House Build Reflections: What Worked, What Didn’t, and What We’d Change | Ash of Turner Farm (Episode 328)

Building a home is an opportunity to slow down and make thoughtful choices that will shape your family’s everyday life for years to come.  In this conversation, I’m joined by Ash of Turner Farm to talk through what it really looks like to build an unconventional home in a world of cookie cutter houses.  We discuss choosing a smaller footprint, sourcing reclaimed materials, navigating healthy home considerations, and making peace with tradeoffs along the way.  This episode offers perspective for anyone building, renovating, or dreaming of a home that feels like YOU.

In this episode, we cover:

• How Ash’s custom house build unfolded slowly over many years and why patience was the key in achieving her ideal vision
• Choosing a smaller home footprint to prioritize materials, craftsmanship, and long-term livability
• What sourcing reclaimed and salvaged materials really looks like in terms of time, cost, and flexibility
• Why self-contracting and hands-on involvement are often necessary for non-traditional builds
• The realities of building with wood, including movement, drying time, and embracing imperfection
• Weighing “healthy home” ideals against climate, budget, and everyday comfort
• Structural choices that support airflow, moisture control, and long-term durability
• Where antique or vintage-inspired elements work well — and where they create complications
• How simpler rooflines and layouts can prevent future moisture and maintenance issues
• Decisions Ash would repeat, and ones she’d rethink, when it comes to spending and saving
• The importance of trusting your vision and advocating for it throughout the build
• Accepting the inevitable “later list” and letting the home evolve over time

About Ash

Ashley Turner is a Canadian homesteader, farmer, and sourdough educator living with her husband and two children on the rugged, coastal countryside of rural Nova Scotia. What began in 2017 as a suburban family’s move to a few acres with a backseat interest in self-sufficiency quickly blossomed into a thriving, 300-acre pasture-based farm raising premium Angus-Wagyu cattle, laying hens, pigs, and milk cows. 

Ash’s heart lies in the kitchen and the field — whether she’s teaching live sourdough classes to a worldwide audience, experimenting with homestead-style cooking, or caring for their herd and flock. Her approach blends hands-on farming with passionate, joyful food education, inspiring others to slow down, connect with their food sources, and build resilient lives rooted in homesteading, sustainability, and family rhythms.

Resources Mentioned

Explore EMF Solutions products designed to manage electromagnetic frequencies in your home

Check out the Sertado Copper Water Filtration System

Shop BlockBlueLight for low-blue light bulbs that protect your circadian rhythm 

Explore Ash’s sourdough classes

Master the rhythm of sourdough with confidence in my Simple Sourdough course

Gain the sewing knowledge and skills every homemaker needs in my Simple Sewing series

Keep all my favorite sourdough recipes at your fingertips in my Daily Sourdough cookbook

Connect

Ash of Turner Farms | Website | Instagram | YouTube | Facebook | Pinterest

Lisa Bass of Farmhouse on Boone | Blog | YouTube | Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | Pinterest

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