DIY self-builds

Discover the different ways these self-builders saved tens of thousands of pounds on their bespoke home building projects

- REBECCA FOSTER

Team effort

Suzanne and her brother John joined forces to build this stunning cedar-clad house in Suffolk. John, a metalworker and engineer, had an “anyone can do anything they want to as long as they’re willing to have a go” ethos. He and Suzanne spent the 18-month build learning as they went, only bringing in professional help when they needed the appropriate certification.

The wedge-shaped building was designed by Matt Plummer, director at Cocoon Architects. “Suzanne and her husband, Steve, got someone in to do the foundations and the brick and blockwork walls up to a level,” says Matt. From there, the timber frame, which was supplied by Frame Technologies, was erected on site by Suzanne, John and a team of others.

“They quickly had a weathertight shell and we provided the details for Suzanne and John to get the house watertight, the window detailing, the cladding, all the insulation and the membranes.” The effective brother-sister team were able to get a lot of the work done themselves, right down to pegging in the cedar shingles.

Getting stuck in

Though the owners of this detached house in Surrey – Jeannette and Ian – chose the package home route, this didn’t prevent them from getting hands-on with some of the work on site in a drive to cut down on their overall costs. The couple worked alongside timber frame provider Scandia-Hus to track down a plot for their bespoke home, as well as using the company for the design and build components of the project.