Some grandparents outfit their backyards with sandboxes, play structures, or tree houses for their grandchildren to enjoy when they visit. Others, like Biology alumnus Randy Pratico ‘74, build a child-size recreation of an iconic location from literature and film.
Long amused by “The Lord Of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” franchises, it was during excavation for roadwork on his property that the retired pharmacist was inspired to convert a complex cliff area of his backyard for the project.
Having been woodworking recreationally since he was 15 years old, Pratico had over 50 years of experience to lean on when it came to planning and building the structure.
“I don’t go by plans. I hate plans,” he said. “So I just kind of built it, you know?”
In the opening lines of “The Hobbit”, published in 1937, author J.R.R. Tolkein wrote: “In a hole in the ground lives a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.”
This spirit of comfort is abundantly present in Pratico’s build. At six-by-eight feet in size, the space exudes a cozy feeling as soon as you lay your eyes on the round cobalt blue door set into deliberately placed stone work. The grassy arched roof evokes not only the Tolkienesque fantasy world but also the sod houses of the 1800s.
In order to create the iconic arched roof, he had to special order marine plywood that could be bent and flexed to the correct angles. Another benefit of marine plywood is that it holds up extremely well against moisture, an important factor for the longevity of the structure as it goes through the freeze-and-thaw cycle of Vermont’s seasons.
Lanterns, stained glass windows, warm-toned Christmas lights, and wooden furniture add to the charm regardless of the season. However, a small space heater gets set up in the winter to ensure it doesn’t get too cold.
“My biggest challenge, of course, was waterproofing. Because when you have grass and dirt on top, you have to be very careful and pay attention to that. So, that was my biggest challenge, but I did get that done pretty well. We haven’t had a leak yet!” he said.
His favorite aspect to work on, however, was the door. He made the creative decision to include stained glass in the door window and believes that it really elevated the aesthetic within the bounds of how a hobbit house traditional is depicted as looking.
How long did it take to complete? Just about three months.
“It took three months to build it because summertime is the worst for me. Because in the humidity, I fall apart. So, I only worked a couple hours in the morning and then I’d just go the next day because it was no big rush,” he said.
Although he considers the project to be complete, there are some small details that Pratico expects he will continue to work on this year. These smaller elements include landscaping and building a small bench so there is space to sit and enjoy the exterior.
Despite the challenges, he found a lot of joy in working on the different aspects of the build.
“It was a great project. It was very detailed, and it was, you know, difficult for sure to figure out a lot of the different things, but it was fun,” he said.
This isn’t his first foray into fantasy design, though. Pratico can be found twice a year at Art in the Park, a semi-annual event in Rutland, Vermont, selling handmade miniature fairy/elf houses. He also admits that the work he’s done on the miniatures likely helped spark some inspiration for the larger project.
“I started doing that probably four years ago, and boy, they’ve really taken off. I’m retired now, so I do only so many a year, but I could do a lot more because there’s a huge demand for them. I did get ideas out of that,” he said.
Ultimately, the main driving force for this project was love the he has for his granddaughter, Harper, who wants to crawl into the hobbit house whenever she comes for a visit.
When asked what would happen to the hobbit house when Harper outgrows it, Pratico said he had yet to plan that far ahead. However, he mentioned that his daughter was expecting another child in September and he hopes that the new grandchild will be able to get good use of it as well.
“The fun is that it’s pretty much entirely made out of rock, pressure-treated solid timbers, and marine plywood, so I think it’ll last quite a while,” he said. “I think it’s something to look forward to for generations ahead.”