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Final design process and purchasing construction materials at Rebuilding Exchange! There was a fire across the river from us :(

#spring 2015 class #rebuilding exchange #design/build #tea pavilion

Tea vessel making! We worked with kaolin clay and stoneware clay, learned to make simple pinch pots and do some slabwork thanks to Amber’s instruction.

She gave us the interesting idea of considering the difference between a tea cup that can stand, and one that cannot. Active vs. passive tea drinking!

#spring 2015 class #tea vessels

Making tea leaf scoops by creating impressions of our tongues in terracotta clay (wrapped in clingwrap)

#spring 2015 class #tea vessels

Reviewing the model for our tea pavilion with Amber

#spring 2015 class #tea pavilion

Tea ritual with Amber

#spring 2015 class #tea ritual

somedevil

ever since i watched the doc garbage warriors i’ve been obsessed with the idea of earthships

totally off the grid, sustainable houses made out of garbage to develop a community with the lightest eco footprint possible

#earthship #off the grid #sustainable #garbage #architectural references

freedocumentaryfilms

Garbage Warrior

#earthship biotecture #garbage warrior #sustainability #architecture #biotecture #earthship #michael reynolds

Brilliant floating greenhouse sustains itself with sun & harvested rainwater

"Aiming to create a low-cost alternative using recycled materials, Italian designers Antonio Girardi and Cristiana Favretto of Studiomobile created this floating modular greenhouse that sits upon 96 repurposed plastic drums. Dubbed "Jellyfish Barge," the idea behind this curious octagonal structure is to empower families and communities that live in coastal areas or near a body of water to grow their own food, without the need for land."

#architectural references

Butter tea, also known as po cha (Tibetan: བོད་ཇ་, Wylie: bod ja, "Tibetan tea"), cha süma (Tibetan: ཇ་སྲུབ་མ་, Wylie: ja srub ma, "churned tea"), Mandarin Chinese: sūyóu chá (酥油茶) or goor goor in local Ladakhi terms, is a drink of the people in the Himalayan region in China, Nepal, India and Bhutan. It is also consumed in USA[1] and Bhutan and by Buddhist minorities in India. It is made from tea leaves, yak butter, water, and salt. Drinking butter tea is a regular part of Tibetan life. Before work, a Tibetan will typically enjoy several bowlfuls of this beverage, and it is always served to guests. Nomads are said to often drink up to 40 cups of it a day.[citation needed] Since butter is the main ingredient, butter tea provides plenty of caloric energy and is particularly suited to high altitudes. The butter may also help prevent chapped lips.[2] According to the Tibetan custom, butter tea is drunk in separate sips, and after each sip the host refills the bowl to the brim. Thus, the guest never drains his bowl; rather, it is constantly topped up. If the visitor does not wish to drink, the best thing to do is leave the tea untouched until the time comes to leave and then drain the bowl. In this way etiquette is observed and the host will not be offended.[3] Butter tea is also used for eating tsampa by pouring onto it, or dipping the tsampa into it, and mixing well. The concentrate, produced by repeatedly boiling tea leaves, will keep for several days, and is commonly used in towns. The tea is then combined with salt and butter in a special tea churn (Tibetan: མདོང་མོ་, Wylie: mdong mo), and churned vigorously before serving hot. Now an electric blender is often used. The highest quality tea is made by boiling the tea leaves in water for half a day, achieving a dark brown color. It is then skimmed, and poured into a cylinder with fresh yak butter and salt which is then shaken. The result is a purplish liquid that is about the thickness of a stew[3] or thick oil. It is then poured into clay tea-pots, or jars, that resemble Japanese teapots.[5] Another method is to boil water, and add handfuls of the tea into the water, which is allowed to steep until it turns almost black. Salt is then added, along with a little soda if wanted. The tea is then strained through a horse-hair or reed colander into a wooden butter churn, and a large lump of butter is added. This is then churned until the tea reaches the proper consistency and transferred to copper pots that sit on a brazier to keep them warm. When a churn is not available, a wooden bowl and rapid stirring will suffice.[6] Nowadays, when tea leaves, yak butter and wooden butter churn is not available, people often make butter tea using tea bags, different types of butter available in the market and a blender to churn.[1] Source: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butter_tea#Preparation

#tea

Teh tarik is a drink made by cooling a brew of hot tea and milk through the process of pouring and “pulling” it between two cups or mugs to create a rich, frothy drink. The drink’s name means “pulled tea” in Malay, a reference to how it is made. History There is an ongoing dispute as to whether this drink is a speciality of Singapore or Malaysia. The origins of teh tarik can be traced to Indian-Muslim immigrants in the Malay Peninsula who set up sarabat or drink stalls at the entrance of rubber plantations after World War II to serve the workers there. While sarabat stalls are still commonly found in factories and construction sites in Malaysia today, those in Singapore were relocated to hawker centres in the 1970s. Due to its Indian-Muslim origins, teh tarik is often known as a mamak concoction, mamak being a local term for an Indian. The term mamak or more properly mama can be traced to the Tamil word meaning “uncle”. In India, fresh cow’s milk is used for a similar drink of “pulled tea”, but evaporated and condensed milk are used for teh tarik. Historically, the water used for making teh tarik was boiled in aluminium pots over an open flame. The renewed interest in teh tarik has in part been encouraged by the rise of 24-hour Indian-Muslim eateries selling the drink along with roti prata (a round flatbread) and other types of Indian-Malay cuisine. Teh tarik is consumed by all races, although preferences for the amount of condensed milk used vary with the Chinese preferring less of it and the Indians favouring a larger amount. Description Teh tarik is made with tea leaves placed in water just before it boils. Spices such as cardamom, cloves and ginger can be added together with the tea for added flavour. Teh tarik can be made with any type of tea, but tea dust is preferred as it results in a stronger flavour compared to tea leaves and gives teh tarik its characteristic orange colouring. Tea dust is a lower-grade tea made of broken tea leaves ground into dust. Sri Lankan tea dust is regarded as producing the best quality brew. For home brews, teabags are used as an alternative when tea dust is not available. The process of making teh tarik starts with adding evaporated and condensed milk to boiling water. Once the brew is bubbling, it is taken off the heat and the mixture strained into a tin mug. The tea is then poured from a height of about a metre into another mug. This process of “pulling” the tea is repeated a number of times until a layer of froth forms over the drink before it is served. The tea should preferably be “pulled” longer than an arm’s length. The “pulling” process cools the tea and enhances its flavour. A good brew is determined by the following: the type of tea leaves or tea dust used; how the tea is mixed; the way the tea is “pulled” and the time spent in “pulling”; the amount of sugar added; the volume of water used; as well as the proportion of evaporated and condensed milk. Some famed teh tarik stalls use up to six types of tea leaves in a concoction. Source: http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_2013-07-19_103055.html

#tea