A water court behind a timber screen, open to the trees
Process

Approach

Design intent usually dies somewhere between the drawing and the site. Most of what follows exists to close that gap.

THE USUAL ROUTEDesign intentWhat gets builtDrawings issuedContractor appointedSubstitutionsSite decisionsthe gapHOW WE WORKDesign intentWhat gets builtDrawings issuedWe stay appointedSamples approvedStage signed off
The usual route, and the one we work to. Every one of those break points is a moment where what was agreed and what gets built can part company.

What usually happens

  1. Drawings are issued and the architect steps back.
  2. A contractor is appointed and starts pricing.
  3. Materials get swapped for cheaper ones.
  4. More decisions are taken on site, by whoever is standing there.
  5. The finished house is not the house that was drawn.

How we work

  1. Drawings are issued and we stay appointed.
  2. You hold the real samples before anything is ordered.
  3. Each stage is signed off and photographed.
  4. The next trade only starts after that.
  5. The finished house is the house that was drawn.

Nine stages

Nothing here is unusual. What is unusual is doing all of it, in order, every time.

01Listening02Site03Concept04Develop05Material06Drawings07Tender08Construction09HandoverCircled stages are signed off and photographed before the next trade begins
Circled stages are signed off and photographed before the next trade begins.

Nine stages, in order

  1. Brief — in your words, written down.
  2. Site and climate — visited at different times of day.
  3. Concept — two or three real options.
  4. Design development — resolved room by room.
  5. Material — samples in your hand. Signed off.
  6. Drawings and approvals — tender-ready set.
  7. Tender — costs you can compare line by line.
  8. Construction — each stage checked. Signed off.
  9. Handover — snag list closed with you there. Signed off.

The three in bold are signed off and photographed before the next trade starts.

What you receive

Every stage ends in a document, a drawing set or a decision you hold — not in a meeting you were told about afterwards.

Start a conversation

01

Listening

Before anything is drawn we want the brief in your words — how the family actually lives, what the day looks like, what you disliked about the last house you lived in.

You getA written brief we both agree on
02

Site and climate

We visit at different times of day. Orientation, prevailing wind, neighbours, noise, trees, levels, soil, access for a concrete truck. Statutory setbacks and buildable envelope.

You getSite study and feasibility note
03

Concept

Two or three genuinely different options rather than one option and two weak alternatives. Massing, section, light and circulation — not finishes.

You getConcept drawings and massing
04

Design development

The chosen direction is resolved: room by room, wall thickness by wall thickness. Structural and services consultants come in here, not later.

You getDeveloped plans, sections, elevations, area statement
05

Material

Physical samples, not renders. Plaster panels, stone slabs, timber pieces, hardware in the hand. Seen in daylight on site wherever possible.

You getApproved material and finish schedule
06

Drawings and approvals

Working drawings and construction details. Local authority submission and approval support.

You getTender-ready set and sanctioned plans
07

Tender and appointment

Bills of quantity, contractor evaluation, rate comparison. Where we execute, this stage becomes our own costing.

You getTransparent, comparable costs
08

Construction

Stage-wise checks against a fixed list — footing, frame, block work, conduiting, plaster, waterproofing, finish. Each signed off and photographed before the next trade begins.

You getA progress record you receive, not a file we keep
09

Handover

Snagging list closed with you present. Warranties, as-built drawings and maintenance notes handed over as documents.

You getA house you can maintain without calling us
Looking across a courtyard from the hall
Stage 03. Options are tested as whole rooms and whole sections, long before anything is chosen as a finish.
A prayer niche set into its own recess and lit from above
Stage 06. Details are drawn once and built once. A niche like this has no second version.
An arch and a cut screen opening a passage
Stage 08. What the stage gates are for — a junction that still lines up once it is built.

On cost

We would rather have an uncomfortable conversation about budget in month one than a worse one in month nine.

Costs are presented stage-wise and openly, with exclusions written down as clearly as inclusions. Where we execute, work is costed against a bill of quantities you can read line by line rather than as a single number.

If a brief and a budget do not meet, we will say so before you appoint us. That conversation is uncomfortable exactly once.

On site

Stage-wise checks run against a fixed list — footing, frame, block work, conduiting, plaster, waterproofing, finish. Each one is signed off and photographed before the following trade begins, and the record goes to you rather than into a file.

Substitutions need your written agreement. A material does not change because it was quicker to source that week.

Civil execution in detail

A cut timber screen in close detail
Approved in the hand. A screen like this is cut, and the cutting is checked against the drawing.

Most of this only matters once you have a site.

Tell us where it is and what you are hoping to build. We will tell you which stages your project actually needs.

Start a conversation

A living room under an exposed timber roof
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