Surfing and Building in Cornwall

In early January 2018, the team set out for Penzance with a van packed to the rafters with materials (and a couple of surfboards) to build the very first Timber Rooms project of the year. The journey was interesting with 40+mph winds and driving rain, I must admit I thought we were in for a very tricky couple of weeks but the weather never stops us so we were prepared for whatever conditions we may face.

The brief for this project was a 4m x 3m cedar-clad Garden Room with aluminium bi-fold doors. A very popular size and spec which offers a great deal of usable space inside. This building is to be a permanent office for the owner who works for a large global software company. Much of their work requires communication with offices in the US and therefore some unsociable hours, so having an office in the garden where nobody else can be disturbed by long transatlantic phone calls makes perfect sense.

The property is an old converted barn which is packed with character and absolutely stunning. The contrast of the old stonework of the house and surroundings against the vibrant cedar cladding and anthracite grey doors marries beautifully.

The build started well, despite the very strong winds and the team made great progress. In actual working hours, construction took a mere 7 working days but with some solid head-high waves and offshore winds, the team managed to get out on the water 5 times. A testament to the off-site preparation that goes into most of our Garden Rooms. The surf didn’t disappoint, fantastic conditions and on one day we were even joined by a large herd of seals!

With the fully insulated and decorated Garden Room complete, a local electrician connected the building to the mains supply and ran CAT 6 cable for hardwired internet and VOIP telephone system. The result is a fully functional, comfortable and attractive home office that has now been put to productive use.