Designing it yourself
The green design movement is a relatively new phenomenon in the UK and so there are rather few competent professional designers working in the field. It is not unusual for self builders who have done their homework to come up with better solutions than professional architects.
On the other hand there is no substitute for really good design. So if you come across the work of an architect you admire then it may be best to employ them from the outset. They may well come up with ideas that will delight you and may also avoid costly design mistakes. Furthermore the eventual resale price of the house will almost certainly be increased if it displays a good level of design.
There are several worthwhile aspects to doing your own design work (or at least part of it) -
- it may be the only way to get what you want
- you achieve a kind of creative act that you can do in very few realms of your life.
- you may save some money.
Maybe you will still need the services of an architect or some other type of building professional to sort out the fine detail but you will essentially have done the main design work yourself.
If you are fairly certain of what you want but are stuck with getting it drawn up and submitted for planning permission and building regulations approval then it may pay to contact a company doing Architectural Services rather than an architect. Sites such as Yell.com usually get you there in a particular town or location.
If you do want to get involved in the design then check out Design techniques
see also The Forestry Commision on-line book called Designing with Timber
