The nest is taking shape, one twig at a time.
We were off to a good start, and we are still moving forward but the rainy season has arrived in Sri Lanka. The pace of work has slowed. as workers sometime don’t show up. But nothing to worry about…
First priority: The exterior bathroom/garden. We are envisioning curved walls which will become a metaphorical “canvas” on which our future garden will paint itself.
Bathroom curved walls, high enough for privacy and seclusion. The door to the right of the wall leads to what will be the kitchen.
Once you are in that (currently non existing) bath, there will be a narrow ledge following the curve of the wall, as a place to put glasses, a cup of tea to sip while lounging in a deep tub and enjoying the greenery.
The walls are painted… a light teal colored green to provide a backdrop to the future flowering vines which will grace these walls.
The small structure to the left is supposed to be where the basin will go.. Not what we drew nor described, one of those times where distance creates miscommunication. No worries, we will probably just get the bottom part removed and replaced by an attractive piece of wood as a shelf.
Now that we have the structure of the bathroom, our attention turns to the bathtub itself. The whole inspiration for this house was the Yogyakarta outdoor bathtub, so what’s the current status?
We found the perfect stone bathtub made in Sri Lanka ~ thing is, it’s $1200 by the time it’s delivered to Unawatuna. That’s a bit of a shocker….!
So this is where we have to think creatively. No need to stress, just a need to come up with a range of possible alternative solutions…. And they come aplenty.
First option: What about using a round bamboo fishing boat from Hoi An as a structural base. Our home base number one, is in Hoi An …. where fishermen go to work in giant bamboo, water resistant, coffee cup shaped boats. Might make an interesting structure for a bathtub?
Fishermen bringing in the bamboo boats in Hoi An.
There is precedent for using these bamboo boats in imaginative ways….
Circular bamboo boats on An Dang beach, covered when not in use.
The issue with Hoi An boats is that while they are relatively inexpensive ($200), there is the small issue of transportation. Perhaps we can ship to Sri Lanka… ? but that seems like it would probably be rather costly and who knows what delays would transpire at customs.
Next variant is the notion of a wooden crafted bathtub. Would this be feasible? Research yields some beauties, but do they make these in Sri Lanka? Again, Viet Nam.. yes. Sri Lanka, well that remains to be seen…
Definitely not a bad concept…. a large wooden bath tub, like Alice in Wonderland soaking in a soup bowl.
Wood is definitely an unusual material for a bathtub and yet, it really works and is very aesthetic in our opinion.
Maybe something a bit more rugged…. Our current thought: Why not recycle an old wooden boat, build an inside shape that transforms the boat into a bath?
Arugambay, on the East coast of Sri Lanka, which we visited last year, had simply gorgeous wooden boats. Wonder what one of those might cost? The bathtub saga continues…. unresolved, as yet.
OK, back to the house… Next priority is getting the bedroom ready. By taking out the center wall between two fairly small rooms, we wind up with one larger bedroom, and by opening up the outer wall to put a door in, we get an airy room with good air flow.
Let there be light and one day, a yoga deck, garden…. and why not dream about a small salt water pool?
With the inner wall removed and a large beam put it it’s place for structural purposes, we have a nice sized bedroom with a central beam for ceiling fans.
Two smaller bedrooms become one larger room. No need for two doors, so one gets closed off.
Main living room area.. We plaster the walls which initially were concrete blocks from above the doors and windows, up.
The kitchen now has the most important basic features, namely a counter and a sink.
Painted concrete ~ an easy efficient and quick way to get something up and running thats functional and relatively inexpensive.
We are pretty pleased with the progress we have made so far.
Next step, dig 1.5 feet down to remove the current earth and bring in good soil mixed with compost, to create an optimal growing situation for plants.
View of house from the side, nestled under the trees. This is where the ayurvedic herb garden will be one day. At the back the bathroom, with structure for the water tank… (bamboo will hide this eventually), and sitting area for meals outside behind the kitchen.
Stay tuned…
We enjoy your comments and feedback. Keep ’em coming…..
This looks fun. You could easily do the tub using cement block as well- might have to be square shape to hold water well but then you could round it on the outside to match your wall curves. Or you could cut a small plastic water tank and use wood or bamboo to hide the plastic from the outside. I look forward to seeing what you come up with!
Thanks for the suggestions. We are not big fans of plastic and would definitely prefer natural materials such as stone or wood. At any rate, part of the fun is definitely the creative process and coming up with different ideas and approaches. And of course, it has to be comfy and pragmatic.
Peta
I love your tub ideas!
Thanks Gib… We got plenty of ideas, it will be interesting to see what pans out! How about a bamboo tub?
Peta
I like the big plans! Let me know when it’s done so I can come take a bath 🙂
Sophie that would be terrific…We would love to have you come and visit! As you can see, things are moving along quite rapidly, (you know your brother!) so start checking tickets!
