Hello Jessica,

Thank you for your kind comments.

From the view of designing with integrity, we suggest it is important to avoid the use of anything faux in projects. Allowing the materials to express themselves with honesty rather than visual trickery would be our advice.

If you want cedar, use cedar. The higher-quality grades can be breathtakingly beautiful. Perhaps use that liberally thoughout the interior of your house where it has the ability to maintain that beauty for generations with little maintenance.

There are a host of reasons to limit or avoid using any species of wood on the exterior. Among those reasons are: It is challenging in regards to fire-resistiveness, not-so-durable when exposed to ultraviolet light, tends to change shape as it dries completely, is sometimes attractive to birds making their mark, can be eaten by pests and may require frequent recoatings to maintain the installed appearance.

It is possible to design and build an award-winning house with no wood on the exterior. Consider employing the cedar on the interior [perhaps it is even the structural elements as you mention a timber house] where it will be durable. On the interior you might even visually interact with it more than if it were on the exterior.

Good luck with your project.