Designing Timber issue 10 for online - Flipbook - Page 28
———— WOOD AWARDS WINNERS ————
INSPIRATION
award went to The
Cowshed by Design
Storey Architects: a
deft transformation of
a dilapidated, listed
agricultural structure into
a two-bedroom home.
The project preserves the
character of the original
barn while lifting the
structure and levelling the
interior. Judges admired
the precision of its joinery,
with new timber carefully
scarfed into old, and the
clever unlocking of space.
Highly commended
was Purcell’s restoration
of the Upminster Tithe
Barn, whose medieval
timber frame and newly
rethatched roof have
been carefully repaired
using traditional methods.
The commitment of
Historic England, the
London Borough of
Havering and National
Highways to support
the safeguarding of this
15th-century structure
was praised by the judges
as an exemplary act of
stewardship.
Studio Hagen Hall’s
Pine Heath – winner of
the Interiors award –
o昀昀ers a masterclass in
sensitive retro昀椀t. The
skilful refurbishment of
this modernist town house
preserves original timber
features while dramatically
improving energy performance.
Applying circular economy
thinking to kitchen design, Somer
Kitchen at Balbougie Steading
was highly commended in the
Production Furniture category for
its ambitious, systemic approach
to design for reuse, with each
component engineered for
disassembly and longevity, allowing
for recon昀椀guration and repair.
Experimental and
demonstration structures
Experimental timber projects
continue to expand the material’s
technical and creative frontiers.
A Forest Datum, winner of the
Bespoke Award, pioneers the
use of natural beech forks as
structural nodes in a repeatable
construction system. The project
was celebrated for its innovative
reimagining of how underutilised timber species can
serve as high-value structural
components.
Winner of the Small Project
award, The Armadillo by
Unknown Works, combines
elegant, acoustically driven
HIGHLY COMMENDED:
PRODUCTION
Somer Kitchen
at Balbougie
Steading
Designer/Maker: Somer
Wood Supplier: James
Latham
DESIGNING TIMBER
28
NOV/DEC 2025
form with material and
design innovation. It explores
demountable construction
and tests the application for
a new hybrid eucalyptuspine CLT, demonstrating how
experimentation can inform
broader advances in timber
engineering.
Resulting from a skillsharing workshop that
brought together crafts from
Japan and UK, the Farmer’s
Arms Cold Food Store was
highly commended for its
ingenuity and local material
use. Designed by Hayatsu
Architects and constructed
in just seven days by a team
of volunteers using local
materials, the project stands
as a vibrant expression of
collaborative craftsmanship
and community involvement.
Celebrating UK hardwoods
This year’s Furniture & Object
categories highlighted the
diversity and potential of a
diversity of homegrown species –
from ash, oak and beech to horse
