Early Registration: For most workshops we offer a significant discount when you register and pay in full 30 days in advance of the workshop start date. For the Owner Builder Intensive you must register 60 days in advance to get the discount. Early bird discounts can not be combined with other discounts.
Two Adults: If you come to a workshop together with one other adult (friend, spouse, or relative) you can get a 25% discount off of the second workshop fee. Groups: When you come to a workshop in a group of three or more we will take 10% off for everyone in your group.
Kids: Children are welcome at all of our workshops at no charge when accompanied by their parent or guardian.

To get more information or register for a workshop you can contact us by email or phone, although we generally able to respond with more detailed information by email.

Contact:
Christina Ott
(850) 982-2597
cobdance@hotmail.com

Mail your workshop fee to:
Christina Ott
178 Birdsong Trail
Woodbury, TN 37190

We only accept cash and money orders the day of the workshop.

When you come to a Barefoot Builder workshop you will be fully participating in the construction of a real building, often someone’s home. We do not build practice structures or mock-ups, so when you leave you will have the confidence that comes from real experience. We also provide some of the only workshops that include hands on experience with installing plumbing and electricity in cob. Our workshops are designed to give you building skills through first hand experience and practice. Be prepared to get dirty! Most workshops involve several hours each day of moderate physical work on the building site. We encourage you to pay attention to your body and work at a pace that is comfortable for you. Participants in our workshops usually range widely in age and physical ability. Being on a cob building site is like a step back in time with the whole “village” pitching in to build something with our hands. There are no loud power tools or heavy equipment and we often sing together as we work.

We take long breaks after lunch during which you will have chance to peruse our collection of natural building books, go for a hike or swim, nap, or just hang out. There will also be lectures and demonstrations during the day and possibly slide shows, videos, and a camp fire at night.

We love having children in our workshops and on the worksite! Most children have a lot of fun cobbing and are very good at it (often better than the adults). Cob building sites are not at all like a conventional construction site and are generally very safe, quiet and child friendly. However, if you have very young children it may be difficult for you to fully participate at all times and we cannot provide childcare. In order to make the workshop more accessible to parents we do offer a family or group discount which varies by the length of the workshop. Please ask about this.

During most workshops the accommodations are tent camping in a rural or wilderness setting with hot showers and composting toilets provided. This may vary in some workshops. We always provide three delicious and wholesome family style meals a day as well as snacks on the worksite. Workshop food is always vegan and vegetarian. If you have any special dietary requirements please let us know ahead of time and we will almost certainly be able to accommodate you.

Participants in our home workshops (those listed in Woodbury , TN ) have the opportunity to camp on 150 acres of beautiful Middle Tennessee hills, meadows and woods. There is ample wildlife, complete absence of mechanical noise, clear views of the stars, and great opportunities for hikes with views of the surrounding countryside. We provide hot showers in the camping area and three whole foods meals per day. When you attend a workshop here you will have the opportunity to learn about and experience much more than just building a house.

The view entering Birdsong Hollow, named for the cacophony almost of birds’ songs always heard there.

A view of Short Mountain from the top of the ridge. An hour hike from the campsite through Birdsong Hollow will get you to this expansive view.

 

Dear Christina,

Here it is a month after the workshop and I'm finally sending you the thank you letter that I meant to send three weeks ago. It actually works out well that it was delayed because I will be able to tell you of some recent developments in my quest to build my own cob home.

I gained so much from attending your cob basics workshop. Not only was the hands-on experience beneficial, the lectures and side conversations gave me some invaluable information.

For example, the flat area we had talked about that I was planning on building on did indeed end up being a water run off. As a result of the instruction on picking a building site, not only did I not build on that specific site, I decided against buying that property altogether. Furthermore, due to a tip you gave me, I found the land of my dreams; and for under $1,500 an acre!

I will be able to use just about every bit of knowledge I've gained from this experience; I intend to set up the "natural air conditioning" system, I redesigned my home using your functions and living spaces instead of rooms idea, and I now feel confident that I can put in an earthen floor, establish flooring for a second floor and am not as intimidated about electricity and setting up a solar system.Holly and I have been gathering rock from the creek for the stem wall for Holly's playhouse, I have talked to our neighbor about camping on her adjoining property, and I would feel very fortunate to be able to host a workshop by Barefoot Builders to raise it!

