Friday, May 27, 2011

Decorative Adobe Walls



Adobe is an intrinsically beautiful material 
and lends itself well for privacy walls such as courtyards.



I built this adobe wall almost 20 years ago in Santa Fe, New Mexico
 and the current owners have recently done a major maintenance on it
 putting on a new cap and replastering with adobe.

The original cap on it was not successful, to say the least, 
and they took a design for a cap that I developed much later
and added that.

Unfortunately I did not have my blog post,
 to guide me at the time.

Now I know.


The mortared stone foundation keeps the adobe well above the ground, 
and I think the inserted scraps of flagstone gives a nice horizontal relief.

The adobes were made by my neighbor in his backyard 
so I transported them by wheelbarrow.


I built this wall for the house next door about five years ago
employing the same inset design,
 minus the flagstone.

Many of the adobes for this wall I made myself 
from a pile of dirt that I had accumulated over the years.


The design is quite simple.

Adobe bricks around here are 4" x 10" x 14''
 and the wall is 14" wide plus plaster.

The design is created by using the 10" width where I want the inset,
 which creates a 2'' revel on each side.

Creating the layout is probably the hardest part,
and it is best to draw it out on paper first.

Across the bottom of the inset I used adobe plaster with lots of straw
to create a bevel to help drain water away.


On the other side a cozy courtyard is created.

Just about any design is possible
 and I hope to do a circle someday.


For more on this wall see my post:


And click on the LABEL in the right sidebar for Fences And Walls.