During our studio visit to Norfolk this Monday we discussed what a sustainable, craft-led way of building homes might be. Can we find an approach that doesn’t rely on the supply chains we use by default? Something that is more intuitive, local, and connected? Something that is more akin, perhaps, to how things were built prior to industrialization: a look at intuitive building techniques that use what exists in the vicinity, forming a proposal around it.

Our latest project – newly permitted – is the extension and reorganization of a family home on the North Norfolk coast. Set within a collection of brick and flint buildings in the Norfolk vernacular, it occupies an isolated position, surrounded by fields, looking down the Glaven Valley. Originally just a three-sided courtyard, a new 6-bedroom house and 'barn room’ were built to the south in the early 1970s. The building replicates the neighbouring red brick quoins and flint rubble infill, although in a way that doesn’t convey the same material sensitivity or care in their putting together.

Departing from this approach, our current response is one of contrast, as we work on adding a wrapping veranda, two extensions, and improving the flow of the living quarters and communal space to the outdoors. The client is open to exploring new materials and – as Norfolk is a flat, agricultural and timber landscape – we have taken a leap and tested an entirely-timber buildup.

How far we can push timber? How many ways can it perform, be used, finished, and connected? But also what other petro-chemical products materials can we do without? We found that an insulated timber-stud with wood-fibre with an internal layering of lime/wood wool/OSB and an external wood fibre sarking board/ventilated shingles exceeds thermal resistance targets, is adaptable AND performs in place of membranes! Only the woodfibre and OSB are imported products, but the cut timber studs and shingles can be sourced locally, and the tree itself chosen whilst still alive, cut on site to exact lengths.

Working with Sam Jensen Sawmill, we propose taking our timber shopping list into sustainably-managed local woodlands and picking specific trees suitable for our uses – those that need to be thinned to allow others to flourish – and removed by horse rather than motor so the land is not harmed by over-compaction.

The process of picking the organic element that best suits our needs brings with it the identity of the place in which it is grown, and the knowledge of all the chemical and biological exchanges that comes with growth. It also allows us to use timber in such a way that exposed columns visibly derive from the same community of trees. The clear presence and celebration of the tree in the final architectural element clearly embodies our position toward what we should value the most.

For our project, we are considering a variety of native species: Larch for internal studs, Douglas Fir for exposed studs, and Cedar for the shingles. We are wide-eyed with excitement thinking about how these wonderful materials can be used in established and new ways.

Article first published to LinkedIn, 2 November 2023.

Departing from this approach, our current response is one of contrast, as we work on adding a wrapping veranda, two extensions, and improving the flow of the living quarters and communal space to the outdoors. The client is open to exploring new materials and – as Norfolk is a flat, agricultural and timber landscape – we have taken a leap and tested an entirely-timber buildup.

How far we can push timber? How many ways can it perform, be used, finished, and connected? But also what other petro-chemical products materials can we do without? We found that an insulated timber-stud with wood-fibre with an internal layering of lime/wood wool/OSB and an external wood fibre sarking board/ventilated shingles exceeds thermal resistance targets, is adaptable AND performs in place of membranes! Only the woodfibre and OSB are imported products, but the cut timber studs and shingles can be sourced locally, and the tree itself chosen whilst still alive, cut on site to exact lengths.

Working with Sam Jensen Sawmill, we propose taking our timber shopping list into sustainably-managed local woodlands and picking specific trees suitable for our uses – those that need to be thinned to allow others to flourish – and removed by horse rather than motor so the land is not harmed by over-compaction.

The process of picking the organic element that best suits our needs brings with it the identity of the place in which it is grown, and the knowledge of all the chemical and biological exchanges that comes with growth. It also allows us to use timber in such a way that exposed columns visibly derive from the same community of trees. The clear presence and celebration of the tree in the final architectural element clearly embodies our position toward what we should value the most.

For our project, we are considering a variety of native species: Larch for internal studs, Douglas Fir for exposed studs, and Cedar for the shingles. We are wide-eyed with excitement thinking about how these wonderful materials can be used in established and new ways.

Article first published to LinkedIn, 2 November 2023.