Craig Todd Brickwork

AN ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HIEROGLYPH… IN NORTHUMBERLAND?! 👀𓂀

Not quite. 😂

I spotted this carved into a piece of old stonework and at first glance it looks like some sort of ancient symbol.

But there’s a much more likely explanation…

It’s a stonemason’s mark. ⚒️

For centuries, stonemasons carved distinctive geometric marks into the stones they worked.

Think of it almost like a tradesman’s signature.

The marks could identify which mason had dressed a particular stone, and in some cases helped the master mason/paymaster keep track of work for payment. Other marks could relate to setting-out, positioning or where the stone came from.

And some of them look absolutely bizarre today — triangles, crosses, arrows, hourglasses and symbols that wouldn’t look out of place on an Egyptian tomb. 😂

So hundreds of years later, you can potentially still see the mark left by the tradesman who worked that exact piece of stone.

Imagine someone finding CTB scratched into a brick in 500 years. 😂

Anyone ever spotted one of these before? 👇

#Stonemasonry #Construction #Heritage #Tradesmen #Northumberland

Skip the Carousel

1 2 3 4 5 6

2 days ago | [YT] | 4

Craig Todd Brickwork

They probably thought it was just another day at work.

They picked up their tools, went to site, laid their bricks and went home to their families.

Just like we do.

They couldn’t have known that 157 years later, another bricklayer would stop in his tracks and admire what their hands had built.

And there’s something about that that really gets me.

The men who built this are long gone.

Their tools have gone.
Their stories have gone.
We’ll probably never even know their names.

But their work is still here.

Every header.
Every stretcher.
Every detail.

Someone stood on that scaffold in 1869 and placed those bricks one by one.

No lasers.
No modern machinery.
None of the equipment we take for granted today.

Just a trowel, a level, a pair of skilled hands and knowledge of a craft passed down through generations.

And look what they left behind.

Beautiful Flemish bond that has survived 157 years and still has the ability to make someone stop walking and just… look.

Then another property. Another generation of tradesmen. Beautiful English bond.

Different buildings. Different bonds. Different hands.

But the same thing connects them.

Craftsmanship.

I’ve spent more than 20 years laying bricks, and things like this remind me why I still love this trade.

Because when you’re on the tools every day, it’s easy to forget what you’re actually leaving behind.

You finish a wall.
You pack your tools away.
You move onto the next job.

And life carries on.

But the brickwork stays.

It sees families come and go.
Children grow up.
Generations pass.
The world around it changes.

And if you’ve done your job properly, there’s a chance that long after you’re gone, someone you’ve never met might stop, look up at your work and appreciate what you created.

Those bricklayers in 1869 never got to see their work become history.

They never got to see me standing there 157 years later admiring it.

But I hope they took pride in it when they put that last brick down.

Because all these years later…

we’re still looking.

Timeless.
Elegant.
Traditional.

The hands may be gone. The craftsmanship remains. 🧱❤️

#Brickwork #Bricklaying #FlemishBond #EnglishBond #Craftsmanship

Skip the Carousel

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

4 days ago | [YT] | 8

Craig Todd Brickwork

WE MADE MISTAKES. WE LOST TIME. BUT LOOK AT IT NOW. 👀🧱🔥

EPISODE 4 IS LIVE NOW ON YOUTUBE! 🎥

This build hasn’t exactly gone to plan… 😂

Mistakes made.
Delays hit.
Progress slower than we wanted.

But everyone’s pulled their weight and this traditional new-build in Northumberland is really starting to take shape. 👊

▶️ WATCH EP4 NOW ON YOUTUBE — CRAIG TODD BRICKWORK

#Bricklaying #Brickwork #FlemishBond #NewBuild #Construction

6 days ago | [YT] | 7

Craig Todd Brickwork

IF YOU LAY BRICKS FROG DOWN, YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG. 😂🧱

I don’t care how long you’ve been doing it.

Tell me why I’m wrong. 👇🍿🔥

#Bricklaying #Bricklayer #Brickwork #Construction #Masonry

6 days ago | [YT] | 10

Craig Todd Brickwork

WE CHANGED IT AFTER YOU ALL ARGUED ABOUT IT. 😂🧱

Remember the bond that caused absolute carnage in the comments? 👀

Well… we’ve changed it.

Originally, we were using a header closer at the jambs and corners.

Nothing wrong with it.
It works.
It looks good.
And it’s a perfectly valid way of forming the bond.

But after laying more of the elevation, there were three details we just weren’t completely sold on:

The triple header.
The double stretcher.
The triple stretcher in the middle of the garage door.

So we went back to it and changed the bond to start with a ¾ brick at the jambs and corners instead.

And that small change completely altered how the bond runs.

No triple header.
No double stretcher or triple stretcher.
Just a cleaner, more consistent Flemish bond running through the elevation. 👌🧱

And before you start fighting again… 😂👇

BOTH WAYS ARE CORRECT.

