Shou Sugi Ban has been around for hundreds of years and has a long history in Japan. The technique—which includes burning the surface of the wood to create a layer of char that protects it from weathering, insects, and rot—originated in the 18th century to help preserve cedar siding on traditional Japanese homes and temples.

Shou Sugi Ban then gained popularity worldwide, with designers, architects, and homeowners using charred Accoya wood for various applications. Its durability, sustainability, and unique appearance make it a sought-after material for modern residential and commercial design projects.

Here are 10 stunning examples to inspire you if you consider installing for your Shou Sugi Ban house or other projects.

This Passive House in Utah is not only sustainable and energy efficient, the gorgeous exterior is wrapped in charred Accoya wood, fitting the eco-conscious theme—but is designed to last, providing stability throughout the seasonal changes in Utah.

Sometimes a pool house is just a pool house, but in this case, the homeowner went deep and chose Accoya Barnwood Siding in Delta Black by Delta Millworks. The result is a modern, beautiful structure that will delight the homeowners to enjoy during the summer and show off at future pool parties.

Manufactured by reSAWN TIMBER Co., Accoya was used to bring a unique and striking look to this private residence. A specific range of Accoya wood, MATSU Shou Sugi Ban, was selected for the project. This charred cladding is burnt on the visible side only and then sealed on its face and back.

This striking facade for this homeowner’s garage is made from Accoya wood but was left uncoated to reveal the natural light coloring of Accoya. In complete contrast, the garage itself was clad using charred Accoya. The two varying finishes complement each other well and show just how versatile Accoya is.

Last is an up-close look at one of our Shou Sugi Ban—Accoya Deep Char, by Pioneer Millworks. An additional feature of Accoya’s Shou Sugi Ban wood is that the grain is emphasized much more than any other timber due to how well the process chars our wood—and is offered in various colors.

Shou Sugi Ban has been around for hundreds of years and has a long history in Japan. The technique—which includes burning the surface of the wood to create a layer of char that protects it from weathering, insects, and rot—originated in the 18th century to help preserve cedar siding on traditional Japanese homes and temples.

Shou Sugi Ban then gained popularity worldwide, with designers, architects, and homeowners using charred Accoya wood for various applications. Its durability, sustainability, and unique appearance make it a sought-after material for modern residential and commercial design projects.

Here are 10 stunning examples to inspire you if you consider installing for your Shou Sugi Ban house or other projects.

This Passive House in Utah is not only sustainable and energy efficient, the gorgeous exterior is wrapped in charred Accoya wood, fitting the eco-conscious theme—but is designed to last, providing stability throughout the seasonal changes in Utah.

Sometimes a pool house is just a pool house, but in this case, the homeowner went deep and chose Accoya Barnwood Siding in Delta Black by Delta Millworks. The result is a modern, beautiful structure that will delight the homeowners to enjoy during the summer and show off at future pool parties.

For warmth and natural appeal, nothing compares with real wood as a decking material. With its beautiful texture and rich tones, wood’s authentic look oozes rustic charm and instantly elevates your outdoor entertaining space. What’s even better? If you’re after a more modern, on-trend look, you can reap the benefits of real wood with an extra touch of style thanks to pre-greyed decking boards.

Real wood is practical as well. It’s incredibly durable and able to stand up to the elements, regardless of the climate. And it feels wonderful to walk on, being warmer underfoot in winter and cooler in summer than other outdoor materials such as concrete, pavers and composite decking. Not only that, but the right wood is resistant to cracks and splinters, so it’s barefoot-friendly and still feels smooth over time.

Love the idea of real wood decking but concerned about the upkeep? You needn’t be — there are innovative new products on the market that give you all the beauty of real wood with none of the drawbacks. High-performance acetylated wood decking, which is made from quick-growing, responsibly sourced pine, boasts the good looks of tropical hardwood in a rot- and crack-resistant material that requires practically zero maintenance.

Unlike synthetic decking materials, genuine wood decking ages gracefully over time, acquiring a beautiful silvery grey patina that adds style and depth to your outdoor area. If you’d prefer not to wait around for the natural aging process to occur, you can purchase pre-greyed decking boards that are dyed all the way through from the surface to the core. Because of the sophisticated non-toxic dyeing process, there’s no need for repeated painting or recoating to maintain the wood’s good looks. The grey color remains long-term, with no need for re-oiling. (It also means that scratches and scrapes won’t be visible.)

Pre-greyed wood decking is an increasingly popular choice for designers and homeowners who are drawn to its sophisticated look and feel and the fact that it allows for a seamless connection with concrete or grey-tiled interior floors. Grey wood also sits beautifully alongside other popular exterior materials such as brick, slate and stone to create a warm and appealing outdoor palette.

