Petite homes are famous these days and the trend is all over the internet. However, Simon Dale took things to the next level when he built an affordable hobbit home in Wales. How many of you want to gain fame by who you are? Many of you, right? But this man wanted to be recognized by something he built and he achieved what he planned. His story will leave you awestruck.
Following The Dream
Simon Dale always wanted to build a house of his own and he was aware of the fact that he doesn’t have the skill to pull off such a prodigious job. Even after being aware of this fact, he wanted to create a place where his family could reside in.
Simon knew that doing this job on his own would save him a lot of stashes of cash. He knew he wanted to make the house as something that had a part of him inside it.
Conditions Apply
Simon didn’t have to wait for too long to get the perfect location. He happened to be on a hillside in Wales and he got the land but on one condition.
The landowner said that Dale and his family would have to take care of the area if they wished to stay there without paying a penny. And Simon had no problem with that, after all, he was getting a place to build his own home.
Planning On The Go
Simon had a piece of land, an idea, and he didn’t want to waste another minute. He drew what he had in mind and took the help of his father in law in the proceedings.
The man wanted his home to be of modest size. However, he wanted the house to be big enough to accommodate his family of four. His idea was to build a building that was environment-friendly.
Lack Of Skill
Simon was fully aware that his set of skills aren’t enough to build the house but he had an ambition in his mind and a passion in his heart. He had little experience of helping someone in building a house. He thought that it might come handy and his father-in law’s guidance was a cherry on the cake.
Simon’s father-in-law was a builder and his expertise was an asset in his journey of building a home.
Going The Natural Way
Simon wanted to make his dream house environment-friendly. The first step towards that was choosing the natural raw material. He went to the nearby forests and played scavenger hunt to get the wood. He even dug in bins to get the material he would need and collected the mud and stone from the surroundings.
He could involve the high-tech stuff but he didn’t want to. He always said that there was a reason why our ancestors made home from all-natural stuff.
The Framework
Once Simon had all the right material, he started to build the framework for the house. He used sturdy timber to get the skeleton of his dream home.
The structure was ready and it was time for the roof to be laid. He wanted to insulate the home with the help of straws. Later the straws were covered with plastic to protect it from water and the next layer was of the mud.
The Walls Came Next
Similar to the roof, the walls were made out of straws. Stones and sticks made the walls sturdy. All the material made the home more stable and made sure that the walls could bear the weight of the roof. the floor was made up of a lot of wood.
For the floor, pallets were put down first and then the straws followed by the floorboards.
Family Helped
The credit of his successful dream home goes to his family. It wouldn’t have happened if his family wouldn’t have helped. Other than his father in law, his wife helped in collecting all the raw material and she was the one motivating him at all stages.
Even his children stepped in to help the father and the family effort gave a fruitful result.
The Sacrifices
It is obvious that life wasn’t easy for the four of them while they were building the home. They didn’t have a proper space to live in and they had to go through this period without electricity and water.
Their basic necessities were not available to them and it was a shock to their system. However, the family never complained about the inconvenience. They were always there, no matter what!
The Job Was Done
Over a period of four months, 1000-1500 working hours, the project was finally complete. Every day of Simon’s life in this period was dedicated to his home. Irrespective of the weather, he put in all his hard work and every bit of it paid off.
His dream home for his family was finally complete and needless to say, it was incredible.
Proud Of The Result
The Dales family was extremely proud of the result they got out of the hard work of the family. To build a full-fledged home in four months was a task they hadn’t imagined. However, they achieved beyond their expectations. The best part was that they achieved it all at a low cost.
The estimated cost of the whole process came out to be $3800 and that wasn’t bad at all. Homes are not easy to build and building them at such a low cost was an achievement.
The sense of achievement was more because Simon knew that no one could take away something he had built.
Living The Eco-Friendly Life
The end result of four months was eco-friendly in many ways. The toilet they made was compost and the waste they generated was used as fertilizer. Another impressive part of their home was the solar panels. The energy they used was generated through sustainable means.
There were drawbacks to the system in bad weather but it was definitely environment-friendly.
The Final Touches
Their hobbit home was better than any commercial property and it was because Simon had used lime plaster on the walls.
