Design & Production

The complete fibres of a steam bent wheel provide an almost unbreakable circle which is both lightweight and atheistically pleasing.

Quarter sawn ash which is steam bent onto formers.

Coppice wood fuels this homemade forge.

Heating up one of our branding symbols for labelling wooden components. 

Hand branded symbols create a simple guide to assembling our yurts. 

This ancient technique of burning the mortices creates a perfect hole that can fit every pole.

The wood is hardened and cured by the heat.

The Kyrgyz decorative grooving provides extra strength whilst reducing the weight of the frame.

Hand carved coppice poles drying for the following years production. 

Ancient green wood working tools including the drawknife, billhook and froe are used to fashion our yurts.  

A combination of linseed oil and turpentine is used to coat all wooden components of our yurts. 

The froe is a simple and ancient tool used to bring round wood into usable dimensions.

The shaving horse and drawknife make it easy to fashion the support poles in the yurt wheel. 

Fashioned whilst green, wheels for a 12, 17 & 20ft yurts are left to dry. 

Many knots are tied on the yurt wheel to keep the wheel support poles in place. 

The strongest and most sacred part of the yurt: the wheel.

We are the only yurt producer using breathable natural membranes; cotton canvas and felt insulation. The beneifts include significantly less condensation, no off gassing, more aesthetically pleasing, lighter, and easier to repair. Multiple layers of semi-permeable membranes ensure 100% weather protection. 

Felt panels are the traditional covering of yurts in Central Asia. Extremely durable and hard wearing they provide a natural, breathable insulation. The felt panels are enclosed by the cotton canvas to protect it from the weather.

The felt panels are processed by Belfast Mini Mills in PEI. Felt panels on the walls cut the draft and make a more comfortable yurt in the colder months. 

Before I start the process of sewing the felts all together I have to surround myself in all their warmth!

The construction of felt panels in the textiles room. 

Sewing on the jute to connect the felt panels is a slow but very rewarding process. 

Feeling the warmth and softness of the wool whilst I sew is a real treat compared to sewing cotton.

Nylon rope is sewn into the top of the felt panels and gets tied to the top of the yurt walls. 

The completed felt panels are ready to help keep your yurt warm!

Felted wall panels for a 12ft yurt! Warm, breathable, natural and made in PEI, NS!

Yurt production sometimes requires yurts to be set up within yurts! Here, the palace yurt houses one 17ft yurt and one 12ft yurt whilst we tailor the coverings. 

The process of fitting a 33ft yurt roof cover involves many steps.

Sewing a yurt roof cover involves many meters of french seams!

Setting brass spur grommets into a roof cover.

The skylight is an eight pointed star, made of Sunbrella fabric which is a heavy duty fade resistant material (color of your choice) with a super clear UV resistant plastic window in the middle. The "legs" of the star attach to tie down ropes which are anchored both to the yurt and ground.

Long darts are sewn into our roof hats to make a snug fit over the top of the roof cover.

There are many vibrant and neutral colours to choose for your roof hat.

Windows add extra light in a yurt and when two windows are placed opposite each other, it creates a lovely cross breeze. 

Window production in the textile room! 

Our windows have a super-clear plastic material with an exterior canvas flap (approx 40" x 36")

Canvas door attaching to door frame with brass spur grommets.

The bottom of the yurt wall is protected by a heavy duty vinyl skirt.

Tie down ropes connecting to the perimeter rope. Our dacron rope is locally sourced from Schonner Line & Rope in Lunenburg.

Shown here in our business 'label, the sunforger' canvas we use is tested to the Canadian S109 standards. 

Our flooring is made out of coconut husk (similar to jute) which is soft and rolls out in sections. It has a vapour barrier underneath which stops moisture and humidity coming up from the ground. If you are using your yurt in a temporary manner, then using this flooring is perfect; easy to clean, hard wearing and natural.

We choose the best materials to create hardwearing, breathable and flexible coverings. 

A high temperature silicone flange riveted into our S109 coded Sunforger canvas.

Our doors are hand made by the very talented Troy Wood of Wooden Window & Door Company.

Close up of our Little Foot Yurt written logo.

Another beautiful door by Troy Wood of Wooden Window & Door Company.

Mandalic designs carved by Alex Cole into Troy Wood's doors.

An older door design and hand carvings made by Alex Cole of Little Foot Yurts.

Our son, Rawly operating the canvas roll down door on a 12ft yurt!

Red maple is Little Foot Yurts preferred roof pole. 

Trimming out good yurt poles during the harvesting and preparation for regrowth. 

Hauling out coppice poles on the ATV. The cordwood road is built with poplar and improves road access.  This wood has a higher value left in the forest. 

The overstood coppice is cut and prepared for regrowth in this area prolific with red maple. 

The work begins! A 100X150 feet area is cleared and now the team is selecting and piling the good logs.

Clearing the brush and making brush fence.

Red maple tree cleaned and prepared for regrowth with love

First year red maple coppice. 

Carrying out heavy cordwood.

The billhook; ancient tool of the coppice worker

Inspecting inside an old coppice regrowth-this one is 150 years old.

Splitting poplar logs with a froe for the cordwood road. 

Adults help the children navigate through the freshly felled lumber. 

Luna our trusty woodland dog with a 10 year oak regrowth behind.

Pile of overstood coppice in the red maple coppice woodland. 

Billhook in hand, ready to liberate branches.

Removed by hand and foot. The practice of coppicing is one of the lowest impact forestry techniques.

Trailer full of coppice poles. 

Using the drawknife to carve red maple for yurt roof poles. 

From simple stick to finished yurt pole! Hand carved red maple coppice poles drying ready for the following year.

We love our sheep! We have a small flock of Rideau and Canadian Arcotts and our ram is a Romney. They give us so much: fibre for our felt panels, protein, lessons in life and death, grassland management, and companionship!

Lambing is always a special time at Little Foot Yurts!

We have a natural spring in our pasture which gives our sheep water in most months.

Our daughter Yara cuddling with a little lamb. 

Our sheep seem to gravitate to the yurts! They have a lot in common.

Onlookers await their turn to be sheared. 

Before and after.

Our daughter holds the freshly shorn fleece. We provide locally made felt panels which are the traditional felt covering of yurts in Central Asia.  

Our sheep fleece is sent out to Harmony Wollen Mills to be felted. Once returned we hem the panels with jute edging and make felt liners for our yurts. 

Extremely durable and hard wearing the felt panles provide a natural, breathable insulation. The felt panels are enclosed by the cotton canvas to protect it from the weather.