Thoughts from the owner as for the choice of oak, and Oakwrights......

We were building in a conservation area in the garden of a listed C16th building, so we wanted to build something that would appear traditional enough to harmonise with surrounding buildings and minimise planning and local objections. we wanted to build a very contemporary open plan house with lots of light and space (the house is mainly glass at the rear). Oak framing gives one the unique opportunity to achieve all of these objectives and we are very pleased with the end result, a lovely house that will last for centuries, bright and roomy inside but with but with every modern technology and convenience built into the design.

We looked at the market and chose Oakwrights for three principle reasons. Firstly they gave you the opportunity of a genuine custom build, to do exactly what you want for your site and your requirements. Some of the competitors claimed custom but tried hard to push you to one of their standard models and then emphasised the costs of changing or amending that standard. Secondly I liked the precision finish to each piece of oak that they can achieve with the direct link between the CAD design and their huge NC cutting machines. It makes for a (relatively) easy and speedy build once delivered to site, and it does mean if there is a mistake or one rejects a particular piece after delivery that they can reproduce the piece within 48 hours delivered to site. Thirdly we spoke with a local developer who had used Oakwrights. They had a good reputation for service and seemed approachable. It is inevitable during a build that you hit unforeseen problems, and we were no exception. Oakwrights response was always positive and speedy and problems were remedied without question.

My only reservation is that as a first time self builder not all aspects of the design detail were immediately obvious and Oakwrights did not in my view provide sufficient guidance in explaining design detail options that might be obvious to them but not to an inexperienced eye. Now that they have a completed show house it will be much easier for prospective clients to go along and decide by looking what design elements they do or do not wish to include.

Now that the house is complete we are enjoying the comfort and character of our oak framed home.

< Back to Case Studies