Design Your Straw Bale Home With Confidence

Get expert guidance, clear drawings, and field-tested details for a smooth path from design to permit.

Partner with Timbo to turn ideas into a buildable straw bale home tailored to your site, climate, and budget.

Start your custom design
Prefer to talk. Book a design consult

Paid 60-minute session

Modern house with green and brown exterior, large windows, and sloped metal roof, set against a background of trees and a partly cloudy sky during sunset.

We loved Timbo's design sense. He listened thoughtfully and honored our ideas. Sometimes he pushed us gently to consider other ideas (which were invariably better).

Nicolas W. - Buena Vista, CO
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Choose Your Path

Get hands-on skills, solve real problems, design your home.

Custom Home Design

Get a home shaped to your site, climate, and life. Clear steps, one guide, buildable drawings. Learn more

Pre-Designed House Plans

Ready-made designs by straw bale pros. Modify if needed. Instant access to plan packages. Learn more

Custom Home Design

 Work directly with Timbo
Digital rendering of a house with a green metal roof, wooden and beige exterior walls, multiple windows, and front door, on a concrete foundation.

    • Real-world expertise from designing and building straw bale homes, so the drawings reflect what actually works on site.

    • Field-tested details for straw bale walls, openings, and moisture control

    • Passive solar and climate-smart thinking from day one

    • Clear communication and predictable steps from first call to permit

    • Discovery and fit

    • Schematic design and layout

    • Energy and climate strategies

    • Coordinate with your local engineer for review and stamp

    • Permit-level drawings and submittal guidance

    • Optional construction-phase consulting for design questions

    • Detailed 3D model

    • Scaled floor plans and elevations

    • Wall sections and key details for straw bale construction

    • Door and window schedules

    • Basic site plan guidance

    • Structural drawings coordinated with your local engineer

    • Coordination notes for local engineering and energy compliance

A 3D architectural drawing of a house under construction showing the wooden framework for the walls and roof, with some sections in yellow and brown, and windows and doors outlined in the structure.

Pre-Designed House Plans

currated Designs by proven straw bale professionals

Ready-made straw bale layouts with field-tested details. Plans are informational and not site-specific. Most projects require local adaptation and engineering before permit.

Floor plan of a house showing various rooms labeled including bedroom, living room, kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, walk-in closet, mudroom, mechanical room, entryway, hallway, portico, and back porch.

Modern Farmhouse plan, 1,850 sq ft, 3 bed 2 bath, 45 by 30 ft footprint. Upstairs bedrooms open to a covered balcony, with a large covered porch below.

    • Faster start and lower upfront cost than fully custom

    • Proven straw bale layouts and details

    • Most plans can be modified by the original designer

    • Floor plans and elevations

    • Basic sections and typical straw bale details

    • Door and window sizes

    • Basic electrical layout notes where applicable

    • General notes for build approach

    • Site-specific engineering or calculations

    • Local code compliance documents and permit submittals

    • Mechanical and plumbing design

    • Interior framing specs if not part of the plan scope

    • Truss or TJI engineering

    • Materials list unless specifically stated

    • Review and approval by a locally licensed designer or engineer

    • Site plan, soils or geotechnical report if required

    • Structural engineering and truss or TJI calcs

    • Energy code documentation and any jurisdiction-specific forms

  • Your purchase grants a limited, non-transferable, one-time build license. You may reproduce or modify the plans only as needed for your project and local requirements. Reuse or resale is not permitted.

  • All plan sales are final. Returns are not accepted.

  • Many plans can be modified by the original designer for a fee. Or, start a Custom Design if your site, codes, or goals require deeper changes.

Popular House Plans

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Request a plan modification

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Custom Home Design vs. Pre-Designed House Plans 

See when a ready-made plan or custom design wins

If you want

Choose

Fastest path and lower upfront cost

✅ House Plans

Tailored layout for site, budget, and climate

✅ Custom Design

Complex site or strict local codes

✅ Custom Design

Minor changes to a proven layout

✅ Plan Modification

Read What Our Happy Design Clients Are Saying

  • Lindy M.

    What can I say about Timbo? First and foremost, he’s GOOD! Other words come to mind – honest, sincere, dependable, patient, trustworthy, understanding, creative, flexible, adaptable…


  • Nicolas W.

    We loved Timbo's design sense. He listened thoughtfully and honored our ideas. Sometimes he pushed us gently to consider other ideas (which were invariably better).

  • Susan L.

    Everything was done to make the house as weather-tight, energy-efficient, and functional as possible. I am really enjoying my new house.

  • Diane B.

    Timbo’s positive attitude, enthusiasm, and confidence put us right at ease.

Find Answers To Common Design Questions

Common questions on custom design, pre-designed plans, and build support.
Everything you need to know to move from idea to permit.

  • Often yes. Plans are not site-specific, and most jurisdictions require review and stamps from locally licensed professionals. Your local team is responsible for final code compliance.

  • Yes. I advise on climate-smart strategies and documentation needs, then coordinate what your local pros must stamp or submit.

  • Timelines vary by scope, decisions, and jurisdiction. After a consult, we set milestones. Many projects move through schematic design in weeks, then into permit drawings based on your local process. Budget more time than less.

  • Start with a design consult or submit the intake form. If you are just exploring, review our beginner resources and codes overview, then we can shape a concept around your site and goals.

  • Include: floor plans, elevations, basic sections and straw bale details, door and window sizes, general notes, and basic electrical notes where applicable.

    Not included: site-specific engineering, local code submittals, mechanical and plumbing design, interior framing specs if not part of the plan scope, truss or TJI engineering, and a materials list unless stated.

  • Yes. Many plans can be modified by the original designer for a fee. If your site or codes require deeper changes, consider starting a custom design.

  • Yes, as a separate service. I provide hourly consulting, plan reviews, and optional on-site training to answer design questions and keep the build on track.

Still Have Questions? Book A Consult
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