Dream come true

A couple with no DIY experience decided to take on a self-build and now live in a beautiful oak-framed cottage

- JANE CRITTENDEN

Katy and Alan Pateman found themselves unexpectedly taking on a self-build after a sudden move from their previous home due to problems with neighbours. After temporarily staying with friends in a pretty village on the Blackwater Estuary, they found a plot. But it was in a conservation area with a history of planning refusals and lapsed planning for a specific design. 'Approval had been given for a two-bedroom timber frame cottage, designed to look old with white weatherboarding,' Katy explains. 'Alan and I liked the look of it but were very unsure if a self-build project was for us — we are a couple who didn't even do DIY!'

While debating the idea, the couple did some research. Katy got a quote for a softwood structural frame but thought the cottage would look bland. Friends suggested building in oak.