Sincerest Regards,
Diane Jennings - LaFayette, GA

Hey Guys:

I have been covered up since I got home from the courtyard walls workshop but wanted to thank you all for a wonderful experience. We touched on so many aspects of living on our planet within our world views during my stay. I apologize for not getting back sooner. My stay with your family has rejuvenated my commitment to my world, our generations to come and the absolute necessity of acting on my commitment rather than preaching it. You walk the walk and it is inspiring. May the force be with you.

- Gretchen Torrence

Dear Christina,

Our whole family had such a magnificent time at the workshop this past weekend. Huge thanks to you for so much patient and interesting instruction, to Nature for all the delicious salads & wisdoms thereabout & the stretchy-happy yoga -- and to your fabulous Mom for her cooking and gracious hostessing. It was really a special and stimulating time for us. I had thought that this workshop would be enough to get us going -- and it is -- but since we've been home, Stephen & I have been talking about cobbing nonstop. I now have a real hankering to do the longer workshop not next year but this one. The realization that your longer workshop in August happens too late for us (since Stephen'll already be teaching by then and tied down to the college) lead me to look up your earlier workshop -- and I see it's THIS WEEKEND! It would entail some intensive travelling on my part (I take Robin to the airport in Cincinnati for his flight on Thursday early evening), I would like very much to come to this workshop. I think I had an inkling of the significance of my discovery when I pulled that first book about cobbing off the library shelf, but now Stephen & I both have a strong sense --I say this entirely seriously & without exaggeration-- that we will look back & recognize our first encounter with cobbing as a life-changing experience. Thanks so much!

-Lynne

Dear Christina,

Hello! I had such a wonderful time at both workshops with you &Nature. Thank you so very much. You're of a good-energy influence onus that you can probably not imagine. We have all been talking coband natural building and raw foods almost non-stop since I returned.I think our friends are beginning to get bored with me, except for theone fabulous mom of Raphael's friend Justice who turns out to knowwhere to get gorgeous flat creekstones. Whether or not they're bored,though, we're all pretty enthused & getting planning. We found a construction site with a couple of huge piles of "filldirt" today which we promptly sampled, and we think it's prettyclay-ey. Dione and Raphael insisted as soon as we arrived home onmixing it with the sand from the sandbox (wrong sand, I know, but...)and demanded a tarp. A picture of the wee cobbers is attached.

muddily,
affectionately,
Lynne MM in IN

DEAR CHRINSTINA AND CRAIG,

JEFF AND I WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR A GREAT SATURDAY. I HAVE BEEN INTERESTED IN COB CONSTRUCTION FOR QUITE SOME TIME, BUT JEFF HAS NOT. I SIGNED US UP FOR YOUR CLASS AND THEN TALKED HIM INTO GOING. ( NOT THAT IT TOOK THAT MUCH ) BUT NOW JEFF IS VERY INTERESTED. SEEING AND DOING IS BELIEVING, I GUESS. WE ARE GOING TO BUILD AN OUTDOOR OVEN OR FIREPLACE THIS SUMMER.
WE ENJOYED THE LUNCH THAT YOU PROVIDED. SALADS ARE LWAYS BETTER WHEN THEY ARE HOME GROWN!!! YOU MUST LET ME KNOW HOW YOU SEASONED THAT VEGGIE SOUP TOO! IT SMELLED SO GOOD WHEN IT WAS COOKING. AND TASTED GREAT TOO.
I HAVE BEEN READING THE BOOK THAT CRAIG WROTE. IT IS WELL WRITTEN AND I'M ENJOYING IT.
ANYHOO, I JUST WANTED TO DROP A LINE AND SAY IT WAS GREAT MEETING YOU ALL, (SORRY I DIDNT DO IT SOONER) AND THAT I HOPE WE MEET AGAIN. WE ARE INTERESTED IN TAKING THE WEEK LONG COB COTTAGE CLASS.

BEST WISHES,
LEEANN DAVIS