Build Outside The Box

Build Outside The Box Resources and tools for building healthy, beautiful, affordable resilient homes with natural and alternative materials.

How do you build and pay for it as you go?For many DIYers, this is not just the reality but also the reason why they wan...
08/26/2026

How do you build and pay for it as you go?

For many DIYers, this is not just the reality but also the reason why they want to build their own home in the first place – because they cannot afford to buy one or have one built for them.

One workaround is to go ahead and start building paycheck to paycheck, buying tools and materials as you can afford them, and using your own “sweat equity” for labor. This approach comes with its own special set of challenges and considerations.

What do you need to consider in terms of design to keep your project manageable and affordable?

Will you live on site while building to save money?

What decisions do you need to make on a weekly basis to keep your project going?

How do you keep the dream alive when your inspiration and finances are low?

In our Building on a Budget class, Build Outside the Box Co-Founder Kirsten Jacobsen shares the good, the bad, and the unique challenges of building her own alternative off-grid home while working a full time job and (for the first years) with just the money she had at the end of the week.

This class is part of our upcoming free live online event.

JOIN US:
“Your Mortgage-Free Life”
Sunday, August 30th
12-4 EST
9-1 PST

Registration link in bio.

08/26/2026

Hello! I’m Kirsten, one of the founders of Build Outside the Box.

I’ve been building, teaching about alternative housing, and living off-the-grid for more than half my life.

I built my own house over an 8 year period and have many insights to share from that experience.

I hope sharing my successes and failures can help you make your building on a budget dream a reality!

Are you thinking about building your own natural/alternative home but don’t have a pile of money to do it with and wondering how you can achieve this dream?

For many DIYers this is not just the reality but also the reason why they want to build their own home in the first place – because they cannot afford to buy one or have one built for them.

One workaround is to go ahead and start building paycheck to paycheck, buying tools and materials as you can afford them and using your own “sweat equity” for labor. This approach comes with its own special set of challenges and considerations.

How do you build a house when you have little to no money at the start?

What decisions do you need to make on a weekly basis to keep your project going?

How do you keep the dream alive when your inspiration and finances are low?

What do you need to consider in terms of design to keep your project manageable and affordable?

Will you live on site while building to save money?

In my Building on a Budget class (which is part of our upcoming live event) I share the good, the bad, and the “character-building” (lol) challenges of building my own alternative off-grid home while living on site, working a full time job and (for the first years) with the money I had at the end of the each week.

JOIN US FOR THIS LIVE ONlLINE EVENT:
“Your Mortgage-Free Life”
Sunday, August 30th
12-4 EST
9-1 PST

Registration link in bio.
Link in bio.

08/24/2026

Everything is too f*cking expensive.

Corporate monopolies. War. Global pandemics. Prices of: sourcing raw materials, labor, manufacturing, energy, shipping, etc… These factors and more affect the cost of everything you purchase.

But it’s not just the things you buy every week like groceries and gas that have gotten more expensive…

It’s things like building supplies.

Gone are the days of rolling up to the hardware store to grab a bag of screws and a few sheets of plywood without checking your bank balance and credit score first.

And while building a home does cost money, even if you do all the labor yourself, there are literally tons of FREE BUILDING MATERIALS that you can incorporate into the construction of a home, helping to lower your overall cost and helping you save up for items that you need to purchase new like batteries for your solar system.

In the long run you can save TENS OF THOUSANDS of dollars using free materials to build your home.

And here’s the really amazing news…when you build with free materials you are not just save money you’re saving:

Your health. By using natural materials you are saving yourself from exposure to the dozens of toxic chemicals in conventional building materials.*

Energy. Choosing salvaged materials for your project means the energy to manufacture and ship the object has already been spent. You are lowering the overall embodied energy of your build and saving more carbon from spewing into the atmosphere.

The environment. If you incorporate repurposed materials you are keeping discarded items out of the waste stream, out of landfills, out of oceans, out of polluting incinerators on distant shores. You are elevating trash to a valuable building material.

Grab our new Build Outside the Box to Free Building Materials and turn someone else’s trash into your beautiful home!

Link in bio.

Break free from a broken system and take charge of your future!Imagine how different your life could be if you built you...
08/23/2026

Break free from a broken system and take charge of your future!

Imagine how different your life could be if you built your own eco home out of pocket and had no mortgage payment!

In this special upcoming LIVE CLASS, “Build and Live Mortgage-Free” Goldie Mariola-Gill will share her journey of building her own home and escaping the debt system.

Goldie and her husband Matt built their own self-sufficient home for less than half the cost of buying one by utilizing salvaged materials, their own sweat equity and the help of workshop participants.

