Workshops & Lectures
Attend one of our workshops or consult with your group
Over the years, we have presented on a variety of topics at conferences, seminars, workshops and focus groups.
Topics have included straw bale building systems, indoor air quality, whole systems thinking, green business and practice, sustainable building materials and specification and emergency shelter. Learn more about our Workshops
Learn a lot and gain hands-on experience building straw bale wall systems
Consultancy
Specialised and creative advice to suit the scope of your project
With the growing interest in natural building, more and more design and building professionals as well as homeowners are looking for guidance in the techniques and systems of natural building.
Through consultation we have worked with government organizations, architects, architectural designers, professional structural engineers, builders and homeowners to provide appropriate solutions for their project. This consultation role is typically completed during the design process but we have also been asked to get involved during the consent and/or construction process for guidance.
We are happy to meet with you and your design/construction team to discuss creative solutions appropriate to your scope of project.
Gain valuable advice for efficent and effective planning
Architectural & Interior Design
We aim to use natural materials that blends the past with the future
Simply put, we love simple design and solutions. We find that they are beautiful when combined and interconnected with the use of natural materials.
Our design philosophy is ‘to celebrate the connection of craft and beauty through a sense of place and materials as well as to understand the patterns of people and the space they inhabit’. Through the design process, our intent is to guide clients towards their visions, dreams and also make sure it is appropriate to the site environment.
Sol Design, Ltd., our architectural and interior design practice, has been in business since 2005. We are based in Geraldine, South Canterbury.
Each project is simply unique and we provide design estimates based on the scope of the project and site investigations.
Building & Construction
Our hands on experience gives us a leading edge when building
Although natural building is not based on new techniques, there is a need to apply old, tried and true methods to fit into our modern society and it’s expectations of how a building should perform as a whole working system.
To understand natural building materials it is crucial to get hands-on experience.
Our experience on site with working with natural building materials include full house builds, but also components of the building such as placing straw bales, earthen and lime plaster application (internal & external), installation of earthen floors.
We also run our straw bale building workshops through our design business.
Get the most from the tried and true methods of building a natural earth home, teamed with today's latest technology
Associations & Affiliations
Specialised and creative advice to suit the scope of your project
We like to keep our pulse on what is happening both in New Zealand as well as Internationally. This is how we continue to learn from other professionals working in this specialized industry. Supporting organizations, as members, that promote natural building is an avenue to make it more common in our modern built environment.
Access our resources through our networks
Awards
Our creative approach to natural design and building have gained the following awards
- 2009 Sustainable Habitat Challenge,
New House Build Category Winner, New Zealand - 2003 American Institute of Architects,
Colorado North Chapter - 2003 Environment Design + Construction,
Excellence in Design Awards - 2003 Gold Nugget Award,
Sustainable Residential Project
Our Work