This 450 sq. ft. adobe home was built in El Rito, New Mexico in 1976 without a proper foundation and an inferior roof. After assessing the damage, we demolished the structurally unsound aspects. A foundation cap on the old section of the home, a creative new roof, a French drain, and an additional 450 sq ft. with bathroom and living space were added. The transition from before to after is quite dramatic with extensive interior renovation and detailing.

This unique small home needed some earthen floor repair and additional new touches the owners wanted to make. Repair of the floors, new tiles in the kitchen and bath, and raising the floor of a small sun room are a few of the touches we added to give this cute space more charm.

We removed a damaged 1/2" top coat of the mud floor on a 1970's passive solar adobe home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The small office walls were also in need of some freshening, so they were painted as well. The original adobe floor (aka poured adobe or earthen floor) had survived for over 20 years and we were happy to give a much needed fresh face on the existing floor.

After completing the construction on their adobe home in Sedona, Arizona, our friends asked us to help out with adding the final exterior touches. Norbert designed and created a unique carport which complements the design of the home. We also executed the landscaping developed by a local landscape designer which involved laying 10 tons of flagstone.

We built this 2500 ft. adobe block and framed Santa Fe style home in Sedona, Arizona. Norbert served as contractor and design consultant, while Carolyn served as plastering and detailing lead. Following the completion we returned to help execute a carport and landscaping for our friends. The only subcontracting on the entire home was for sheet rock and cabinets.

This 1500 sq. ft. simple open floor plan home was constructed with a highly insulated ICF block. The home is completely off-grid and includes water catchment rather than a well. Solar aspects include PV electric as well as solar hot water, and of course a passive solar design. (Additional photos will be updated soon, check back for finished project images)

We designed and built this striking 3000 sq.ft. photo studio from foundation to finish using composite ICF block, our first experience using this wall system. The building houses an office, large dark room, finishing room, a small bath and a gallery space. The goal was to build a very energy efficient building using the highly insulated composite ICF block and in-floor radiant heat, to begin with. Earthen touches include an earthen plaster in the office using local harvested clay to contrast the white crisp sheet rocked walls, and a small 1/2 block adobe wall behind the fireplace. We highly recommend scrolling through the photos here to view the completed gallery. For more about the artist behind this interesting space-visit: http://www.davidmichaelkennedy.com/

In this project we were brought in as sub-contractors to provide some of our specialty earthen touches to a USGBC LEED certified home which otherwise was stick framed. Our walls contrasted nicely with the crisp, clean, minimalist look to the home, giving some warm touches in just the right places.

One of our most interesting projects to date - we served as the mud experts, of sorts, on this large project in Cerrillos, New Mexico - providing earthen floors and custom plasters from the many clays available on the land. We were called upon to create some conceptual plaster and mud floor detailing as the owner wanted an aged New Mexico hacienda look to this poured pumice-crete structure. We served as subcontractors only on this large project - a first for us.

"The details are not the details. They make the design." - Charles Eames. We couldn't agree more. We love detailing and the challenge of making something come together well is one of our favorites. Here are some of our project details we love most.

We've brought together a collection of the floors we have poured over the years. A variety of colors and styles can be seen, all giving the beautiful end result. Enjoy a walk through our world called - mud, poured adobe and earthen floors!

Our role in this project was only as sub-contractors on this owner-built straw bale home. We poured 2 rooms of earthen floors, consisting of the sub-floor and finished top coat. Norbert also advised with the design of the in-floor radiant heat system installed by the owner.

This project involved converting the garage in this 1970s adobe home to a Man Cave and adding on an exercise room as well as a new garage. We framed the new additions using our "stick plus" method of 2x6 framing in addition to exterior rigid foam insulation for maximum insulation value.

A second bathroom in the same house which had 1970's Mexican a Talavera tiles which were extremely busy and did not reflect at all the clean design esthetic desired of the owners. This renovation involved completely switching the bath/shower and vanity areas.

Refreshing and updating this kitchen for our long time client in their 1970s adobe home was a treat. Taking outdated tiles away and replacing then with a rustic Spanish mosaic look, combined with classic clean lines for counter tops and updated appliances makes for a stunning new place to entertain and cook.

