The Kominka Collective's mission is to save old Japanese folk houses while preserving and passing on traditional carpentry methods. We are a not-for-profit company.
Download the PDF of our March 2024 newsletter/brochure here.
Enjoy the beautiful, gentle elegance of a Japanese timber frame studio - and help preserve kominka, irreplaceable old materials, and traditional built heritage.
Introducing our ready-to-assemble Kominka Studio!
The kominka studio is perfect for use as a yoga, meditation, or creative space, or as a home office, or family room
The studio - wood floor, door, windows, shoji screens, loft, raised tatami seating area, and roof materials - arrives as a kit ready to be assembled by a few skilled carpenters. The roof, wall, and floor panels come with insulation already installed.
We work with you to make sure the design is just what you want - including finding furnishings and fixtures such as tansu and ranma - to create a truly extraordinary space.
If the studio is under 200 sq ft and not used as a dwelling, planning permission is generally not required - although this may vary depending on where you live.
Size
17.5 x 11.1 ft (200 sq ft); height 14.09 ft: Loft 8 x 5 ft. The studio can be made to be smaller or larger. It can also be adapted to be an ADU or another connected to another structure, although this requires planning permission.
Siding
Choice of types of siding, including yakisugi (burnt cedar) using locally grown wood from depopulated rural areas in Japan. Plaster is applied after assembly.
Windows & Sliding Door
Brown double glazed aluminum resin composite sash. Wooden windows and sliding doors are optional, at additional cost.
Insulation
Insulation is more than R-30. While reconstructed kominka maintain the beautiful aesthetic Japanese folk houses are known for, they are built with comfort and energy efficiency in mind, and we are committed to creating structures that meet or exceed code
Structure
Beautiful traditional Japanese timber frame roof structure using beams that are generally over 100 years old. The joinery has been reinforced with screws to meet building requirements, but these are not visible.
Roof finish
Choice of galvalume steel plate with onigawara decorative end cap and munegawara ridge or ceramic tiles - or a mix of both.
Studio Kit Cost
The price for the complete studio kit is $73,000. This does not include shipping or costs for building a simple foundation, electrical work, assembly, and any optional finishing work.
Materials
Beams, joints, stairs, and shoji windows are from reclaimed kominka. The floor is new Japanese cypress or Japanese cedar. Inside walls are finished with plaster or washi after assembly. Tatami is used, but like new.
Furnishings
We love finding beautiful old and not so old one of a kind furnishing and fixtures - kura doors, tansu, ranma - we will do our best to find treasures for you!
Shipping & Delivery
Depending on your location, shipping and overland delivery costs are generally between $10,000 and $20,000.
Get in touch to learn more about our studios and to tell us about what you are interested in. At this stage, we work with you to find out if planning permission is needed in your area.
We work with you to come up with the design and furnishings that are perfect for you. We build the studio to your specifications in our workshop in Japan and presassemble it once before shipping
We pack your studio and furnishings and arrange for shipping, customs, and delivery to your building site.
We assist with all stages of assembly and advise on any additional finishing work, such as adding an engawa Japanese-style deck.
Flexible design, easy to order,
straightforward assembly
From dissembling to construction to shipping
A Kominka Studio Bound for Oregon
We'd love to hear from you!
