It’s just over a week until I hope to raise my straw bale walls and plonk a roof on them to finish the final stage of my building work. My decision to build without a wooden frame was made on a lot of factors, but primarily because once the walls are done, I don’t need a wooden frame. Trouble is, when you plan this way, I forgot one key element;

Britain.

It’s a lovely country, but as any Brit will tell you, it’s bloody irritating when we have to rely on the weather. It’s one week until my straw will be arriving, and I couldn’t be more unsure about the possible forecast. It couldn’t be worse at the moment – snow, rain, wind and everything else except sunshine and those fluffy white clouds.

This is what this weekend looks like…

The long range forecast puts a tiny tiny bit of rain on the Saturday, and no rain on the Friday, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this stays this way, but here we discover one of the true flaws in building with straw bale – you need shelter on your building site and flexibility with your time. Two things I don’t have. If you are reading this, and you have a spare minute, please send a prayer my way!

Perhaps if I were to start this project again,I would consider a temporary roof, or a permanent structure that allows me to lower the roof onto finished walls, which would give me shelter whilst I built the straw. But for now, I just have to hold my breath and hope that I get two decent days where I can do the walls!