The Thirteen Dollar House...

Amanda Kovattana is a free range writer,
born in England, raised in Thailand and who now lives in San Francisco.
She was in the outback of Colorado a while ago looking at examples of sustainable living.
She met Peggy and Jo and found more for less.
They called their house The Thirteen Dollar House because that's all it cost to build.
One side was bermed with earth. the roof was plywood scraps lined with plastic and covered with cob. It was painted with a beeswax and linseed oil mix for further waterproofing.
The remaining sides were faced with salvaged windows. There's a sleeping loft. And a separate pit toilet. Tomato plants grow in the windows and sunflower seeds sprout on the desk.
A greenhouse for sleeping in and too small to be any concern to building inspectors.
There's more to the story here and wonderful inspiring photo images here...