A few years ago, Braithwaite was asked to lead a two-week design-build program where students sketch, model, design, and ultimately construct a small to mid-sized project. At first, the architect planned to create a communal boathouse with his students, but after neighborhood pushback, he proposed a pivot. Braithwaite and his family own six acres of rocky, forested land just outside their hometown of Halifax, Nova Scotia, but there has never been a place for his family to stay overnight. Why not use his own property for the project instead? The idea evolved into an experimental A-frame residence that would serve as a second home for Braithwaite’s family and a laboratory for his students. “We all openly discussed and voted on the design we would follow for the intensive,” says Matt Gillingham, a student in the program. Once the direction was set, tasks were divided: creating 3D models, preparing orthographic drawings, testing framing options, clearing the site, setting pile foundations,...