Welcome to a course where we explore an age-old and sustainable building material: clay. During this practical course you will have the opportunity to discover the art of mixing and applying clay plaster to a facade and create beautiful and functional surfaces.
During sunday the 8th of june we offer you the opportunity to create hands-on with clay plaster on site at our round strawbalehouse Rundbalshuset in Kassjö, 20 km outside of Umeå (Västerbotten, Sweden). Everyone is welcome, regardless of prior experience.
Experience and enjoy this amazing building material which creates healthy houses. We will guide you through the entire process, from preparation to finishing touches, so you can learn how to do gorgeous surfaces with clay plaster yourself.
Course content:
- Guided tour of our round strawbalehouse Rundbalshuset
- Clay plaster as a building material
- Material preparation and mixing plasters
- Application techniques and surface treatment
- Make your own plaster sample to take home (optional)
We have had a lot of courses and visits on our building site since the construction started, and some reviews from previous course participants can be found further down on this page.
Your course instructors, Laura and Erik Vidje, have been passionately building their own strawbalehouse since 2017. During the last 10 years, Laura has learned a lot about clay and ecological construction, and has applied most of the clay plaster to the walls of the house, and Erik has i.e. become great at screening local soil, mixing the plaster and laying clay floors.
Now it’s time for the finishing layer of clayplaster on our guest cabin, which is also built with strawbales.
Time
sunday 8th of june 2025
10:00 – 17:00
Place
Course fee
1850 SEK
incl. VAT, lunch, refreshments, coffee/tea
Course instructors
We, Laura & Erik, have designed and built most of our roundhouse ourselves since 2017. Since 2014 we have taken several courses in both theoretical and practical eco-building, with a focus on strawbales and claybuilding, passivehouse design and permaculture. Laura is also a member of the board at the national claybuilding association (NGO).
During the course, we will go through mixing clay plaster with local materials, different additions of reinforcement, and focus on applying fine finishing plasters on the facade, inlcuding some decorations.
There is also the opportunity to experience clay in many different forms at Rundbalshuset, everything from base coat plaster, to clay floors, clay plaster with biochar, smooth waxed glossy clay putty walls, as well as walls built with a mix of light straw clay, reused bricks and clay mortar (and tadelakt shower walls).
We start the day with a guided tour of our round strawbalehouse, and afterwards we will eat a homemade vegan soup lunch together . There will be plenty of opportunities to ask your questions when we show you the results of our self-build, and inform you more about e.g. circular solutions for water, heat, energy, and more. After lunch we will deepdive into the hand-ons action with clay plaster.
There will be a maximum of 10 participants in total in the course, and we might have additional participants who just come for the guided tour in the beginning of the day.
You are very welcome to join and learn more about clay construction, secure your place by signing up below, and please check out the practical information, reviews and pictures by scrolling down further.
Please scroll all the way down to register for the course.
Practical information
We will spend most of the time outdoors, and work in smaller teams around the guest house.
Please bring your own tightfitting rubber gloves (e.g. cleaning gloves), work gloves, possibly a face mask (it can get dusty), as well as working clothes that are allowed to get dirty, and a change of clothes. We have tools and all other materials on site.
As this is not a course opportunity via a swedish study association, you need to have your own accident insurance on the building site, i.e. please double check your insurance just to be safe. We would also like to mention that we photograph and film parts of the construction stages, if you do not want to be in the picture, just let us know in advance.
Unfortunately, there is no public transport to Kassjö, but carpooling is usually possible, e.g. from Umeå where there are al lot of possibilities for overnight stays. You can also stay in the village house. Alternatively, you can spend the night in your own tent at the lake, or take the buss to Brännland where we can pick you up. Previous participants have also biked, but its about 20 km from Umeå city center.
For questions please contact laura@elvahallbara.se
Here are the top three reasons why you should learn more about clay plastering and natural building:
1. Healthy & Sustainable Living 🌿
Clay plaster and natural building materials are non-toxic, breathable, and help regulate indoor humidity, creating a healthier living environment. Plus, they have a low environmental impact compared to conventional building materials.
2. Energy Efficiency & Comfort 🏡
Natural materials like straw, clay, and lime provide excellent insulation and thermal mass, keeping homes warm in winter and cool in summer. This reduces energy consumption and lowers utility costs.
3. Hands-on Creativity & Connection to Nature ✨
Working with clay plaster and natural building methods is a deeply satisfying, hands-on process. It allows for creative expression and fosters a strong connection to the materials and and it´s place and people.
Participants reviews
Thank you for inspiring days at Rundbalshuset. I now feel ready to start myself with clay plastering of walls and more. It’s amazing what possibilities clay has both in terms of building technology and aesthetics.
Anna Winther, self-builder and participant in the summercourse 2024
Thank you so much for today, it was extremely rewarding and we are humbly grateful that you share in this unique way
An incredible amount of impressions and information to process for both of us now, but the experience of the HOUSE remains as a warm, embracing feeling!
You have done an absolutely incredible job, we are deeply impressed!
Construction technology and choice of materials, etc. in all glory, but the FEELING inside the house was so overwhelming of calm and well-being that I am completely taken, thank you once againA very fun and educational course about clay and all its fantastic properties as a building material. This course has opened my eyes to clay and now I am eager to try using clay in a project of my own.
Participants during the Guided Tour in march 2024
I attended the clay construction course together with my family and afterwards we felt that we had gained both the confidence and the basic knowledge to start testing at home ourselves.
Inspiring! The course is highly recommended to anyone who is curious about the possibilities of clay as a building material.
Freja, participant during the 2020 Clay building days with Johannes Riesterer
A very fun and educational course about clay and all its fantastic properties as a building material. This course has opened my eyes to clay and now I am eager to try using clay in a project of my own.
Joel Norén, carpenter and participant during the 2020 Clay building days with Johannes Riesterer
The course with Ulf, at Laura and Erik’s, was very fun! We got to try several different techniques and were also involved in the construction, i.e. benefit with pleasure!
Ulf was calm, methodical and incredibly knowledgeable. It was a really rewarding and fun weekend that I’m so glad I took part in!
Laura and Erik inspire and were very generous.
If you have the opportunity to take a course with them, go for it! 😃👍
Sofia, participant 2018, course with Ulf Henningsson
It was a good mix of theory and practice. I felt safe in the various construction steps that were led by the competent teacher Ulf. Everyone was allowed to participate. We got a good group cohesion in a short time. Thank you Laura and Erik for a good plan and well-organized course!
Tara Roxendal,
participant 2018, course with Ulf Henningsson
