[Cob] small scale cob

[Carrie J Horne]

Building models has got me thinking about a level of versatility of cob
that I had never thought of before.  We tend to think of it for
architecture--big, bold pieces, outdoors.  These of course are wonderful,
but it will be some time before most of us can have our dream cob house. 
But it could also be used to make indoor furniture.  

I make my models one inch thick, and when I change my mind and break them
down, they are surprisingly hard to break, considering how thin they are.
 I am in need of a sorter for my files, the kind used as inboxes, that
have a stack of slots one above another.  I'm thinking I can make it with
two inch thick cob walls...maybe I'll be bold and even stick with one
inch!  I guess it depends on how tall I decide to make it.  For the
shelves I plan to use old campaign signs.  The corrugated plastic these
are made of are quite sturdy and will be plenty strong enough for the few
papers that will go on each one.  

I have also imagined using cob and plaster to fill in the corners of my
present home to make it feel more curvy.  

My current model of the large-scale structure I'm building is destined to
become a doll house.  

My son and I also brain-stormed a set of train tracks made with cob
blocks.  

I was also thinking of putting a cob "window" in my bathroom.  This is
worth more explanation:  My bathroom shares a wall with the kitchen; the
kitchen gets plenty of air circulation, but the bathroom is subject to
mold.  I wanted to add a vent, but the kitchen does not seem like the
place I want to add a bathroom vent!  The other bathroom walls are not
candidates for vents for other reasons.  So I'm thinking I could cut a
window in the bathroom/kitchen wall, fill it with cob and plaster it with
lime.  The cob would get plenty of air from the kitchen side, and the
wall would absorb and then pass on the vapors in the bathroom.  

These are some of my small scale ideas.  Anyone else want to venture some
more?

Carrie
Salt Lake City