Background

Here's the deal: I need a place to live. I've always liked timberframe houses, and have always liked building things. So... it seemed logical to try and build my own timberframe house.

Since I really have no idea what I'm doing, I've been reading books on the subject (Building the Timber Frame House by Ted Benson, and A Timber Framer's Workshop by Steve Chappell). Both excellent books by the way.

After reading both books several times, it was time to start designing. I found the very useful and free GOOGLE SKETCHUP online, and proceeded to design with the following basic guidelines:

1. Keep it simple- No super fancy frames, shapes, etc. After all this is my first attempt.
2. Keep the size small, and the costs low.
3. Make the place as nice as possible while meeting the first two objectives.

Using Sketchup- Here is what I came up with:
I'll admit to already having a few changes in mind... but that's OK. I will keep this blog updated as I change things and get them redesigned.

The frame will be 24'x32', and have a master bedroom on the second floor. Other than that, no floor plan is designed at this point.

Since I have no prior timberframing experience, I have ordered only timbers enough to build one bent- if all goes well I will continue. If all does not go well, I'm only out a few hundred dollars, and a lot of my free time. Stay tuned for more pictures and to see how the construction progresses.