Cold practice is training on ordinary, non-responsive materials outside a living House. It establishes whether a learner can recognise a loose joint, a warped shutter or a flawed brick without mistaking the House's assistance for personal skill.
Tools and Materials
Cold practice uses ordinary stone, timber, mortar, and batches of brick known not to respond. Learners test load, fit, cooling and sound without relying on the retained habits of a living House. It is especially useful before a corrector is allowed to interpret a responsive seam.
Comparison with Held Lessons
A student who succeeds in a held lesson may still fail on a plain wall; the reverse is possible too. Training traditions disagree about which should come first. Neither result alone grants authority to intervene in a living House.
A Workshop Curiosity
An old apprentice's joke says that a cold wall is the only examiner who never helps with the answer. The joke survives because an ordinary wall can still mislead through damp, settling and poor workmanship.