“I love structure that is gorgeous, and the timber work on this project is form and function at its best,” says Kevin Beland of Wood and Clay Fine Homes.
There are three buildings located on the expansive New Hampshire compound where two new timber frame structures will be raised. The property includes the client’s main home, a new garage, and a new timber frame party barn. While the client’s main living quarters is getting an update from Wood and Clay, the two new structures are being raised to complete a master plan that mimics the existing aesthetic detailing found around the property.
“The idea is that all of the structures are going to speak to each other. We try to have things have logic to them,” says Beland. “The garage sits between the main house and the party barn. The garage and barn are brand-new buildings and we’re giving the main house a facelift to bring it together with the other structures.
Shannon Robinson-Beland, co-owner of Wood and Clay, adds, “The party barn is going to be a family space for entertaining. There will be a ping-pong table, a lounge area, and a bar. Just like the name says, it’s a party barn! Adjacent to that structure there is a garage where there will be a few of the client’s favorite cars on display and an additional gym space. The garage space is more functional but still has a high level of finish both in terms of the timbers, the butternut siding on the walls and stained wood details on the ceiling.”
Owen MacDonald, New Energy Works Head of New Energy Works of Timber Framing shared, “Between the main house and the garage there are eight fairly identical structural bent trusses. The garage has an exterior timber frame porch with a cool sliced and curved eyebrow, similar to what we did at Arcadia National Park, but on a smaller scale.”
“Then in the barn…there’s A LOT of timber work. We did over a dozen grain-matched glulam curves, including three in the great room area, and six on the exterior. This is the most glulam curves we’ve done on a project in a long time. There’s also a large bar with a wraparound top that ties into the timber frame and above the main section of the bar there’s this big keyed beam. A beautiful double stack with rectangular walnut keys that contrast to the Doulgas fir timbers.”
In addition to the abundance of specialized timbers, are the custom details and finishes that thematically connect the structures. “The clients wanted a lighter timber frame, and the main house’s existing timber had an oil finish that had been refinished a few times. So, anything that we would do to the new buildings wouldn’t match,” shared MacDonald. “So, we ended up with a natural oil finish on the interior and a darker pigment on the exterior. This way the new buildings would better match the existing finish on the house.”
Robinson-Beland says, “On this particular project, the timbers were a more straight forward traditional finish, but the ceiling was something else. We’ve worked with New Energy Works on custom finishes before so we knew they would be able to take our samples from a previous project and put together something that worked for this one.”
“Our previous project had a cedar ceiling with a kind of green tinted wash. Cedar lead times are long, and prices are through the roof, so we didn’t want to recommend that to the client. We thought that pine would be more budget friendly and sent some samples of the existing ceiling over to New Energy Works and Pioneer Millworks. They were able to create a color on the pine that the client really liked.”
“When we are trying to convince a client on who to work with, New Energy Works’ specialty of custom finishes is what puts them above the rest. Twenty years ago, every timber frame that went up was just Douglas fir, no real expectations beyond oil. But now, clients want to see something different. We were just wow’d by the finishes on the first project we did with New Energy Works. It was charred and brushed Shou Sugi Ban, and we loved the finish. The stained pine ceiling Pioneer Millworks nailed. And I hadn’t seen New Energy Works grain-matched laminated glulam arches before, and they came out so amazingly well. The client is super stoked.”
Along with the timber frame, custom finish colors, and T&G, New Energy Works was able to supply the SIP roof panels to top off the project.
Beland explains, “You can’t get a better insulated roof than a SIP insulated roof. You have this beautiful structure that you are highlighting inside and the outside we have SIP panels that are giving us a much better conflating performance factor. It’s the best of both worlds.”
There’s nothing else that we love to hear more than that our client’s goals have been met and surpassed. Collaborating with our partners and translating concepts into legacy structures are the foundational tenets for our development of high craft buildings.
“When I tell people about Wood & Clay, I say that our subcontractors ARE Wood & Clay.” Beland explained. “We like to work with partners who can deliver quality and consistency to our clients. Early on in the design process New Energy Works is back and forth with the architect and I have no concerns that the overlay of one plan to another isn’t going to work. The architect, New Energy Works, and the rest of the team worked together flawlessly.”
“The client, who is also in the industry, made sure to tell me how professional the crews were and how amazing it was to see everyone work seamlessly on site. We had to pour a foundation while New Energy Works had their crane and were setting the trusses—but it just worked perfectly.”
“The fact that the guys got the project erected in 3-4 days is a testament to New Energy Works and their efficiency. That’s why we keep going back to New Energy Works. It’s that way from start to the finish—from the design to the installation. When I need support on a project, during or after, all I need to do is reach out to you guys and it’s like, ‘How can we problem solve this?’ It starts off with engineering and Owen’s ability to work seamlessly with the architects. New Energy Works has the heavy timber, steel, lighting, structure—everybody needs to speak with everybody. It’s a lot, but it’s like you guys are part of the team.”
Architect: Battle Architects
General Contractor: Wood and Clay Fine Homes