It provides healthy air to breathe and takes less energy to manufacture as compared to the manufacturing of cement. Also, they used to refrigerate their food from the air that was generated under the ground. Their method of heating the food was the wood burner. The impressive features of this home were endless.
The Natural Food
Keeping everything aside, their backyard had a place that was used to grow food. They wanted the least dependence on the grocery store and wanted to save the money with this structure, which eventually helped in saving the environment.
All their actions were teaching their kids to go the natural way and that is how you teach the future generation to take care of the environment.
Believing The Dream
While building this beautiful and cozy home, Simon’s first preference was to make it eco-friendly. A post on his website reads, “Hobbit home built with maximum regard for the environment.” That is the reason he went to some extremes to build this home.
The couple wasn’t sure if they’d achieve what they had picturized in their head. However, reading and self-belief helped them. It indeed was a challenge but they don’t regret a bit of it.
Getting Used To The Change
The couple is hoping that what they did will inspire others to live an eco-friendly life. We need to take care of mother Earth because no one else will. The duo has managed to tell people how a small amount of money can enable them to live a life that is safe for the environment.
People need to adapt to the new lifestyle ASAP! The life we are living right now is hampering the environment in the worst way and this way earth is not going to survive for long.
Getting The Attention
As the home completed, Simon got a lot of attention and most media houses wanted to know his perspective. The motive behind this home was not fame but if you have done something unconventional, fame walks down your wan and that’s what happened with Simon. The media was fascinated by his act and they wanted the world to celebrate such a human being.
New Projects
As the Dales completed this home, they were now moving towards the bigger and better things in life. They now wanted to create the Hobbit house on a bigger scale in a different part of Wales. The couple knew that the kids are going to take more space.
Hence, the couple wasted no time and packed up their stuff to move out of the house. They were ready to start the new chapter of their life with the Lammas Project.
The Lammas Project
The project was based in an eco-village in Glandwr. It was basically a community in the western part of Wales and is home to nine households on a 76-acre development.
The project started in 2009 and it wasn’t as easy as it sounds. After years of campaigning and making people realize how eco-friendly living is important, Wales finally embraced the project and Lammas was now used as the base template for future ventures.
Running Out Of Cash
Simon did save up money for his first home but that doesn’t mean that he had stashes of cash lying in the backyard. In fact, he started off with $630 and the completion of his project proved that money didn’t matter but your intention does.
Although he used natural material and that diminished the cost of the house but he still needed some of it to complete the Lammas Project. The grand scale of the Lammas project also meant that people were willing to help him in all aspects.
On To The Project
Once the Dales got the planning permission, he moved into the property and started the work. It didn’t matter if they didn’t have a place to stay, they were too focused to complete the project without any roof. The adjustment was something they got familiar with while building their Hobbit home.
In fact, these circumstances motivated them to work harder and after a few months of hard work, they achieved what they had aimed for.
New Developments
Simon knew the large scale of the project and he wanted to build much more than just a hobbit home. He had a large plot to himself and he decided to create different properties in the same area.
One of the properties was a roundhouse and it was named Undercroft. This being a priority building, it was completed within the first few months of moving to the eco-village. It was basically inspired by the previous Hobbit Home.
Similar Design
The Undercroft was built with the idea of the sun. Hence, the windows covered the sides. The property was open to sunlight and rainwater, which allowed them to grow various crops. In return, it also helped in keeping the house warm.
A lot of the material from the personal crops was used in the building the Hobbit Home and that is how things by for the Undercroft. The new home even had a bath in which people could soak in under the stars.
The Next Venture
Once the Undercroft was completed, Dale was motivated to build his workshop. He wanted t work on better endeavors and he needed a place where he could work on future projects.
He made sure the workshop was safe from the drainage of roof water; hence, the roof was slant. He got a double door made in his workshop for the bigger projects.
After A Few Years
As time passed by, the projects turned in the direction of glasshouses. It took them a period of nine months to complete the whole project. Simon was proud of what he had done and his journey was becoming memorable with each project.
The quality of the glasshouse was super classy and it could withstand extreme winds. Wales has unpredictable weather and this feature made glasshouses a hot property.