An interesting project where we gutted an old Mexican tiled bathroom to create a more open, cleaner design. The transformation was dramatic and made for an elegant new master bath.

One of the oldest houses in El Rito, New Mexico was in need of a roof upgrade. With 25 roof planes, and multiple dormers, it was an interesting challenge to bring the old metal roof up-to-date. The steep pitch of the roof made things very interesting indeed.

This old adobe home in Chimayo, northeast of Santa Fe, New Mexico, with a renovated courtyard needed completion, and some updates. Using healthy paints, glues and wood stains, the goal was to create a healthy interior which did not out gas affecting any current or future inhabitants. The touches added with the combined awareness and good taste of the owner, our friend, created a stunning new home.

We are not quite sure how old this small adobe home is, but guessed it might be close to 50 years old or more. We were asked to do extensive inside repairs - moving the kitchen and bathroom, updating electrical and plumbing, adding new doors and windows. The wood ceilings with vigas were kept intact - just freshened up. But walls and flooring - all completely redone. Earthen and lime plasters were added throughout. We helped the family choose interior details and kept the style fitting the house - using affordable "rustic chic" as a benchmark. Our foreman Randy was lead on this project and managed it from start to finish and did a fantastic job.

In this minimalist home the many custom elements define the open floor plan to the extreme - with no interior doors and only partial walls. This simple shed roof design with steel beam supported metal roof portals connect the house to the garage. The interior of the home features lime plasters, a troweled cement slab floor with in-floor radiant heat, and steel-framed custom kitchen counters with soapstone countertops.

This pumice-crete block, single story house we worked on in Belen, New Mexico, south of Albuquerque, has three bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths and an art studio, for a total of 2300 sq. ft. We picked up the project from a previous contractor who had difficulties with the complexity of the design. The clay was harvested from the arroyo on the land for the earthen plasters and poured adobe floors, which have radiant in-floor heat. Inside are low VOC paints for healthy home touches and recycled items wherever possible.

This 200 sq. ft. pumice-crete block add-on studio in Tesuque, New Mexico, just north of Santa Fe, was fun to create. The purpose was to use the space for music and ceremony and includes - a custom tinted cement floor with solar assisted radiant in-floor heat, earthen plasters using local and kaolin clay a, T&G ceiling, our custom milled plank window sills. The end result is a very peaceful and healing space.

This 400 sq ft. straw bale casita in Crestone, Colorago suffered from lack of the natural building golden rules - a good hat and a good pair of shoes. We began our work on this 1980's straw bale structure with basic earthen plaster repair and then created the unique metal roof - designed by owner/architect Andrew Kerr. We later created a stick frame add-on with extra insulation, T&G ceiling and cement flooring designed in a minimal space so as not to disturb the surrounding vegetation. This simple room with fabulous views gives the casita the much needed kitchen this structure was missing.

The beginning stages of construction on our custom 1,100 sq. ft. passive solar straw bale hybrid home in El Rito, New Mexico. It has a straw bale shell, with a cob sun room tromb wall, adobe and light-straw clay interior walls. View the accompanying gallery "straw bale home detailing" for a view of the final stages of the house with interior finishing with many one-of-a-kind touches. For a detailed breakdown of the sustainable aspects to the build, visit the Sustainable Lives link.

This gallery depicts the interior detailing in our 1,100 sq. ft. custom hybrid straw bale home outside of El Rito, New Mexico. We are lucky enough to have clay and sand almost at our door for earthen plasters, and acres of timber we can harvest using our small mill. Continue the tour for the sustainable details, listed with each photo.

On this project we were again brought in for a few custom touches, custom lime plastering inside and the straw bale walls on the north walls of this otherwise extra insulated stick framed new home. PLEASE NOTE: We functioned only as sub-contractors on this project to provide the straw bale walls - working with the General Contractor and Architect who created this home.

We built a 200 sq. ft. sun room onto the existing adobe house to extend the living room and kitchen space. It was decided that the room should be as energy efficient as possible, achieved by framing 2x6”walls for extra interior insulation. In addition, exterior rigid foam insulation was added on the outside. All combined, the walls are a total of R30. With the now standard R38 in the ceiling, and southern exposure – the room will be very cozy during winter months.

NOTE: As listed on our home page we are not able to take on any additions or renovations at this time (January 2022).