THE COOPER RETREAT
1. DESIGN: Architecture by (BTL) Brandenburger, Taylor Lambardo and Associates. Preliminary design developed by Martine Paquin. Frame design by Timber Creations. Interior Decorating by Georgia Edwards. Executive design decisions by Mr. and Mrs. Cooper.
Located in a secluded Sonoma county valley, this weekend getaway home is surrounded by vineyards and vistas.
One bedroom and a guesthouse, the home will be used for entertainment and retreat.
2. THE GREAT ROOM: A view from the foyer, the great room opens itself with panache. During frame design we put forward many options for the Coopers, who made it clear, they wanted to build something that had not been done before.
Working within the parameters of the architectural shape provided, we designed a hammer beam truss used in an unconventional ‘principal-purlin’ configuration. Between the purlin trusses are standard trusses at a 6/12 pitch, common rafters are spanning from purlin truss to wall plates at 9/12 pitch.
The hammer beam purlin trusses are spanning 32’ and providing the support for the entire structure with a tile roof. 
3. OTHER FRAMING: In addition to the great room; Timber Creations provided the framing for the entry and foyer, post and plate sections that outline the garage doors and the guesthouse, and support brackets under the eaves.
All timber is reclaimed Douglas fir with our TC rough sawn texture applied to the surface. Cabot stain was used on both interior and exterior beams.
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THE CARTER HOUSE
1. EXTERIOR ELEVATION:Shown above are Leif Calvin and his son, Gabriel, in the front yard of the Carter house. Designed here at Timber Creations, and based on a farmhouse vernacular, the Carter house uses a large porch space and rough sawn timber to capture an informal, relaxed atmosphere of the country setting. Resting on 3.5 acres with horses, the home is only 2100 sq. ft. but boasts 1600 sq. ft. of deck space. With 3 bedrooms 2.5 bathrooms, an office, library, walk-in pantry and walk-in closets for the master bedroom, this floor plan feels much larger than it is. Designed without a formal dining room, the kitchen and living room are separated by a large country table.
2. THE GALLERY: From inside the living room, the stair (railing is on left side of photo) takes you to two bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor. The open hall here is 6’ wide, providing enough space for children to play.
3. THE LIVING ROOM:The view from the living room displays the white washed, rough sawn timber, and framing styles from the past. Notice the integration of heavy timber-frame elements with mortise-and-tenon joinery, and the exposed lighter framing of joists with late 19th century style cross bracing. To keep an open feel in the house, one of the interior walls of the library is made of recycled windows. This cuts down on sound and allows for a “getaway” space, yet maintains the open and informal feel of the design.
4. THE MASTER BEDROOM: Designed for morning people, this room floods with morning light, filtered through redwood trees and a field of grape vines. During afternoon and evening, the west facing space, with the 10’ covered porch also provides a wonderful space to sit outside away from the summer heat. You may also notice the roof pitch in this room is lower than in the public spaces; this helps create a more intimate feel.
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CLOUD RIDGE CABIN
1. THE PROJECT: Located in the hills outside of Healdsburg, California, cloud ridge cabin built by the Isaacs family is an off-grid home. Chris Humann of East Bay Design provided the architectural design. The layout and orientation of the home was situated to maximize the active solar gain in the roof solar panels and the passive solar aspects of radiant concrete floors. The home also takes advantage of the north-facing “summer space” that provides a cool
shaded place to be during extreme heat. 
2. LAYOUT: A simple home, designed for a retired couple to have a space to share holidays in the woods with grandchildren. The home was designed with one bedroom and a loft that provides a “bunkhouse” area for visiting family. The “summer space” on the west face provides a shaded area with lounging space, an outdoor shower, and an outdoor kitchen. Inside the main house and below the loft is a dining room, family room, reading nook and full kitchen.
3. THE ISSACS: The Issacs have made this property a labor of love for the past 20 years. It has served as a place to escape the city, camp out, and spend time with family. During construction the Issacs where involved in all stages; acting as general contractor, opting to do there own electrical work, and supplying material from the trees on the site for use in some of the framing, trim work and siding.
4. MATERIALS: During design it was decided to use smaller sized timbers to keep the budget in check. Most posts are 6x6 or 6x8, the rafters are 4x8 and the top plates are 6x10. All the timber is FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) Certified. FSC provides a “chain of custody” insuring that the timber is managed, forested, harvested, milled and delivered in a sustainable environment. We applied a coat of Natural Watco oil to the frame. The ceiling is covered with Western Red Cedar 2x6 T&G, and the walls are mostly gypsum wallboard. The wood floor covers the upper floors while the lower main floor is a radiant concrete slab finished and stained by the owners. The summer space was framed with timbers and siding supplied from trees on the site.
