After 10 years in the Pacific Northwest, Isaac French, 27, moved back to his home state of Texas to marry his wife, Helen, in 2020. An accountant by trade with an entrepreneurial bent, Isaac had another six years under his belt working in the family construction business. As he settled into his new home, Isaac took to his makeshift office—which amounted to an iPad on a sofa—and designed his first hospitality project, a small resort in Waco, Texas.

In 2023, with his first project done, his business growing and a new son, Lucas, at home, his next endeavor was building an upgraded office—or rather an office, period. Isaac’s home sits on five acres in Waco, Texas, which left him with plenty of space and a healthy dose of initiative: “I just started clearing one day in the forest behind our home, which was super dense with vines and briars everywhere,” Isaac says. “In three years of living here, I hadn’t been able to walk back there one time.”

$16,000 Site work	$3,000 Foundation	$32,000 Structural
$18,000 Wall finishes	$9,500 Flooring	$11,200 Roofing
$2,200 Hardware	$14,000 Electrical	$9,100 Plumbing
$12,000 HVAC	$48,000 Landscaping	$3,700 Kitchen/bath fixtures
$4,200 Lighting	$38,000 Cabinetry	$2,800 Countertops
$5,500 Appliances	$4,200 Windows/glazing	$3,400 Doors
$3,000 Metalwork	$78,000 Furnishings/decor
Grand Total: $317,800

The design he ended up with for what is now called the Nook, after a week spent “intensively scribbling” on the Procreate app, is closer to a tiny home than a barebones work space—complete with an office, art studio, kitchenette, full bathroom, and a sleeping loft. His rough starting budget for the 568-square-foot build was a flush $200K, which he ultimately went over by $118K: “My budget was fairly informal because I didn’t account for all the furnishings and equipment,” says Isaac.

While not a designer by training, Isaac has an art practice and makes an informal study of design, plus experience as a contractor. Throughout the process he frequently consulted his friend Hans Lorei, a designer with a robust Instagram following. While he didn't hire a formal architect, he worked closely with a team of contractors to manage the project.

Isaac and his family live in a rural unincorporated part of Texas. According to him, unlike other areas, the permitting process is relatively inexpensive and swift—a major cost and time saver in what elsewhere could have been a huge headache. “The project's four month build wouldn’t have been possible without that kind of leniency,” says Isaac. “Obviously the longer a project takes, the more expensive it becomes. In a sense, it’s quite a luxury to be in Texas.”

His next step, and a cost saver in comparison with hiring a traditional architect, was to have the plans converted into construction drawings. He spent around $200 hiring someone through Fiverr, a freelance marketplace, to convert his sketches.

Isaac credits his time in the Pacific Northwest as a formative aesthetic influence, particularly the work of Olson Kundig. Isaac even worked as a contractor on several Kundig projects, experiencing the studio's preference for natural palettes and indoor-outdoor environments firsthand. The studio's palette of Shou Shug Bani cedar siding, local Texas limestone, and white oak for the interiors emphasizes natural finishes.

The floor plan he designed is straightforward: “It’s essentially just a rectangle,” Isaac says. “And the roof line is one simple angle. Instead I nerded out on the use of space inside.” Recessed lighting, floating cabinetry, a curving built-in desk, and a hidden recording set up all help use space efficiently. However those customizations came at a price. Cabinetry was one of Isaac’s largest expenses, totaling $38K.

A self-described perfectionist and clean freak, Isaac, who also leads online workshops, invested in professional recording equipment that folds into the cabinetry: “I wanted a setup that looked as good on camera as it did on the other side.” The solution is a foldable setup with a teleprompter, podcaster mic, professional camera, and lighting that folds up and stores into the cabinet.

High quality furnishings were a must for Isaac, who spent $78K (a number which also accounts for his art and tech equipment) on an assortment of contemporary pieces from places like Design Within Reach, Rove Concepts, and Rejuvenation.

Ever the entrepreneur, Isaac is already at work on his next, yet to be announced hospitality project. He's also selling the plans for his backyard studio on his website.

While the backyard space is used mostly by Isaac, he says his 1-year-old son is a frequent visitor: “I want my son to grow up experiencing the feeling of a place he wants to be,” says Isaac. “Where everything is, in a certain sense, perfect.”

Plans for the Nook are available for sale on Isaac’s website.

Updated on 7/31/24: Flooring figure in budget chart corrected from $95,000 to $9,500. The cost of total landscaping was $48,000, not the garden path alone.

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Project Credits:

Owner, Designer, Builder: Isaac French

General Contracter: Isaac French, with assistance from Daniel Martinez

Photography: Jeff Jones / @jeff_jones_photo

Budget Breakdown: In Texas, a Designer Clears Out His Overgrown Backyard to Build a $318K Studio