A trainee timber designer’s first solo project.
Approx. 2 min read
Tell us more about what you have been learning and doing so far at OSO.
My first days were focused on getting to grips with the fundamentals of the role and the imposing figure that is Dietrich’s. Initially, the concept of working with CAD had seemed alien and prohibitive due to our lack of acquaintance. I had briefly worked with AUTOCAD many moons ago whilst studying Graphic Design at college and had found it a tough competitor. The key difference between then and now has been the subject matter – no longer making mundane game board boxes but conceiving detailed and complex structures, similar to those I had pondered over whenever out on my travels.
But, more importantly, having an engaging and supportive teacher has allowed me to delve into a new profession with an open mind. This time was particularly tough as I jumped head-first into a three-door barn project. Getting my head around 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional spaces, with the flurry of lines darting around the screen, denoting the different beams and joinery, felt like being surrounded by a foreign language at times. But it’s amazing how intuitive the software is, and with gentle guidance from Jordan, it has been incredible to feel the pieces of the puzzle clicking into place. To see the building ‘grow’ before my very eyes, whilst also knowing we play an integral role in the development process, along with the architects, engineers, and traditional oak framers who complete the team, is hugely gratifying.
Have you created anything by yourself yet?
I started to work on my own “dream space” as a warm-up exercise. Whilst initially, I conjured images of castles atop craggy cliffs, or tree houses nestled in the welcoming eaves of a mighty oak, I settled for something eminently more achievable for a trainee timber designer, but no less exciting - at least to me! I have always loved the idea of a workspace surrounded by the sounds and scents of nature, and had often thought, that if ever I had a big enough garden, I would create something that was embedded within the space, working with nature, rather than against it.
So, with this idea in mind, I started to flesh out what would and wouldn’t be feasible; checking planning permissions, existing concepts for similar outhouses, standardised measurements until I was comfortable that my idea could work. The design I went for was a 4.5m x 3.5m, with a 1m roof overhang to the front, creating a covered veranda area for seating and plants. I liked the idea of a mono-pitch roof with large, glazed windows up to the eaves, providing an interrupted view and allowing light to flood into the space. Incorporating an environmentally sensitive structure was paramount to me, so a green roof seemed like the logical choice. And I have always been mesmerised by places of worship and the associated architecture, for which I decided to have braces featuring prominently, akin to gazing down the nave of a cathedral.
The final items on the to-do list were the rendering and technical drawings using both SketchUp and Dietrich’s. Sketchup is perfect for adding rendered layers to the image, fleshing out the design, and giving it a more realistic aura, extremely helpful when showing an eager client how their desired structure is going to look. It was great fun tailoring the details for the garden room and bringing it to life with objects from a wealth of options from the SketchUp library database. I could have spent days delving into the myriad of possibilities, but with time constraints ever looming, settled on the design you can see in the above images.
To round it all off, the technical drawings were drafted up, depicting the key measurements of the space, ensuring that the structure conforms to all of the necessary specifications, extremely important when running the clients and engineers through the details.
With the drawings completed and sent off to the client, hopefully for the thumbs up (in this instance, all theoretical of course!), we move onto the next job; liaising with clients, pouring over plans, framing designs in the software, all whilst plotting the next steps in my training. The journey continues…
Written by Tom Gibbs