Sunday, February 21, 2010

Timber Frames

I am presently reading The Timber Frame Home by Tedd Benson. This book is terrific, but not light reading. Benson is a part-poet, designer, and builder who argues convincingly about the awesomeness of timber frame homes: their sturdiness, architectural appeal, and longevity. He introduces the novice to the numerous facets of design and nomenclature, and in doing so, brings the craft to life.

Presently, I am dreaming about adding a modest addition to our house, which will increase our home's living area and give us room to grow. Our house is cozy and we love it, but eventually we'll need more space. I am planning now so that we can work towards something that is not only functional, but hopefully beautiful.

The other side of this is that one day I would like to build a modest-size, cabin-syle house from scratch as an investment and then sell it. It would be small in scale, but beautiful. In fact, it is much easier to build from scratch than to work with an existing, imperfect structure, but that's another topic. A couple of custom houses and I think I could retire comfortably. But to be honest, I don't know where I'd find the time.

Speaking of which, I think I better get something done on our house...

Peace Out,

--Nick-Dog

2 comments:

Martin Schap said...

Annie and I dream of building a small house if we ever find the right land. Agreed that I'd rather just build than do extensive remodeling, unless the existing structure has so much character that you just have to keep it.

Nick-dog said...

That really sounds awesome. We are in the latter situation, and it is worth it, despite so many challenges that always seem to arise.

--Nick