About

An open-ended exploration of how we live.

Leafhouse is an independent publication about alternative housing: earth-sheltered homes, straw and cob, solar experiments, self-built communities, and the people behind them. We document what was built, what worked, what failed, and what is legal to try today.

The Journal tells the stories. The Library keeps the articles and records they are built from, so every claim can be traced back to a source.

Feasibility labels

Every method, material and dwelling carries one label. It describes the regulatory and practical path in the United States today, not whether an idea is good.

Established

Mainstream practice with standard code provisions

Code path exists

A model-code appendix covers it, if your jurisdiction adopts it

Case by case

Possible with an engineer or an official's approval

Experimental

Few documented long-term results

Historical

Documented for what it teaches, not as a recommendation

Editorial standards

• A published record needs at least two independent sources and a fact-check date.
• Entries that are still being checked are marked In review and are not part of the published site.
• Private homes are mapped to region only. We ask before naming living owners or builders.
• Photos are credited, and used only with a license or written permission.
• Leafhouse takes no sponsored content and no affiliate payments.

Corrections

If we get something wrong, we fix it and say so at the foot of the story, with the date. Email corrections@leafhouse.example or use the form below and choose "A correction".

Contribute

Tell us about a building, a method, or a person who belongs in the Library. An editor reads every submission. Nothing is published without your permission.