Peta
Looks like you’re creating a wonderful nest there. Can’t wait to see it finished. And then we’ll come visit you 🙂 Sri Lanka is on our radar 🙂
Alison
Thanks Alison. Yes do come and visit… Sri Lanka is such a fascinating country, with a rich cultural multi lingual population. For a small country it sure packs a punch of diversity.
Peta
YES, I will def. be looking forward to the process….especially the Alice in Wonderland bathtub!
O, My! Such luxury.
I have done without a bathtub for way too many years now, and the fact that we have been nomadic travelers for quite some time, means that I could only dream of having a luxurious bath tub to soak in daily. It will be our one “splurge” ~ something that will hopefully make our little nest a place we enjoying returning to after travel in the region.
Peta
I love your creative process around the bathtub and look forward to seeing what you come up with.
Thanks Caroline. Can you tell we are having so much fun? It’s good to have options.
Peta
This is so much fun. I love nesting, and lack your vision. You two are uniquely suited to these transformations. It’s a gift, and I can imagine you making a business of it. I’d hire you to create my exotic dream space. Thanks for sharing the nuts and bolts of your creative process.
Okay Sharon you are on! Once we finish this house, we will be ready to take on exotic nest constructions for others. Sign up sheet coming up soon. You can be first in line.
Thanks for the compliments…..
Peta
I love following your progress – things are looking good! Good luck on the bathtub quest; you two are so creative and open-minded, I have no doubt you will find a fabulous solution!
If our Nicaragua six year experience informs anything, it is that the quest for the bathtub, or the construction of the house is but one leaf of a Sri Lankan book that will likely be adventurous, rich and full and multi dimensional and is yet to reveal itself. First the house, then the community of friends we are yet to discover and the myriad projects that will no doubt arise and take shape over time.
Ben
I love the idea of a big round bamboo boat as a bathtub or….. as a bed !!!!!Fun, fun, fun!!!!
Oh that’s not a bad idea … bamboo boat as a bed with a circular mattress made to order. Much will depend on shipping costs from Viet Nam and in the end we may need to stay local. Thanks for reading!
Peta
Waou, I loved reading how you are planning to develop everything. Your enthusiasm (and zen spirit) is very contagious. FIrst time I ever see a wooden bathtube, it’s pretty nice. Which kind of wood do they use?
You are really building yourself a beautiful and sweet nest. Plus your ayurvedic plants and a yoga deck, paradise indeed! Will definitely stay tuned x
You are making fantastic progress with the renovations, I love the curved wall and the high ceilings inside with the wood beams. A bamboo bathtub woild look perfect and innovative…go for it?
i just love your ideas!! it is going to be fun to observe the progress!! keep on keep on my friends<3
Thanks Lo. Thanks for reading us.
P
Hey Peta & Ben, very interested to read about your home as it’s building. I see the two main challenges are: remote general contracting leads to miscommunication and transporting materials is very costly. This allow opportunity for innovations like using nearby, local materials for the bathtub. How do the locals bath? I wonder if there’s a way to use local lumber to build a boat-shaped tub, then coat it with a UV coating or some seal that would prevent moisture leakage. I’ll keep thinking on this one and look forward to watching the project continue to develop. 🙂
Thanks for your thoughtful comments Mark.
You are correct with regard to the challenges. As well, we strive to have a low carbon foot print, and therefore we are currently in the phase of dreaming up our preferred aesthetics and will then reign these in by optimizing locally available and affordable materials. It’s not going to be lumber to build a new boat shaped bath, but rather an old boat, no longer sea worthy that we can restore to become a bathtub.
B&P
love your can-do, solve-the-problems-efficiently attitudes – no draining of resources, no gold leafing over everything in sight, complete respect for place, time, and people.
Sharon thank you for the compliments ~ you definitely get how we roll 🙂
Peta
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Good progress is being made. Nice! I like all the bath tub ideas. I think you should definitely integrate something local, like a boat or massive basket into the bath tub idea. Problem is that it has to be aesthetic, natural and water proof! Sounds like a boat might be the way to go. Or how about a massive bucket, made out of the same materials as smaller local ones are?
Thanks Lisbet, good progress indeed. We loved the boat idea for the bathtub but it got rather complex as you will read in the subsequent posts on the topic. Looks like we are moving full steam ahead with a rather novel and unconventional idea for the bath.
Peta
Obviously I’m reading these posts well out of order.
Although I already know your solution for the bathtub dilemma, I really like the various ideas you played with … in particular, those bamboo boats. I loved the image of the bamboo boat repurposed into a cozy lounging area.
I’m really enjoying watching the transformation of this new home!
Thanks Joanne, glad you are enjoying the process along with us.
We both absolutely loved the bamboo boat idea and that would be great if we were constructing a bathroom here in Viet Nam.. But the cost and logistics of getting it from one country to another are obviously a factor that makes it not a very practical solution ~ but it was fun to dream for a while. (The idea was to put the tub in the middle and then fill the sides around it with soil and have grasses and plants growing, so that the tub would be submerged in the middle of a mini garden inside the boat ~ and would have the appearance of a mini river.)
Peta