Efficiency Mattered
Simon wanted efficiency in all his projects and that is what he wanted from the glasshouses. He wanted to make them as effective as they could be. They wanted to make these homes cozy and that is the reason they made sure that the heat travels uphill.
Another feature added to this glasshouse was the pond in the backyard. It helped them store rainwater, which was eventually used to water the crops and the plants.
Towards A Fortune
We are aware of the fact that all of Simon’s projects were eco-friendly and growing crops on this land was easier. That’s why this property was used for growing major crops. In these glasshouses, grapevines and peach trees were grown.
These crops were not just for the sake of consumption, these were sold in the market and Dales made approximately $3,800 out of this cultivation.
Renewable Source Of Energy
Like the previous works of Simon, future projects also worked on the basis of renewable energy. Most of this energy was derived from solar energy and a hydroelectric turbine was brought to use because of this energy.
During the winter and when it’s pouring, this turbine helped to generate electricity when the daylight was on a low.
Cause Oriented
This house was not just an exclusive property for Simon. He didn’t live in this home; in fact, he shared this place with other people so that the tenants would know the value of sustainable living. They all lived in similar houses in the eco-village.
That explains why Dale had put in so much effort in building his own house, glasshouse, and his workshop.
Nothing Comes Free
Building up this whole eco-village cost him a lot. Although, most of the raw material came from natural resources the cost was still high.
Dales had to invest a total amount of $34,000 in their own living quarters, The Earthsea. Over a period of six years, they managed to collect this amount and these houses were sill economical as compared to the regular houses. It was unconventional and cost-effective as well.
The Media Was Undoubtedly Attracted By This Idea.
It was in 2016, that media wanted to feature this family and that is the reason they were featured on a home documentary program, Grand Designs.
The show describes houses that have an unconventional idea and they follow the journey from an idea to the final product.
The producer wanted Simon to have his share of fame due to his achievements. This eco-village had got him more attention than he received after building the Hobbit Home.
Artistic Work
Grand Designs has featured many homes on the show but Simon’s creation was one of a kind. The reason is not just the sustainable usage of resources that made the home notice worthy. It is also because of the humongous task he had pulled off over such a large period of time.
He didn’t just make a home for himself but for a community that was an entire estate in itself.
The Tragic Fire
At the beginning of 2018, the Dales family was heartbroken. On January 1, 2018, a fire started and the hard work of all the years was brought to an end. All of it was in ashes now.
In the middle of the night, the fire tore down the whole house. Although the firefighters spent six hours to calm down the fire, it was all done and dusted by then.
It Was All In The Ashes
By the time firefighter exhausted the fire, the property was destroyed. The family was basically homeless. It all happened due to a faulty appliance and the flames in the junction box.
The major part of the house was made of wood and it was obvious that the fire would engulf most of it. The floor and walls were intact but they had to be removed due to safety concerns.
A Complete Disaster
The entire home was destroyed but the plot was still intact. There were parts that remained unaffected and those parts included the workshop and the roundhouse as they were far away from the affected area.
It did comfort them that not all was gone but the pain remained intact. The Earthlea was an important part of the whole eco-village and watching it go down in flames was the toughest thing he had to go through.
“The Friends In Need Are Friends Indeed.”
This caption is actually true and not just an idiom. Simon’s friends were all up for providing the required help. A person set up a page, JustGiving to raise funds for Dales family. After a few months, they checked the funds and the sum came out to be $44,500. This was more than the cash Simon had put in to make the Earthlea.
Letting It Go
No amount of money could fix what had gone by. The fire had left a hole that couldn’t be filled with money. The family decided to leave the place. The painful memories would just tear them apart if they continued to live there.
They had to start their lives all over again and they decided to sell the plot.
Tough Job
The hard work they had put in, couldn’t be given a monetary value. The plot was listed at the price of $368,000. The plot was being given off at a decent price but it would have been difficult to build a home on that land.
Several months after the fire, Simon decided to go back on his decision and go back to eco-village. But they couldn’t bear the pain and sold the land.
The Silence
It had been over a year since the fire happened. The family was still in shock and the aftermath had left them in a devastating state. They were still clueless about their future.
Dales family should be proud of what they had done with the project. The eco-village was an art of work and the actual credit goes to Simon’s dedication because his skills of the building were not enough.