Goldie will cover: finding land, understanding permitting as it relates to the expense of building, the pros and cons of living on site during your build, off-grid systems and the importance of having a supportive community

JOIN US FOR THIS LIVE ONlLINE EVENT:
“Your Mortgage-Free Life”
Sunday, August 30th
12-4 EST
9-1 PST

Registration link in bio.

08/22/2026

Build your own eco home from the ground up. 🔨

Houses are already overpriced… then you’re locked into monthly mortgage payments and rising utility bills for 30 years on top of it.

But there’s another way…build your own home and break free from a broken system.

Build...

A home built for how you actually live, not what a developer thought would sell.

A resilient home.

A healthier home, no toxic materials, no cut corners.

Get back...

Decades of your money not spent paying for the same house twice.

Curious how everyday people are pulling this off?

Join us for our free LIVE EVENT

“Your Mortgage-Free Life”

Sunday, August 30th
12-4 EST

9-3 PST
Build your own eco home from the ground up. 🔨

Houses are already overpriced… then you’re locked into monthly mortgage payments and rising utility bills for 30 years on top of it.

But there’s another way…build your own home and break free from a broken system.

Build...

A home built for how you actually live, not what a developer thought would sell.

A resilient home.

A healthier home, no toxic materials, no cut corners.

Get back...

Decades of your money not spent paying for the same house twice.

Curious how everyday people are pulling this off?

Join us for our free LIVE EVENT

“Your Mortgage-Free Life”

Sunday, August 30th

12-4 EST

9-3 PST

RSVP now. Link in bio.

Get your hands dirty, save money!Building your own eco home with earth helps you avoid the mortgage trap, uses locally-a...
08/22/2026

Get your hands dirty, save money!

Building your own eco home with earth helps you avoid the mortgage trap, uses locally-available natural materials, and is thermally-efficient.

Cob is one example of a material that is easy to learn how to work with and super-affordable.

We’ve invited earth builder Sasha Rabin to teach “Your Debt-Free Earth Home” during our upcoming live event.

Join us for our free LIVE EVENT
“Your Mortgage-Free Life”

Sunday, August 30th

12-4 EST

9-3 PST

RSVP now. Link in bio.

About your instructor:

Sasha fell in love with natural building in 2002 and has spent over two decades teaching it, co-founding Seven Generations Natural Builders, Vertical Clay, and Earthen Shelter, while collaborating with Yestermorrow, The Canelo Project, Cal-Earth, Solar Living Institute, and Quail Springs Permaculture. She serves on the boards of Quail Springs and the Cob Research Institute.

Her focus is cob building, and lately, closing the data gap around it. With Quail Springs and CRI, she’s helped lead seismic, fire, compression, and thermal testing to bring hard science to a centuries-old craft, making it more accessible for the future. Through her current endeavor Earthen Shelter she teaches workshops and educates people on the benefits of earth-building.

08/22/2026

Build your own eco home from the ground up. 🔨

Houses are already overpriced… then you’re locked into monthly mortgage payments and rising utility bills for 30 years on top of it.

But there’s another way…build your own home and break free from a broken system.

Build...

A home built for how you actually live, not what a developer thought would sell.

A resilient home.

A healthier home, no toxic materials, no cut corners.

Get back...

Decades of your money not spent paying for the same house twice.

Curious how everyday people are pulling this off?

Join us for our free LIVE EVENT

“Your Mortgage-Free Life”

Sunday, August 30th

12-4 EST

9-3 PST

RSVP now. Link in bio.

Break free from long-term, soul-sucking debt for you and your family. Learn how to build your own eco-home! We have gath...
08/20/2026

Break free from long-term, soul-sucking debt for you and your family. Learn how to build your own eco-home!

We have gathered amazing Mastermind builders, architects, teachers & designers to cover mortgage-free living and budget building.

We will be presenting on the benefits of debt-free living, DIY building with natural and salvaged materials to save money, building paycheck-to-paycheck, and more! Join this FREE live event!

YOUR MORTGAGE-FREE LIFE
Sunday, August 30th
12:00-4:00 ET / 9:00-1:00 PT

Link in bio to register.

08/17/2026

Houses are already overpriced… then you’re locked into monthly mortgage payments and rising utility bills for 30 years on top of it.

So what’s the alternative? Build your own eco home from the ground up. There. We said it.

“Whoa. I’m not a builder. I’ve never held a power tool longer than it takes to hang a frame.”

We get it. But we know it’s possible, because we know the people who’ve done it.

The payoff isn’t just a house. It’s your life back:

A home built for how you actually live, not what a developer thought would sell.

A resilient home.

A healthier home, no toxic materials, no cut corners.

Utility bills slashed up to 90%.

Decades of your money not spent paying for the same house twice.

Curious how everyday people are pulling this off? Follow us and grab free resources at the link in our bio.

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Taos, NM
87511

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