Homestead & Farm
The Dorm
We needed a place to host large groups, and of course it had to fit into a small place, but we also wanted it to be unlike any dorm any of us had ever stayed in before. Rather than twin beds, stacked on top of each other, we dreamed up a forest facing dorm, with floor to ceiling windows, giving the feeling of being entirely open to the forest. Every bed is sized: full, queen, or king. Beds are situated/lofted between 2 floors, each with their own lights, fans, outlets, and storage.
Yoga
Movement Canopy
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Space utilization has been both our challenge and our saving grace, so the dorm’s roof naturally needed to be finished in a way that made it usable space. So nestled amongst the treetops, the dorm’s rooftop makes the perfect yoga, fitness class, and activity Canopy.
Facing the farm, nestled in the spaces between 3 legacy trees (A Bread Fruit, Mango, & a Limoncillo) that our hearts couldn't bare the idea of knocking down, is where we will seed & teach. A space allowing us to utilize the outside of the Dorm’s back wall, for presentations, projections, and educational visuals. We are creating a space where we can host: classes, hands-on activities, and school groups that want to learn about farming & sustainable living more comfortably.
Farm-side
Education Zone
Treetop Cabins
Intern & Residency
We needed a place to host individuals that either want to learn from us or have a skill to share in return for time spent with us. We want them to be able to stay for a few months comfortably so we needed a place that could accommodate extended stays. On the edge of our “conuco” is where we are building, second story, A-frame cabins positioned to overlook the tops of our banana & plantain forest. Each room with its own bathroom and access to a shared kitchen.
Teaching & Chef's
We wanted to utilize the little bit of space that we have on our tiny bit of mountain in a way that would make you excited to come spend a week or weekend with us. So we decided to build 2 tiny cabins equipped with all of the comforts of home. One faces the farm, the other, the river, and both have the most beautiful rooftop views of the rolling mountains that surround us. We dreamed up an open concept: wall-to-wall windows, kitchen, bathroom, and living room on the ground floor; 3 beds lofted above; and a spiral staircase that leads to a roof top we hope you spend so much time enjoying.
Mini Mountain
Mini Cabins
What would our beautiful farm and its produce be without a beautiful place to prepare it? We needed a place we could cook for you, when you visit us; where you could come and take a cooking class; and where as a chef or food artisan, you could host a class, dinner, or tasting. So, we decided to eliminate one of our side-by-side tilapia pools and repurpose the space as a kitchen that will allow us to share the magic of the food we grow, pool & farm-side.
Kitchen
Theater
Meeting Room
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What do you do with a giant hole in the ground that stands in between you and the kitchen of your dreams? You either fill it in or you utilize it! By now you know that space is not something we can afford to give up, so rather than filling in the space below the kitchen we decided to utilize it and make level one, a below ground theater & meeting room, that will allow for our visitors to escape the sun/ Caribbean heat for a bit: meet, relax, or show educational videos in cool underground quarters.
Multi-Purpose Rooms
& Lounge
The floor above the kitchen & the ground floor, will each host multipurpose rooms available for times you need a private room to: host a class, have a meeting, or create a pop up. Below the kitchen and overlooking the farm will be an outdoor lounge that allows for being in community with your group, family, or fellow interns: sitting, eating, meeting, planning, just being, or getting done, some much needed, computer work.
Dining Area
As an extension of the kitchen sits our primary dining area. This is where most of our visitors will congregate to share meals prepared by themselves or others on a daily basis.
First Floor
Pool
Although we are located on a beautiful river, filled with clear fresh water, and no scary or otherwise dangerous creatures to be found day or night; during days of excessive rain, what is normally a lazy river can become deep, churned up and fast moving. So we wanted to make sure that during those moments our guests always have access to water during their stay with us. That being said, we decided to repurpose the second tilapia pond, and giant hole in the ground, into a pool that sits both farm and kitchen-side.
What Else?...
Well, we hope, so much more; BUT for now we are off to focus on all that we shared above, and although leaving some room for surprises, what we can promise is that, we are committed to dreaming above & beyond the barriers we see around us, and we hope to inspire anyone who has ever felt small to do the same.
expect more surprises soon,
The Conuco Criollo Family
Dining Loft
Tucked above a waterfall we are creating at the mountain side of the pool, sits a platform where we will help our guests host beautifully curated dinners accompanied by the pool below and the farm just beyond the water's edge.
Wanna check out
our progress?
