“It’s one thing being shown pictures and plans but until you’ve been inside, you can’t appreciate how beautiful and structurally strong oak feels.”

Sarah and Matthew Switzer had built their self build oak frame with Welsh Oak Frame four years earlier. When they later decided to add an oak frame extension they turned to Welsh Oak Frame to come up with the perfect solution that blended seamlessly with the existing property.

From the start, the Switzers viewed their three-bedroom self-build as their ‘forever home’. However, four years later, they found the roof glazing in the single-storey sunroom made the space too hot. This led them to explore the idea of adding a fourth bedroom above. The idea was to build a 2 storey oak framed extension.

We had the wow factor downstairs with the vaulted entrance, but with planning only allowing one-and-a-half storeys upstairs, it didn’t feel the same as the rooms had sloping ceilings,’ says Matt. ‘Fortunately, the sunroom foundations were able to support another storey as we’d been forced to dig deeper than usual due to a large, nearby willow tree.’

Matt and Sarah went back to Welsh Oak, who drew plans to extend out from their dressing room and designed a gable roof with an impressive vaulted ceiling featuring a beautiful oak truss. The change meant their previous bedroom became the guest bedroom and the additional 15sqm is now a spacious master suite. This time, planning sailed through in three months and the build was finished in a similar timeframe.

‘The sunroom is now the kids’ TV room and an unexpected surprise as it has become a much more usable space,’ says Matt. ‘More importantly, Welsh Oak did a great job of making sure the addition didn’t look like an add-on but part of the original house design. After all the years of wanting to build an oak frame cottage, we’re both delighted with our home, which has given us so much character that bricks and mortar just can’t beat.’

‘The sunroom is now the kids’ TV room and an unexpected surprise as it has become a much more usable space,’ says Matt. ‘More importantly, Welsh Oak did a great job of making sure the addition didn’t look like an add-on but part of the original house design. After all the years of wanting to build an oak frame cottage, we’re both delighted with our home and the 2 storey oak framed extension, which has given us so much character that bricks and mortar just can’t beat.’