This post is about how we finished up our mud house by designing the interior of the building. Over time, this little room went through many layout and decor changes providing different atmospheres and vibes.
The Beginning
Fairly minimal interiors slowly taking shape
With the exterior finished, the interior was given a similar treatment with mud and cow dung plasters finished with a lime paint. Our lighting was provided with a standalone solar lighting kit that has its own panel and battery assembly. The bulbs were covered with simple paper lanterns to hide them and provide softer light.
We then used large stones to provide a stand for extra plywood boards we had that would make a platform for bedding.
Drying herbs made for an interesting decor
To cover up the wooden poles on which the roof rested, we hung up bedsheets to make a kind of false ceiling with the drapes adding to the look of the room. In addition to this, the poles made excellent places to hang local and wild herbs to be air dried. These two things saw the beginning of the room's aesthetics take shape.
Phase One
In the early days of moving into the finished room after nearly two years of living in a tent, everything was arranged to meet simple needs. Plywood planks provided a bed. The still unfinished earthen floor was covered with mats and wooden planks to make a temporary floor. All my possessions fit into small bookcases and shelves. I even did all my cooking in here after acquiring a small 4 KG gas cylinder that I could carry up the hills in a backpack.
Phase Two
With simple basic requirements in place, the next phase in the interior's development was to work with what we had and add elements for aesthetics rather than merely function. This mostly came in the form of extra drapery, ambient lighting and simple decor like dream catchers and Tibetan flags.
The room by day
Lighting creating a very different atmosphere
Even with the same decor, lighting provided very different atmospheres as the sun rose and set. As you can see from the pictures above, the difference between them, if you'll excuse the pun , is night and day.
Phase Three
The building went through another major renovation when it became clear that our simple mud flooring was not enough to combat the difficult monsoon seasons. Everything was moved out of the room and I was temporarily back in my tent as we set to work on filling up the floor with crushed rock and concrete to make a weather proof and sturdier floor.
Weatherproofing in progress
In addition to doing up our floor we also weatherproofed our walls by painting coats of linseed oil which is a natural way of waterproofing the walls which helped a lot in stopping the growth of mould during the wettest months of the year.
Current Interiors
After the floor and walls were weatherproofed we moved everything back in, this time without the plywood platform as we needed the plywood for other projects. The gas cylinder was also moved out so cooking could happen in another unfinished building. This freed up a lot of space inside the room and I was able to add even more functional and aesthetic products to the room.
A bookshelf project is the most recent addition to the room, complete with a coloured led strip to change the ambience of the room. This is currently what the room looks like and from where I live and write these posts from. The room is still undergoing constant improvements and will continue to grow and develop as I do. Stay tuned for further updates and thank you for following along as the room and I evolve!
