Scorching Larch

Creating the cladding for the front of the house and around the new courtyard was time consuming, hot, mucky work…and so satisfying! I found that the trick was a really hard scorch, hence the need for a double-headed blow torch, and taking it slowly. Unless you’re a natural fire starter it’s a bit anxiety-ridden to hold the flames on the wood for long enough, but once I got in the swing of it I found that the wood really needed to start to crackle and char properly to get the best finish.

Health and safety always in place first, then scorching, then brushing the wood down in the direction of the grain with a wire brush to remove the char. Then a good rinse with a hose, leave to dry, and in my case, let the joiners do an amazing job to fit it.   

As with anything homemade and crafted, there’s a pride in knowing that I personally scorched every piece of cladding on the building, and the deep, swirling grain continues to look great after a bit of weathering. I had a bit of help from my patient stepfather with brushing the wood down, first aid from my Mum to remove the hideous splinters my poor fingers attracted until I perfected the cleaning phase, and cuddles from our lovely dog to keep my spirits up when the wood stack seemed never-ending.

Effort definitely worth it!