For warmth and natural appeal, nothing compares with real wood as a decking material. With its beautiful texture and rich tones, wood’s authentic look oozes rustic charm and instantly elevates your outdoor entertaining space. What’s even better? If you’re after a more modern, on-trend look, you can reap the benefits of real wood with an extra touch of style thanks to pre-greyed decking boards.

Real wood is practical as well. It’s incredibly durable and able to stand up to the elements, regardless of the climate. And it feels wonderful to walk on, being warmer underfoot in winter and cooler in summer than other outdoor materials such as concrete, pavers and composite decking. Not only that, but the right wood is resistant to cracks and splinters, so it’s barefoot-friendly and still feels smooth over time.

Love the idea of real wood decking but concerned about the upkeep? You needn’t be — there are innovative new products on the market that give you all the beauty of real wood with none of the drawbacks. High-performance acetylated wood decking, which is made from quick-growing, responsibly sourced pine, boasts the good looks of tropical hardwood in a rot- and crack-resistant material that requires practically zero maintenance.

Unlike synthetic decking materials, genuine wood decking ages gracefully over time, acquiring a beautiful silvery grey patina that adds style and depth to your outdoor area. If you’d prefer not to wait around for the natural aging process to occur, you can purchase pre-greyed decking boards that are dyed all the way through from the surface to the core. Because of the sophisticated non-toxic dyeing process, there’s no need for repeated painting or recoating to maintain the wood’s good looks. The grey color remains long-term, with no need for re-oiling. (It also means that scratches and scrapes won’t be visible.)

Pre-greyed wood decking is an increasingly popular choice for designers and homeowners who are drawn to its sophisticated look and feel and the fact that it allows for a seamless connection with concrete or grey-tiled interior floors. Grey wood also sits beautifully alongside other popular exterior materials such as brick, slate and stone to create a warm and appealing outdoor palette.

As the saying goes, less is more. Choosing one “hero” natural material and using it in different ways across your home’s exterior can be a subtle, but very effective, way to bring cohesion to your home’s design. To create an uninterrupted sense of flow, you could carry the material through to the interior of your home or to any outbuildings.

The key to success when using a single natural material is to be creative with how you apply it. This award-winning boathouse (The Haven) in Norfolk, England, has been given light-tone Accoya wood cladding, decking and curved screening. As the property is surrounded by water on three sides, the architects selected Accoya wood for its water-resistant properties and dimensional stability, as well as its stunning natural looks and sustainability. The result is a graceful home that sits lightly in its tranquil coastal setting.

Add texture and depth to your home’s exterior with narrow boards for siding, louvers and screening.

For this luxury apartment block (Blackwood Street Apts) in Melbourne, Australia, the architect specified 40-by-40-millimeter Accoya wood boards with a coat of Woca Exterior Walnut Oil for the louvers and screening in the alfresco areas. The oiled boards create a soft and inviting feel while bringing a sense of intimacy to the apartment complex.

The rest of the detailing in this spot, including hardware and pavers, was deliberately pared back to keep the focus firmly on the textural wood.

Much has already been written about how the business world has embraced video conferencing technology during this pandemic and we’ll all no doubt have personal experience of how it has changed the way that we work. So, in many ways this is an obvious choice for a game changer, but because the impact will be so far reaching I thought it worth putting in my list.

The world was probably moving towards greater use of video conferencing anyway, but there is no doubt that lockdown measures as a result of COVID-19 rapidly increased the speed of uptake. The experience has taught us that we don’t need to travel as much as we used to. Before, we thought it was imperative that we met others face to face. It has also made the use of video conferencing more acceptable, when before it might have been perceived as a cop-out by those not prepared to make the effort to meet in person.

Sure, face to face meetings are important and I have no doubt that a degree of travel will resume within our businesses once restrictions are lifted, but I also think that video conferencing is here to stay and that many of us will end up traveling less and working from home more than we used to, which has got to be a good thing for both the environment and our own well-being.

LED lighting technology has been gradually developing from the early 1960s to the present day so it’s sort of crept up on us rather than taken the world by storm but in my view this doesn’t make it any less revolutionary. The current generation of LED lights offer so many advantages over the older technologies that they have now become the norm for most applications. Over time they will result in significant reductions in energy use across the world both in-use and by virtue of the fact that they last so much longer than incandescent or halogen bulbs. To cap it all they can be recycled so are a good fit with the circular economy.

For more information on other game changing products or technologies see here: https://www.futurebuild.co.uk/game-changers/

Timber remains the classic choice for outdoor decking, despite advancements in alternative materials, and it can certainly enhance the look of any garden. Choosing the right timber decking to complement your outside space is critical though, and there are some considerations to bear in mind including a budget, maintenance and style.

