Sculpting a Life: An Oregon Cob Cottage

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The sculptural possibilities of cob are evident in this fireplace, which warms the patio just outside Linda and Ianto’s cottage.
The sculptural possibilities of cob are evident in this fireplace, which warms the patio just outside Linda and Ianto’s cottage.
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Rustic beams are perfect for drying herbs in the garden shed.
Rustic beams are perfect for drying herbs in the garden shed.
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A fire warms the garden shed, where Ianto and Linda store produce.
A fire warms the garden shed, where Ianto and Linda store produce.
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Curves and circular rooms are one of Ianto’s trademarks, giving the cottage a romantic, almost medieval feel.
Curves and circular rooms are one of Ianto’s trademarks, giving the cottage a romantic, almost medieval feel.
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Ianto and Linda’s cob cottage is one large room, with a loft bedroom and built-in benches that save space.
Ianto and Linda’s cob cottage is one large room, with a loft bedroom and built-in benches that save space.
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Cob construction allows the builders to mold arched windows and nooks. The window is salvaged.
Cob construction allows the builders to mold arched windows and nooks. The window is salvaged.
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A cob wall snakes around the property, creating a courtyard atmosphere.
A cob wall snakes around the property, creating a courtyard atmosphere.
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Students attending one of Ianto and Linda’s cob workshops crafted these “butterfly” windows in the garden shed.
Students attending one of Ianto and Linda’s cob workshops crafted these “butterfly” windows in the garden shed.
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An outdoor cob bread oven bakes perfect loaves.
An outdoor cob bread oven bakes perfect loaves.
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Linda Smiley and Ianto Evans live a simple, yet visionary, life in Oregon.
Linda Smiley and Ianto Evans live a simple, yet visionary, life in Oregon.
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Linda and Ianto are able to eat from their garden all year-round.
Linda and Ianto are able to eat from their garden all year-round.

The morning mist hangs low over Ianto Evans’s and Linda Smiley’s cob cottage retreat in the rolling countryside of Cottage Grove, Oregon. A fire crackles in the outdoor fireplace; another warms the bread oven. Ianto and I sit on a cob bench facing the garden, a bountiful plot rich with kohlrabi, leeks, parsnips, rutabaga, broccoli, and fava beans, all frost-hearty vegetables that keep the cob cottage residents in fresh produce year-round. There are flowers bursting with bright colors; purple snails; yellowjackets; bright-winged butterflies; and a handful of Steller’s jays, one of which has appointed itself Ianto’s personal alarm clock and hiking companion. And all around us, cob structures–a cottage, a greenhouse, an oven, a fireplace–are tucked behind a rambling cob wall.

“How much does it cost to build a cob cottage?” I ask.

“How long is a piece of string?” Ianto counters.

We share a laugh as I realize that if I am to understand life behind these cob walls, I’ll need to abandon my usual way of thinking.

Building of necessity

  • Published on Sep 1, 2002
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