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THE HELMS RESIDENCE
1. EXTERIOR ELEVATION: Located just outside of Bend Oregon the Helms residence was designed by Bruce Rosenquist of Rosenquest Design. The frame was a collaboration of Earthwood homes and Timber Creations; Earthwood provided the contractural relationship and design and Timber creations provided the frame production and raising.
2. MATERIALS: The Helms frame was cut from reclaimed Douglas fir timber. The joinery and timber edge details use a 3/8” radius to soften the lines and accent the joinery. We also pre-cut all our oak dowels and put a small radius on them to blend in with the round over theme. The finish is smooth sanded and oiled with natural Watco Oil.
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NICKEL AND NICKEL WINERY
1. WHY: Some who take the tour of the Nickel and Nickel winery call it a theme park of barns. Originally the land had a landmark house and two historic barns. The winery wanted to retain the agricultural heritage so the main fermentation building (above) was designed to look and feel like it had been on the property for years. The rustic handcrafted frame is intended to contrast with the new high-tech stainless steel fermentation equipment and catwalks.
2. DETAILS: At right is the entry to the main fermentation building; this area is called the Crush shed. The crush shed is the staging area where grapes are received and the processing of wine begins with the crushing of the grapes. The Posts are 12x12s, the rafters are 6x10s on 8’ centers and the purlins are 4x4s. We used a traditional Dutch anchor beam with principal plate sections that have swing beams to help with the open span. This crush area is open on three sides and has an open footprint of 48’x32’.
Inside the main barn you will find the same Dutch anchor beams however, these anchor beams are made of 34’-16x22 inch beams.
The natural patina on the timbers was key to the design process. We wanted the timber frame to look as natural as possible with an aged look. Finding 40,000 bd ft. of timber with the proper size and a similar patina took more than a year to source. 
We pulled material from all over the west coast: Vancouver, Canada to SanDiago, CA.
At left is day 4 of the raising. One of the principal 16x16 posts being flown into place.
3. CONTACT INFO:
Nickel and Nickel
www.nickelandnickel.com
BTL and Associates
www.btl-arch.com
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CHATEAU ST. JEAN
Chateau St. Jean makes fine wines from their own Sonoma Valley grapes, near Kenwood, CA. In 1999, they chose Paragon Construction to build them a new wine tasting room. 
Paragon Construction, in turn, challenged us to build 6 custom timber trusses to support the roof of the tasting room.The project architects specifically identified Washington, D.C.’s Library of Congress as the aesthetic target for our trusses.
We responded with several options, and designs to solve the problem of building traditional wood trusses to support a heavy tile roof across a 48’ span, in a high seismic zone. We met the challenge by hiding steel knife plates and 60 one-inch diameter bolts in each truss.
Upon fabrication in our Santa Rosa shop, we coordinated for a local finishing company to apply cabinet-grade finish to our pre-built trusses. We then delivered the trusses to the job site, where we concluded our work by installing the trusses atop the framed walls of the tasting-room-to-be.
We are especially grateful to our sister company, Earthwood homes, of Oregon, for supplying the extraordinarily high-quality timber for this project (timber of this quality is unavailable on the open market). We also thank Earthwood Homes for their assistance throughout installation of the trusses.
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TRUSSES
TRUSS: A network of timbers forming a ridged support structure; ideally, all members of the truss behave in either compression of tension, none in bending. Trusses are used to span distances impractical for solid members, or to support unusual loads.
There are many standard configurations for trusses and many variations for custom truss work. Custom work is our specialty, so if your project is unique we can help develop creative solutions.
HAMMER BEAM TRUSS
A roof bracket consisting of an interrupted tie beam projecting from the top of a wall and supporting a roof truss. A complete hammer beam roof frame permits a large roof span made of relatively short timbers.
Originally from Europe the hammer beam truss has gained popularity in modern American framing. Its complex joinery and vaulted timber work makes for a beautiful display. (below-Modified Hammer Beam) (right- typical Hammer Beam)
SCISSOR TRUSS
Distinct from other major truss types, the scissor has a two-member tie beam, or bottom chord, with each member bearing on a wall and restraining the principal rafter, then rising at an angle to cross the other rising tie and terminate near the midpoint of the opposite principal rafter.
