Day 1: Preparation.

Our site looked like a meadow, so we cleared the grass and the weeds away to prepare it. Then we collected stones together and created a circle from a center point. We used a stick to mesure twelve points from the center to the edge and mark them with the stones.

Day 2: Strength and endurance.

We prepared the posts; choosing the right thickness and length, then using an axe, gave them a point. We tried to hit them into the ground but the ground was too hard so we dug holes instead, which required strenght and endurance to complete.

We did the same with a larger center pole that gave us the apex of the roof.

Day 3: Patience and perseverance.

The best material we had to use were cultivated hazel, which grows on the land. From these we selected the longest and thinnest stalks for the best flexibility. Starting from the east facing entrance we wove these stalks through the posts, making sure that they sat firmly. There was a lot of material to collect and weaving to be done, that required patience and perseverance.

Day 4: Strategy and intelligence.

This is the most technical part because we had to make sure that the roof structure could support itself and the roofing material. Some time we spent thinking and talking, even drawing, over ways to fit it together. In the end we decided to use a simple interlocking method. Once we’d actually done that, we had to make sure that the roof poles were stable, so we tied sticks across them.

Day 5: Final touches.

Using bundles of heather we covered the roof structure and we tied them on.

Then to make it more homely we added some decorations, like rune carving on the middle pole, and tied various things on.