, sometimes, ...

Straw bales and mud will be key components to the house, but that won’t make it a primitive structure. Norman architect Dave Boeck designed the home as a post-and-beam structure. A concrete foundation ...