Design and Fabrication, on Cortes Island, BC
Making wonderful things, established 1992. Satisfaction guaranteed.
2025 Product Line
All products have been re-visioned in 2025 for a lifetime guarantee for all aspects of workmanship. Every attention has been made to ensure permanence for all products for their natural life.
All wood sculpture products are coated with plant-based oil and wax compound from SAICOS, and are restorative for a lifetime of use.
The Arch roof truss system, Moon swing, and Copper spiral mist are presented as an exhibition of living sensibly in Nature, with elegance.
Puzzle Arch roof, 8′ wide by as long as you wish
A pre-fab arch roof system for conventional framed walls
Designed and manufactured on Cortes island, this product is a ready-to install solution for an arch roof system for 8 foot wide structures.
This product has two basic elements: A ‘floating’ truss, and end wall faces with truss components built in. It allows for an arched roof for 8 foot wide buildings, as long as you wish. It is suitable for dormers, sheds, trailer enclosures, sea-can covering, and many other applications. The birds’ mouth feature allows both arch wall faces and floating trusses to be simply placed on any conventional walls that are 8 feet wide including sheathing.
Trim, inset strapping, fascia, and soffits are also available. Basic knowledge of clamps and drivers is required for assembly.
Explore the options
Finishing the roof
There are many ways this roof system can be completed. I recommend any of these waterproofing solutions from EcoTech for paint/spray/roll application, all fully warrantied.
For more affordable options, underlayment works for up to six months, EPDM applied with glue, RV elastomeric paint, torch-on, or various products can be used, all with a single layer of 3/8″ plywood, overlapping with a drop as shown below. Additionally, this SIGA product will seal bare wood for years and is paintable, I have years of proof of it for application in the Cascadia climate.
A single layer of 3/8″ plywood overlapped and fastened in an arch along its perimeter provides plenty of strength for this span, but more layers can be added as required.
For the case of a single layer application, there is the detail of the top layer completely overlapping each of the lower layers on the inset strapping to provide maximum fastener coverage, see below.
Sign making and custom print service
Wit’s End Design and Fabrication offers sign making services, from engraving custom graphics, cut film decals for window, vehicle, or garment application.
Print design and fabrication
Manufacturing on Cortes Island, BC
The current project is Puzzle House, but Wit’s End offers consultation and CAD/CAM services, as well as custom engraving and cut services.
LVL Arch Truss technology
Traditionally, the purpose of Laminate Veneer Lumber technology is to make bigger beams out of plywood/laminate layers. The main structure of the Puzzle House is a 21-piece 3-layer component that includes both wall and arch roof seamlessly. Once glued and fastened it behaves as a single piece of laminate veneer lumber. It is similar to the roofbow of a School bus or the ribs of a wooden boat, cut to fit the shape of the interior and exterior cladding.
Arch template included
A template for the roof arch curve is included, so you can easily make sure each arch truss is identical when you come to apply the roof panels. A solid fit of all the puzzle joints on the roof vastly improves its strength.
Inset strapping and backing blocks
The trusses make use of inset strapping and backing to allow continuous contact with the roof panel and interior faces, reducing possibility of wiggle room of the fastened components. An arch under tension is extremely strong. Plywood strapping is an excellent receptacle for fasteners, and can be cut to same lengths to provide surety for squareness. The inside backing blocks allow for a hard fastening point for fixtures, power receptacles, shelving, etc.
How to heat it?
It’s a small space with a high ceiling, so a small electric heater or a vented propane furnace plus a fan warms it up nicely. There are tiny wood stoves and vented diesel heaters that would suit the build as well. It is also possible to install in-floor radiant water loop heating with an appropriate on-demand propane heater, which solves both issues of a portable heating source and on-demand hot water.
Recommended Interior/Exterior finishing:
Decork, a sprayable textured cork finish from Italy.
Walls free to breathe. Thanks to the high permeability, the humidity of the interior is perfectly balanced, thus avoiding the formation of mould and condensation.
ecotechnology.ca is the representative for Canada
Decork is paintable with this limewash paint product, that allows the cork layer to breathe and lets you pick a colour finish
Thermacork panels
Thermacork can be applied directly to most surfaces, and is a beautiful and breathable interior finish. It can be cut on the cnc with detail to make seamless frames around windows and fixtures. It can also be painted with the limewash paint product plus pigments for colour.
Light is the greatest disinfectant, movement is a close second.
Recommended insulation solutions:
Thermacork, from Portugal, and Wool from anywhere. Pre-washed wool panels available from Havelock representatives
Coming soon: Thermal insulation plaster
Yakisugi
A traditional Japanese method of wood preservation, it works well with our local wood species as well as plywood. It helps create a fire-, mould-, algae-, and bacteria-resistant surface, as well as revealing the texture of wood grain without splinters. Yakisugi decking and siding can provide many decades of excellent beauty and comfort without maintenance. It is also an excellent application for furniture, and takes natural finishes for a lifetime.
Once properly finished, the blackened wood is safe for the whitest of garments and textiles.
Machining
Wit’s End design and fabrication offers custom machining services, including tongue and groove, finger-joint, and shiplap shaping, and cnc milling.
Custom sign-making
Mixed media and various techniques are available for custom design and cut services, whether you have your own artwork already or not. Custom milling and engraving up to 50″ x 100″ x 6″ The following are examples of wood engraving and vinyl on Alupanel composite panels. Custom-cut decals are also available for auto and marine application.
Non-vinyl heat transfer prints
Ultra-thin and soft, these prints wear amazingly well and don’t harden in the dryer. Custom graphics are available, and I can help source ethically produced garments for them as well
Custom furniture design
Both innovative and conventional builds for house and yard are already in progress, and ready for replication or improvement.
Branding and ethical merchandising
Whether you need to update graphics for your business or come up with a marketing or fundraising campaign, there are environment- and social- conscious vendors and production methods available to help you make a campaign or product people can be proud to support.
I have created many campaigns for Societies, Politcal groups, and small businesses and helped them source fair-trade garments and eco-friendly production methods. From T-shirts and buttons to print and web media, there are all kinds of options to help build your brand sensibly in this climate. (Photos coming soon)
Please reach out with details if you have a project you want to talk about.
If you are looking for something conventional, probably find someone else to do it 🙂