Eve’s Garden Bed and Breakfast
Eve’s Garden Bed and Breakfast is truly a one-of-a-kind building that is made entirely of paper – or more accurately, papercrete.
Located a block north of Main Street (US Hwy 90) in Marathon, Texas, Eve’s Garden is an unusual landmark. A collage of colors and shapes attract the eyes of visitors and guests to further explore what is inside the colorful, asymmetric inn.
The walls, the mortar, and the plaster are all made of papercrete. Papercrete is a construction material where paper, cement, sand and water are mixed together and molded as literal building blocks, like adobe, to form walls and footings. The same ingredients are also used to fabricate the mortar and plaster that cover the highly insulated, extremely durable blocks that make up the walls, arches and domes.
Kate Thayer, a frequent visitor from Houston to Marathon, made the permanent move in 1999. An unanticipated divorce was her sign to head west.
She purchased a small house on three lots and was co-managing a bed and breakfast. That arrangement fell through and Kate, with the help of her son Noble, began renovating her home and built a room made of adobe. Adobe, essentially a mud and straw block, is a common building material in Texas and the southwest; however, Kate, Noble, and her self-taught architect, engineer and all-around craftsman, Clyde Curry, soon realized that there might be a better alternative. As Kate observed, “Adobe makes a strong brick, but a weak insulator. Besides, once you have to lift above the waist, it hurts!”
The result of wrestling thirty-pound adobe blocks was an exploration into the composition of paper, cement, and water molded into blocks of whatever size determined – papercrete! One advantage, according to Kate, is the ability to be as precise as possible in variations of a design.
Windows and doorways are no issue and if one needs to alter a wall, cutting and replacing are no problem. There’s the added benefit of ease and manipulation should a space need to be altered.
“Adobe has material that cannot often be removed to fit a design change,” says Kate. When asked about the purposeful design, there were no blueprints. “We drew everything out, but we had plenty of options.”
Papercrete is not less expensive to use in building, as with other materials. According to Clyde, “The savings are in the insulation factor. Papercrete has an R40 factor; typical construction of a house will be at R19.”
Looking at the building from the outside, one sees an eclectic amalgamation of arches, walls, domes and sloping exteriors. Open spaces were created for the enjoyment of the guests. Inside, furnishings are comfortable and more traditional. The B&B offers seven distinct and hand-built rooms each featuring arches, bright colors and special touches. Six of the seven rooms open onto an interior courtyard with a singing fountain.
Kate and her longtime friend and co-worker Alaine continue to enjoy running the bed and breakfast. Alaine played an integral role from the very beginning, as her kitchen skills are unparalleled.
Guests are treated to excellent dining options and a good night’s rest in well-appointed spaces at Eve’s Garden Bed and Breakfast!
