Restoring a Hebridean cottage: the innovative roof solution behind Dalnarrow

Dalnarrow Cottage is an old, derelict croft building on the Isle of Lismore. Its sensitive restoration – and, specifically, the roof truss design supplied by Pasquill – earned it the accolade of winner of the 2026 Roofscape Design Award for Conversion and Refurbishment Project of the Year

Digital sketch of the Dalnarrow Cottage renovation

The design brief for Dalnarrow was to combine the old cottage, its stable and two byres (cowsheds) into a new, modern home where the clients could spend their retirement. The end solution looks clean and simple, which is often the hallmark of great design – a testament to all the hard work and expertise that went into the project.

A challenging location

Located within the sea loch of Loch Linnhe, the Isle of Lismore sits between Oban to the east and the Isle of Mull to the west. It is only accessible by ferry from Oban, which takes about an hour.

The original architect’s sections specified a raised-tie-style truss over the main living room, which would have had to be framed out on site to form the curved ceiling.

Tractor is not the typical method of truss rafter delivery, but on this project it was the only option

An effective solution

Eve Macdonald, Pasquill’s truss designer on the project, worked closely with the clients through several face-to-face meetings before developing the final design. She needed to consider the location not only from a design-loading perspective, but also from a delivery perspective. The site was not only on an island, but was accessed via an old farm track suitable only for a tractor.

Eve developed a prefabricated truss that formed the ceiling curve and removed the need for on-site framing, significantly reducing the work required on site.

The eventual truss solution incorporated a box girder along the ridge line. The box girder was just over 8m long and nearly 1.4m high. In normal circumstances, these dimensions would not have been an issue. However, the transport and site access challenges at Dalnarrow Cottage meant they presented a problem.

Eve’s solution was to split the box girder into two sections for transport, using field splice plates (FSPs) to create a full-length girder truss once on site. Supported by the box girder along the ridge line were bespoke mono trusses incorporating the curved ceiling.

The design solution – a box girder with mono-style trusses – also significantly reduced the weight of each individual component, making truss erection safer. Furthermore, there was no need for the joiners on site to frame out a raised-tie truss to form the curved ceiling, reducing the amount of time spent working at height.

Pasquill’s design team were very complimentary about the usefulness and flexibility of MiTek Pamir Design software. Without Pamir, they commented, it is possible that the project would have ended up as a loose timber roof, cut on site, adding weeks to the build time and associated costs.

The arched roof truss form at Dalnarrow Cottage

The importance of client communication

The couple converting the property were very approachable and appreciated the opportunity to come into the office and discuss the project with Eve. This clear, two-way communication was a key part of the project’s success.

“One of the biggest lessons to take away from the project is the importance of customer engagement,” Eve comments. “Listening to our customers’ challenges and understanding their vision allowed us to come up with a beautifully effective design solution.”

Dalnarrow Cottage is a great example of a successful restoration project – repurposing a derelict building into a beautiful new home while retaining the character of the original.

For further information on the Trussed Rafter Association, see www.tra.org.uk and to find out more about TDUK, visit www.timberdevelopment.uk.