Fiona’s Brave Mud World in Kwa-Zulu-Natal

As my truck groaned and rattled up the dirt road, I could see a township sprawling over the grassy hillside on the left, tin roofs glinting. On the right, a few larger houses hunkered down behind trees and bushes. It was mid-afternoon but the sky had already thickened into a potent soup, and I could almost taste the sparks in the clouds. Big rains were building.
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In the midst of this hotchpotch of housing and brewing storms, I turned into a driveway. Even from here I could spot the textured umber of a mud structure. Two dogs raced up to the entrance, all wags and barks. A silver-haired woman was close behind. She grinned and opened the gate. This was Fiona. And in the most unlikely of places, this was her one-woman mud world.

The Cabin

“I started with this three-by-three wooden hut. In the beginning I was sleeping on straw on the floor. Then I added a bathroom,” Fiona said as she showed me around her beautiful little cabin. Everything had been artfully upcycled. The walls were made from old tea chests, and the floor was recycled planks.
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“What I love about it is that I can just keep changing it. I used to have a bath, but realised it used too much water, so I got rid of it and turned that area into a pantry. And here…” we walked into the kitchen and living area, “I built a cob bottle wall.”

The cob and bottle wall.

“How and why did this all begin?” I asked, peering outside. The land herself was a burgeoning permaculture Arcadia. Everything from the plum tree to the meadows was vibrant and humming with life.
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“Well, I always wanted to live in a mud hut since I was six years old. I also remember seeing swallows nesting in a wattle and daub house and wanting to be like them,” said Fiona. “But I was never ready to settle in my twenties and thirties. It wasn’t until 2014 that I bought this place with the help of my brother. I chose here because it was cheap.”

A beautiful permaculture haven.

Fiona’s land started out as an average plot set between a township and a country suburb. Yet she’s turned it into something extraordinary. One thing I love about seeing other people’s builds is how individual we all are, and how we all have different strengths and weaknesses. I’m always amazed when a single person manages to build multiple structures and creates incredible permie gardens as well! Fiona was one of these powerhouse manifestors who seem to churn out projects faster than most of us can make dinner. All around me I could see mud structures poking through the shrubbery. It was both beautiful and remarkable.

Fiona's hyperadobe workshop

The Hyperadobe Workshop
“I love trying all the techniques,” said Fiona as we reached the impressive earthbag structure I’d seen from the cabin window.

“You’ve used the mesh bags here, right?” I said, stroking the clay ridges. I loved the way they snaked about the structure in rich brown waves.
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“Yes, hyperadobe. It was so easy. I loaded the truck up with dirt, drove it right here, and then we just filled the sacks from the truck.

How funky is this?

The Cob and Adobe Airbnb

“And over here…” An animated Fiona strode ahead of me. It’s not often we mud builders meet like minds to get excited with, and I knew the feeling well. There was so much to show and tell, after all! We walked further down the path and I was stopped in my tracks, because attached to the earthbag workshop, but hidden from view until you literally stepped up to it, was a large two-storey mud building covered in cob and bottle walls.
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“This I made out of adobe bricks on one side, and then a bit of wattle and daub here, and finally cob on the other side. It’s a tin roof on the top.”

Fiona is a life coach, but she had turned her stunning adobe-cob-wattle building into an Airbnb facility for some extra income. I loved the maximalist arty interiors. The mud brick walls were covered in paintings and sculptures and book shelves. Who wouldn’t want to stay here?

Why You Want a Lime Plaster Bathroom

The adjoining bathroom was plastered in a lime render. “I’m so pleased with that render, it’s brilliant. As soon as it gets wet it seems to dry out again,” said Fiona.

​“Yeah, lime plaster is the way to go in bathrooms, I agree,” I said. “You really don’t need tadelakt, it’s hard to do and many times a bit underwhelming in terms of result. Lime plaster is enough. It’s easy to repair and deals with humidity and damp really well.”

The Water Pool
Leaving the cob and adobe house, we began to walk about the land. Paths snaked through flower meadows to the chicken coop and the water lake.

“This is my favourite thing in the whole land," said Fiona as we approached the lake. "I hesitated about digging a hole here. Have you worked with machines? They’re...well, terrifying. But I just love this lake now, and it attracts so much life. I love swimming in it too with the frogs.”
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As I stared at the large pool, I considered how wonderful a body of water is. How it changes the land, cooling it in summer and becoming a oasis for birds, insects, amphibians and more. In ten years, Fiona had turned an average plot of land into a wildlife haven, an off-grid homestead, and built a few natural homes within it. What an achievement!

The sky was darkening now, the leaden cheeks of the cumulonimbus bulging grumpily. It was too soon, but I had to get going. I could hear the electricity bouncing around the clouds ominously. A monster storm was on its way.  “Before I leave, one last question,” I said.

Fiona cocked her head to one side and grabbed the wonky guttering running along her cabin. It was about to see a fair bit of action after all.

“What’s one tip you would give anyone who wants to try this?” I said as I grabbed my rucksack.

“Just do it!” She guffawed. “Yes! Just do it!”
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I grinned and felt the first fat drop of rain hit my face. Sadly it was time to go.

You can connect with Fiona and stay at Hadeda House by contacting her at:
[email protected]

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Things we can learn from Fiona

1. Sometimes we can get hung up on location, or an idealised piece of land. But we can create something amazing anywhere really. And don't forget, we’re learning the whole time we’re doing that.
2. If you think you can’t rent out (or sell) a rustic mud home, you’re completely wrong. Many many people are dying to stay in a natural, non-toxic, characterful place. 
3. There’s no particular age to start natural building. Fiona was nearly 50 when she first tried her hand at this lifestyle. 
4. In case you missed the memo: Lime render is the way in bathrooms.

Related Links:

• Mud Building Techniques Overview
• The Free Earthbag Building PDF
• Hyperadobe or Superadobe?
• The Amazing World of Lime covers everything about lime renders, lime cretes, lime paints, and lime mortars
• The Mud Building PDF package
• The Off-Grid Roadmap
  

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