The appeal of this truss is in its arched form that helps to open up ceilings. Traditionally the scissor truss has been the truss of choice for churches with exposed beam ceilings.
KING POST TRUSS
In a truss, (the king post is) the central, vertical member extending from the tie beam (or lower chord) to the peak and receiving the upper ends of the rafters (or upper chords).
The king post truss is the most prevalent among truss configurations. Because of its simple layout, it is the most economically priced.
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CHATEAU ST. JEAN
Chateau St. Jean makes fine wines from their own Sonoma Valley grapes, near Kenwood, CA. In 1999, they chose Paragon Construction to build them a new wine tasting room. Paragon Construction, in turn, challenged us to build 6 custom timber trusses to support the roof of the tasting room.The project architects specifically identified Washington, D.C.’s Library of Congress as the aesthetic target for our trusses.
We responded with several options, and designs to solve the problem of building traditional wood trusses to support a heavy tile roof across a 48’ span, in a high seismic zone. We met the challenge by hiding steel knife plates and 60 one-inch diameter bolts in each truss.
Upon fabrication in our Santa Rosa shop, we coordinated for a local finishing company to apply cabinet-grade finish to our pre-built trusses. We then delivered the trusses to the job site, where we concluded our work by installing the trusses atop the framed walls of the tasting-room-to-be.
We are especially grateful to our sister company, Earthwood homes, of Oregon, for supplying the extraordinarily high-quality timber for this project (timber of this quality is unavailable on the open market). We also thank Earthwood Homes for their assistance throughout installation of the trusses.
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1. THE PROJECT: Acting as the focal point of a large scale landscape plan, the Dillon trellis serves as a shaded patio for the pool, spa and barbeque area. Located in Calistoga California the landscape design was engineered by Jonathan Plant and Associates. By 2006 the ivy plants should provide a complete canopy over the frame.
2. MATERIALS: Bases on costs, availability and quality of material, the Dillon trellis uses clear B Western Red Cedar timber. The trellis was constructed with 10x10 posts, 10x12 plates and 3x8 rafters. The ridge beam is a 34’ 8x14, and contains two of the only knots we could find in this order of cedar supplied from Vancouver Island, Canada.
3. FINISH:Due to the plant canopy it was decided to leave the timber natural and to forgo stains, oils or other finishes that would require refinishing and maintenance. To insure an even weathering the TC rough-sawn texture was applied to the beams.
4. THE TOPPING OUT: In the image below, Mr. Dillon drives home the final trunnel of the frame and in doing so signals the beginning of the topping out fest. Each frame is blessed with a poem and a celebration of all the parties involved in the creation of the project, from designers and engineers to builders and owners.
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1. THE CHALLENGE: Located in a private valley in Marin county California, the pool house has views of the San Francisco bay. Project Architect, Herbert D. Kosovitz came to us requesting help with elimination of exposed metal brackets the structural engineer had specified in the plans. Upon review, we felt this was not only possible, but we could also help built the trellis and conceal all of the wiring required for the lights as well.
2. THE FRAME: The roof of the pool house is built with reclaimed Douglas fir timber. Its four valley rafters are 22’-8x14s and the jack rafters are 5x9s. Each jack rafter is fully housed into the ridge beams and the valley rafters. The walls were built with standard 2x6 stud frame construction; hence our work begins at the 8’ plate height, with the exception of the two center posts that support the main ridge beam. The ceiling is decked with rough-sawn, clear, vertical grain, Douglas fir, with a green tint Cabot stain.
Out side, the trellis is built with select heart redwood. The pergola (hipped structure shown at left) has an 8x10 band plate with interlocking joinery that holds the hip rafters from spreading; this allows the elimination of center supports and tie beams. 
With 4x8 rafters and 3x4 perlins the network of beams will eventually be covered with foliage. Lighting wires are concealed in the perlins and gas lines, for the heaters, are hidden in the 8x10 plates.
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1. PRELIMINARY DESIGN: Based on the trellis TC built for this Napa estate in 2003 the pool house is being designed with both traditional and modern elements. Chris Humann of East Bay Design and Architecture has been developing the plan in partnership with TC. The design is based on proportions and details of traditional Japanese teahouses blended with cutting edge materials and amenities.
2. THE FRAME: The frame will be build with clear Western Red Cedar. The joinery will be based on oriental designs, and the detailing will be based on work by Architects Charles and Henry Greene. We hope to have this project complete by the end August 2005.
