JACK STILES

MASTER THATCHER

Being lucky enough to grow up in Coverack on the Lizard I was always surrounded by thatch. Soon after leaving school, I got straight to work using my hands working for a builder renovating old cottages. This is where my passion for old building practices and crafts began. With my father being a skilled carpenter also, I was always destined to learn a trade. Whilst working on a near derelict cottage in my home village, I was asked to help the thatcher out who had taken on the renewal of the roof. Quickly falling in love with the craft and becoming mesmerized by the art of it, I was hugely keen to pursue a career in thatching. I worked incredibly hard throughout this first job and was even allowed on the tools which is very rare for someone with almost no knowledge of the task at hand. Fortunately for me I got on well with the thatcher and he decided to take me on as his apprentice.

I spent the next 5 years watching and taking in everything I could. Often working alongside various other thatcher’s from the South west I was able to hone my skills and start to develop my own take on the west country style. Travelling throughout Devon and even into Somerset, Cambridge, Oxford and Surrey, I thoroughly enjoyed my time as a journeyman thatcher.

Deciding to spread our wings and make our own name in the thatching world, myself and Toby decided to start up our own business after some years working closely together. Sharing a similar vision to ensure the upkeep of these historic buildings we fell into a strong creative rhythm and continue to enjoy every working day together along with our ever-growing apprentice, Ed.