| All Her Own Work - Timber Windows and Doors |
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Judith Rundle-Jones took a hands-on approach to the construction of her new five-bed home and is particularly proud of her Broxwood timber windows and doors. It is rare that ‘selfbuilder’ means exactly that – right down to digging the foundations. Rarer still that the selfbuilder is a woman, with no previous experience of building whatsoever. Yet Judith Rundle-Jones has managed to build a five bedroom, high specification home with massive attention to detail for £1250 per square metre. How on earth did she do it – and why? “It was something Judith has always wanted to do, for years and years,” explains her husband, David. “She was even driving dumper trucks around.”
Judith, who was hands-on with everything except the roof, the kitchen fitting, the timber frame and the final plumbing and electrical connections, laughs at the memory. “I had no experience at all, just lots of theoretical knowledge“ she admits. “I really enjoyed it. It was really exciting, really daunting. It is a beautiful feeling to create something and was a dream of mine for ages.” Their house, appropriately named Tor View thanks to its location on the southern fringe of Dartmoor a few miles from Plymouth, is the replacement for a previous building on the site.
“It took us five or six months to find the plot,” says David. When they found their half acre, it was already occupied by a very shabby 1960s bungalow which, amazingly, the Dartmoor National Park Authority were determined to keep, granting only permission for renovation and extension. “It was such an eyesore!” laughs David, but the couple decided to buy it anyway, taking a chance on gaining permission for replacement at a later date. It was a gamble that paid off fairly quickly, after lots of dialogue with both the local authority and the parish council about materials. Judith then spent the next ten months clearing the site. Once the bungalow was demolished and removed and the twenty huge conifers grubbed up and sold for logs, Judith got to work pegging and setting out, taking the soil away and finding the levels with a hired theodolite. “I had to read up a bit, admits Judith, “but the whole idea was to learn, that’s why it took so long.”A civil engineer came in to oversee the work, but otherwise Judith was on her own except for their 18 year old son, James, who assisted her throughout the build and gained useful industry qualifications from CITB along the way.
The exterior is rendered blockwork to the lower elevations and Scandinavian Redwood cladding to the first storey. Inside, the attention to detail is impressive. It is a high specification build, with a heat recovery system, a central vacuum, underfloor heating and an integrated ceiling audio system. Judith’s favourite feature, however, is the plate warmer in a kitchen that really makes an impact with high gloss cabinets and granite and oak worktops. Design was something Judith had a hand in, of course, working on it with their architect to create a home that is light and spacious. LEFT: The timber balcony has glazed panels and steel cables. Norwegian-made
This decision was made because Judith had another aim in mind when she was designing Tor View other than good design and quality. “If you have an elderly parent, or a disabled child, it is important for them to be included, which is more possible if they are on the same level as the rest of the family,” she says, thinking of her own mother, who had spent two years living ‘upstairs’. As a result, there are superb disabled facilities in the house, including a ground floor bedroom, with en suite wet room and central call bell system. It is ironic, however, that the first person who had need for such facilities was Judith herself. After spending some time in Borneo at her brother’s wedding, Judith was struck down by a tropical virus that put her in hospital for several weeks, followed by three months in a wheelchair. Fortunately, the build was virtually complete, with some finishing left to tackle on the detached garage, so the enforced halt to work wasn’t too demoralising, or time critical. With the final works completed by September 2006, Judith and David have now had time to relax and reflect on the experience of building Tor View. “I love the fact that it is bright and upbeat, that it flows, is moderately contemporary and still harmonious,” says Judith. But what lessons they have they taken away from it? “You can feel quite alone, it’s quite onerous,” Judith remembers. “There’s lots of reading and talking to people, lots of homework.” Those lessons would include a tighter schedule, she tells me, and better planning and ordering.
So, there is going to be a next time? “Definitely!” they both agree. Judith is already keen to put her new skills to the test again. “I love this house but we would like to move closer to the water and I would like to re-create something similar; something spacious, with as much light as possible.” So what does she feel about the challenges of the project? ”Being a woman certainly threw up its own issues occasionally but considering the primitive way we did it, I don’t think we did too badly!” she smiles. Looking for timber windows and doors?
Judith’s favourite part of the house. The garden room with timber sliding doors opening out onto the garden.
The spacious master bedroom has vaulted ceilings and beautiful timber french doors onto a balcony with valley views.
Large timber windows in the lounge add to the feeling of space and light.
With thanks to SelfBuild&Design magazine. |
Left: Judith getting her hands dirty, something she 
“I’m very proud of him (James) for that,” says Judith “It’s quite an achievement. It was a big project and we had to be exact.” The property uses a timber frame, supplied by TruHomes of Exeter, which was erected in a couple of weeks.
The Scandinavian timber windows and doors which she sourced from Broxwood, are something Judith is particularly proud of. “They are lovely; simple…I wanted to bring in as much light as possible.” They also tilt and turn, for easy cleaning from inside and are large enough to be set low, making the wonderful views available to anyone who, for example, may be in a wheelchair. 
They would also include serious consideration of the workload of the selfbuilder:“It is difficult to source materials, project manage and be hands-on. It’s almost three jobs, plus reading and learning. I would pay for help next time.”