3. LAYOUT: The frame footprint is only 12’ X 18’ however the space will provide an out-door shower, a changing and bathroom, a storage room and a small kitchenette.
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HISTORICAL
1. PEDIGREE: Toad hall is a frame originally built in Suffolk England during the 1480’s; 10 years later Columbus sailed to America. Dismantled in 1978, the frame was left in a heap for 15 years. My clients; working overseas, fell in love with English architecture and purchased the frame without knowing what it would look like. Faith and positive expectations was a driving force behind this project from the first days the owners began planning. Named after a home in the book “Wind in the willows” Toad Hall has all the history and character of a classic. In 1994 the frame was export to California and found its new life in the heart of wine country.
2. RECONSTRUCTION: As you may imagine, a building with this history and character was not going to be a typical project to under take. The Owners played a major role during construction. Always making the decisions that would keep the frame honest and the integrity of the “black and white” in tack. Blue prints where tossed in the trash and each day new details were developed, faxed to our engineer for approval, and saved for our local building officials records. Today as you approach the house you must first cross one of 3 bridges over the moat that surrounds the home to reach an entry door.
3. POINTS OF INTEREST: Originally built with “wattle and daub” – a mix of clay, straw, mud, cow dung, horse hair and any other material available to add, the new home had to retain the half timbered look with beams exposed on the interior as well as the exterior yet meet California seismic code. To this end each panel was scribe fit with plywood and gypsum board.
Once inside you will notice the chandeliers are not electric fixtures but attached to ropes so that they may be lowered to light the candles. Modern appliances are only found hidden behind cabinets. Even the floor was painstakingly hand made from old kiln shelves. The Owners took the time to make period artwork stamps to imprint the tiles and re-fire them. In the back room you can find tiles dedicated to love ones and to the principle builders who helped shape the project.
The material is a mix of many varieties of Ash and Oak. The timber surfaces, show the 500 years of age, however the cross section reveals wood as stable and solid as the day it was built. Some members did not make our standards of structural integrity; these timbers were replaced with local Douglas fir, making clear witch members were replaced during our reconstruction.
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TESTIMONIALS
“The magnificent timber-frame structure you designed and built for us will give us tremendous pleasure for many years to come and to our children for many more.”
Cecile Isaacs: 11/02/03
“I have no doubt that I am getting what I'm paying for-professional, quality work. That's why I hired you guys. I talked with a lot of timber companies before I chose TC. If you say it's going to cost "X" amount to do something then I trust you with that. That trust was not there for a lot of the other companies I talked to.”
Greg Meader 5/3/05
“You are already beyond the call of duty...Thanks a million”
Paul Campion 6/15/05
“This looks terrific, thanks for all of your great work.”
John Cooper: 12/3/03
“Thanks for those magnificent trusses you built for our house.”
Todd Everett: 8/06/03
“You have exceeded my expectations” “It warms the cockels of my heart”
Gill Nickel 5/18/02
“We could not be happier - the timber work is outstanding”
Katie Cooper: 12/15/03
2. MATERIALS: Bases on costs, availability and quality of material, the Dillon trellis uses clear B Western Red Cedar timber. The trellis was constructed with 10x10 posts, 10x12 plates and 3x8 rafters. The ridge beam is a 34’ 8x14, and contains two of the only knots we could find in this order of cedar supplied from Vancouver Island, Canada.
3. FINISH:Due to the plant canopy it was decided to leave the timber natural and to forgo stains, oils or other finishes that would require refinishing and maintenance. To insure an even weathering the TC rough-sawn texture was applied to the beams.
4. THE TOPPING OUT: In the image below, Mr. Dillon drives home the final trunnel of the frame and in doing so signals the beginning of the topping out fest. Each frame is blessed with a poem and a celebration of all the parties involved in the creation of the project, from designers and engineers to builders and owners.
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THE DREVER POOL HOUSE
1. THE CHALLENGE: Located in a private valley in Marin county California, the pool house has views of the San Francisco bay. Project Architect, Herbert D. Kosovitz came to us requesting help with elimination of exposed metal brackets the structural engineer had specified in the plans. Upon review, we felt this was not only possible, but we could also help built the trellis and conceal all of the wiring required for the lights as well.
