Chapter 1 : When trying to start a new life can be more painful than a birth...

Not that I would pretend to know how birthing is, but come on... we don't expect a new project to be so hard when the mind is so electric thinking about it, planning, imagining our goal. Often, we naturally have the tendency to be over-positive, starting something we are all excited about. And that's better like this.. because we'll need it!!

My project was to build a 6,5m wooden Geodesic Dome. As I already explained in my introducemyself, I've never really build something before, so that meant a lot to me. I wasn't sure I would be capable to do it, even with the best motivation.

Why to create your own living space??

Because I believe that is the first most significant action a living beging can do for itself... the beginning of an independent existence... It means you do the first big choice to start supporting yourself (you don't hope or expect others to fulfill your needs: can be parents, partners, state!). You "take yourself by the hand" as you could take your child, and start creating a home, whatever "home" means for you. Also, to me it was important to create a space that flows and respond well to my needs : at the same time in a practical way, and aesthetical way. It is no logic at all in living in a concrete box wih perfect 90º angles everywhere! No, I prefer far more a smooth and warm space, connected to the surrounding nature, to remember everyday that I'm alive!!!!
Like this I have given birth to :

actually, it's a kind of an egg, no??

...And here is how it happened...

First of all, meanwhile I was leaving in a van at my boyfriend's land, I built the dome's cupola as a kit. Few websites give technical details like DesertDomes or Domerama where you can find information about shape and measurements. I choosed the 3V model. It is round enough, gives you a lot of volume inside the dome. Great to do what you want with the space like adding a mezzanine, clibbing features or hanging things without the risk to bash your head on them... It's a really confortable volume to live in!

So based on the calculations, I ordered the wood (OSB boards and lots of struts) and prepared my space to measure and cut it all. The idea is to make individual triangles ready to put together the day you'll build the dome. Here we go!

Thanks to some friends I had all the tools needed and didn't have to invest in expensive machines as the miter saw and the table saw. I just had to invent a table around the table saw.. for that, I used off-cuts : lots of funny shaped pieces roughly joined together to be strong enough to work few weeks..


Once my triangles cutted and the struts glued to them, it was time to set the angle on the table saw to cut each triangle's side.
That was a tricky point. The angle looked wrong to me... but I found the information on internet.. so it should be right!! That was when I did my first big jump in the pool of FEAR. What would I do if it's all WRONG!!??? I'll end with a mountain of material not usable anymore..!!! My partner advised me to keep all the angle's off-cut in case some "Adjustments" would be needed... And, the angle happened to be wrong! but we'll see later...
A little bit of paint and the kit is ready!!!!!



Now, let's go on site and prepare the base of the Dome. As the access to the land is very difficult, it was very important for me to choose the simplest (and cheapest) solution possible. This type of building has no need for hard concrete foundations. The Dome can simply sit on a hard soil base, blocks, bricks, stones.. This type of building is the best to face earthquakes, extreme winds... A round, flexible enough structure can adapt very well to tough conditions.

Then, an easy way is to recycle car's tyres, fill them and pack them with earth, to make a very strong base. Any garage give them away (so they don't have to pay to recycle them)... Like this I brough about 100 tyres carrying 2 at a time, up&down.. up&down... Patient as Nut! The soil was easy to find as I had to dig quite a good chunk of the mountain to get about 7m diameter platform, where the base would take place. Spanish wood is very twisted, a mess to work with!! Quite a job trying to level everything. After that, as my neck was blocked for 3 weeks and I couldn't work, when I came back all the work was to be done again... June's sun made moved the wood such a lot! Gggrrrr... Timing wasn't my best point.. all the hard bit have been done in Summer! Digging, Carrying materials, Putting the floor down and Building the Cupola under Andalucian Summer!!
I promessed myself all would be done before... Yeah right!! Luckily, a friend gave me a gazebo! Meanwhile we was putting the floor my boyfriend and I, we was moving the gazebo every few minutes trying to get some protection. We would have died without it! But at this step, the result was very much rewarding, the "spider web" shaped floor looked great! Knowing we never did it before, I was amazed.. Then everything was ready for the D-day. All the kit was waiting, already piled at the side.
Finally, I was going to know if the cupola would work or not!

I'll let you know soon what happened later... the panic wasn't finished yet...