Wood is warm and beautiful and can give your garden a natural charm that you just can’t achieve with plastic. It is easily cut and shaped to work around your existing garden features and can be stained, treated or colored with a vast range of coatings and textures to suit your look. Installation costs tend to be lower than other materials, and depending on your budget, there are plenty of different options, such as softwoods, hardwoods and modified woods such as Accoya®. When it comes to maintenance, more durable species or modified wood are good options with less regular upkeep required to keep your deck looking pristine all year round. Finally, don’t forget that sourcing environmentally friendly timber decking should always be on your radar, so look for the FSC® certification if in doubt.

A year of stay-at-home restrictions has elevated the need to fully maximize any outdoor space you may have, improving both functionality and aesthetics. According to Google Trends, searches for ‘outdoor kitchen ideas’ have surged by 60% since the start of the year, and they’re a great way to extend your available interior space for alfresco dining with friends and family. If you’re missing that feeling of cooking outside on a barbecue in the early evening sunshine on holiday, this might be one for you.

Outdoor kitchens can be anything from a simple built-in barbecue to a full kitchen with a sink, preparation space and even a fridge. They can be built as a DIY job or made fully custom, but when buying make sure you consider durability just as you would with any outdoor furniture which may come under attack from the weather.

Instead of more vulnerable materials like scaffolding wood, try a kitchen built with Accoya wood or Tricoya MDF board which have both been preserved through a unique acetylation process and will last far longer in wet (and dry) conditions – perfect for an outdoor kitchen that will last for many more summers to come!

Exude modern sophistication with a dramatic exterior in a single color. Ideal for transitional-style homes, like the one seen here one in Bethesda, Maryland, it can work well for a multitude of aesthetics. The key is to vary the tones and textures to bring much-needed depth. The siding seen here was charred using the ancient Japanese technique of shou sugi ban.

If painted wood is more your style, be sure to choose lumber that won’t swell or shrink too much — movement causes cracks. “The coating is going to last significantly longer that way,” says Ty McBride, a renovator in Oklahoma City. He uses acetylated wood — which is resistant to bowing, twisting and warping — for his projects, keeping maintenance and future repair costs to a minimum. Svarczkopf adds, “It can be used without maintenance of any kind and still not decay. If the owner wants the wood to look nice, they’ll likely want to clean it annually.”

Let in the light with large glass doors and walls of floor-to-ceiling windows to create an airy, welcoming look both inside and out. This popular design trick will visually expand your home and connect you to nature and all of its soothing effects. Use glass or thin cable railings on decks to maintain clear views.

The house in Auckland, New Zealand, seen here fully embraces the trend with plenty of indoor-outdoor spaces. Its acetylated wood windows and doors help with insulation and keep energy bills down. The low-density material traps heat in air pockets, Svarczkopf says, stopping it from traveling quickly from the inside to the outside and vice versa. “The density is really great for thermal insulation,” McBride says. “It doesn’t conduct heat the same way as aluminum and vinyl.”

A new building complex, now known as ‘Wood City’, was built in downtown Helsinki, Finland. The complex was developed in two phases, with the first phase consisting of residential buildings and the second phase including a hotel, offices and a courtyard.  The buildings are eight stories tall and are fully constructed of wood, including the supporting structures from CLT. This makes the project distinctly different from others and Accoya has been selected as the wood of choice for the exterior siding due to the project having sustainability at the forefront of its mind.

Read more about the ‘Wood City’ project.

2. Use of Color to Make a Statement

Natural wood is a hot look that is here to stay. For siding and decking, Accoya can be left to weather naturally, leaving a beautiful silver patina. Looking for something more dramatic? Coating your exterior is also a great option. Black and dark-gray exteriors are in right now. In fact, many designers are combining dark colors with natural wood for a stunning result. And interestingly, designers recognize that black can be used to make small structures look bigger.

Because Accoya is made from real wood, it lends itself well to paint or stain. It’s naturally light in color, giving you even more flexibility to be creative with color since it absorbs coatings well. Accoya readily accepts and retains dark colors, which means you won’t have to repaint or re-stain for years.

• Can you stain Accoya? Yes! Many homeowners are going transparent, to retain that natural wood look, which fades to a lovely natural silver-gray patina. But if natural is not your thing, you can stain Accoya any color, even black, using either oil- or water-based stains.
• Can you paint Accoya? Yes! Several designers have used bright, bold hues that help create a statement. Others have gone with classic white for that timeless, modern farmhouse look. You decide.

4. Mix it Up

Don’t limit yourself; mixed materials are a hot trend. You can use Accoya wood with board-formed cement, brick, stone or stucco – even all of them if you’re feeling adventurous. Use with any design, from traditional to transitional, modern farmhouse to classic renovation… and everything in between.