2. THE FRAME: The roof of the pool house is built with reclaimed Douglas fir timber. Its four valley rafters are 22’-8x14s and the jack rafters are 5x9s. Each jack rafter is fully housed into the ridge beams and the valley rafters. The walls were built with standard 2x6 stud frame construction; hence our work begins at the 8’ plate height, with the exception of the two center posts that support the main ridge beam. The ceiling is decked with rough-sawn, clear, vertical grain, Douglas fir, with a green tint Cabot stain.
Out side, the trellis is built with select heart redwood. The pergola (hipped structure shown at left) has an 8x10 band plate with interlocking joinery that holds the hip rafters from spreading; this allows the elimination of center supports and tie beams. With 4x8 rafters and 3x4 perlins the network of beams will eventually be covered with foliage. Lighting wires are concealed in the perlins and gas lines, for the heaters, are hidden in the 8x10 plates.
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NAPA POOL HOUSE
1. PRELIMINARY DESIGN: Based on the trellis TC built for this Napa estate in 2003 the pool house is being designed with both traditional and modern elements. Chris Humann of East Bay Design and Architecture has been developing the plan in partnership with TC. The design is based on proportions and details of traditional Japanese teahouses blended with cutting edge materials and amenities.
2. THE FRAME: The frame will be build with clear Western Red Cedar. The joinery will be based on oriental designs, and the detailing will be based on work by Architects Charles and Henry Greene. We hope to have this project complete by the end August 2005.
3. LAYOUT: The frame footprint is only 12’ X 18’ however the space will provide an out-door shower, a changing and bathroom, a storage room and a small kitchenette.
View the Napa Pool House as a printer friendly PDF...
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TOAD HALL
1. PEDIGREE: Toad hall is a frame originally built in Suffolk England during the 1480’s; 10 years later Columbus sailed to America. Dismantled in 1978, the frame was left in a heap for 15 years. My clients; working overseas, fell in love with English architecture and purchased the frame without knowing what it would look like. Faith and positive expectations was a driving force behind this project from the first days the owners began planning. Named after a home in the book “Wind in the willows” Toad Hall has all the history and character of a classic. In 1994 the frame was export to California and found its new life in the heart of wine country.
2. RECONSTRUCTION: As you may imagine, a building with this history and character was not going to be a typical project to under take. The Owners played a major role during construction. Always making the decisions that would keep the frame honest and the integrity of the “black and white” in tack. Blue prints where tossed in the trash and each day new details were developed, faxed to our engineer for approval, and saved for our local building officials records. Today as you approach the house you must first cross one of 3 bridges over the moat that surrounds the home to reach an entry door.
3. POINTS OF INTEREST: Originally built with “wattle and daub” – a mix of clay, straw, mud, cow dung, horse hair and any other material available to add, the new home had to retain the half timbered look with beams exposed on the interior as well as the exterior yet meet California seismic code. To this end each panel was scribe fit with plywood and gypsum board.
Once inside you will notice the chandeliers are not electric fixtures but attached to ropes so that they may be lowered to light the candles. Modern appliances are only found hidden behind cabinets. Even the floor was painstakingly hand made from old kiln shelves. The Owners took the time to make period artwork stamps to imprint the tiles and re-fire them. In the back room you can find tiles dedicated to love ones and to the principle builders who helped shape the project.
The material is a mix of many varieties of Ash and Oak. The timber surfaces, show the 500 years of age, however the cross section reveals wood as stable and solid as the day it was built. Some members did not make our standards of structural integrity; these timbers were replaced with local Douglas fir, making clear witch members were replaced during our reconstruction.
Can't view PDF files? Click this button to download Adobe reader.
Click here to see more of our Historical works.
“The magnificent timber-frame structure you designed and built for us will give us tremendous pleasure for many years to come and to our children for many more.”
Cecile Isaacs: 11/02/03
“I have no doubt that I am getting what I'm paying for-professional, quality work. That's why I hired you guys. I talked with a lot of timber companies before I chose TC. If you say it's going to cost "X" amount to do something then I trust you with that. That trust was not there for a lot of the other companies I talked to.”
Greg Meader 5/3/05
“You are already beyond the call of duty...Thanks a million”
Paul Campion 6/15/05
“This looks terrific, thanks for all of your great work.”
John Cooper: 12/3/03
“Thanks for those magnificent trusses you built for our house.”
Todd Everett: 8/06/03
“You have exceeded my expectations” “It warms the cockels of my heart”
Gill Nickel 5/18/02
“We could not be happier - the timber work is outstanding”
Katie Cooper: 12/15/03