There isn’t a “wrong” version here.

Both work.
Both look great.

For this particular house, with these bricks and the amount of traditional detailing going into it, the client & I just prefer the ¾-brick arrangement.

Sometimes bricklaying isn’t about whether something is technically right or wrong.

Sometimes two details are right — and you choose the one that looks best. 🔥

So now I want to know…

WHICH WOULD YOU HAVE CHOSEN?

HEADER CLOSER OR ¾ BRICK? 👇

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#Bricklaying #FlemishBond #Brickwork #NewBuild #Construction

Skip the Carousel

1 2 3

1 week ago | [YT] | 13

Craig Todd Brickwork

SUBS ARE ALMOST DONE… AND NOW IT’S STARTING TO LOOK LIKE A HOUSE. 😊🧱

There’s something class about this stage of a new build.

For weeks it’s been drawings, setting out, foundations and getting everything exactly where it needs to be.

Now the substructure brickwork and blockwork is nearly complete and you can finally start seeing the footprint of the house properly taking shape. 👌

Few final bits to finish off, then we’re ready for the next stage.

And once we start coming out of the ground… this build is going to get VERY interesting. 👀🔥

So make sure to follow me to see it coming on.

Plenty of traditional brickwork details still to come on this one in Northumberland.

Who else loves seeing a build reach this stage? 👇

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#Bricklaying #NewBuild #Construction #Brickwork Northumberland

1 week ago | [YT] | 8

Craig Todd Brickwork

DIRTY CAVITIES? NHBC WILL BE ALL OVER YOU. 👀🧱

I WANT THE BEST BRICKWORK I’VE EVER PRODUCED ON THIS HOUSE. AND THAT INCLUDES THE SHIT YOU’LL NEVER SEE. 👀🧱🔥

Thats why Ash has sorted me out with 65 METRES of Williams Cavity Tray Cleaners for the build.

My new build in Northumberland deserves the best.

And that includes keeping these cavities bloody immaculate. 👌

I’ve used these before, so this isn’t me pretending something is good just for likes.

I KNOW they’re the dog’s bollocks!🔥

They help catch mortar droppings while we’re building, keeping the cavity cleaner and making it far easier to remove the crap before it becomes a problem.

And on this house?

OUR CAVITIES ARE GOING TO BE BLOODY NIPPING. 😂👌

But there’s another reason I wanted to do this collaboration.

Ash isn’t some massive manufacturer with millions behind him.

He’s a tradesman.

He still works on the tools, he’s developed a product to solve a genuine problem we deal with on site, and he’s put a serious amount of his own money into making it happen.

That’s exactly the sort of British small business I want to get behind. 🇬🇧👊

Have you used cavity tray cleaners before?

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#Bricklaying #Construction #NewBuild #Brickwork #CavityWall

1 week ago | [YT] | 2

Craig Todd Brickwork

THIS LOOKS WRONG… BUT I PROMISE YOU IT ISN’T. 🧱

There’s something about this Flemish bond that looks wrong.

The bond breaks. I knew it was going to break. And I carried on anyway.

But there’s a reason — and in Episode 3 I’ll show you exactly why it doesn’t matter.

I’m also talking setting out the Flemish bond, the corner detail, progress on our traditional new-build in Northumberland for @lucadevelopments and a few unexpected delays that have hit the job.

DELAYS. DETAILS. A BROKEN BOND.

🎥 EPISODE 3 — LIVE TODAY AT 5PM ON YOUTUBE

▶️ CRAIG TODD BRICKWORK

#Bricklaying #Brickwork #FlemishBond #NewBuild #Construction

1 week ago | [YT] | 5

Craig Todd Brickwork

THIS MIGHT BE THE STUPIDEST SERIES I’VE EVER STARTED… 😂🧱📈

STRAIGHT IN AT №1… 👀🧱

TOP OF THE SITES — THE OFFICIAL BRICKLAYING CHART. 😂📈

Forget Top of the Pops… we’re ranking the building sites now.

And this week, Luca Developments goes STRAIGHT IN AT №1. 🥇

The current chart:

🥇 №1 — Luca Developments
🥈 №2 — Northumberland Timber Frame
🥉 №3 — 6 Plots, South Shields
🧱 №4 — 9 Bungalows
👀 №5 — Upcoming Self Build

Plenty of brickwork laid, plenty of graft gone into these jobs — and plenty more still to come.

The question is…

Which one will still be №1 by the end of the year? 👀😂

And more importantly — what’s going STRAIGHT IN AT №1 next?

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#Bricklaying #Construction #BuildingSites #Brickwork #NorthEastConstruction

1 week ago | [YT] | 1

Craig Todd Brickwork

SOMEONE ELSE CAN BUILD BRITAIN TILL MONDAY. 😂🇬🇧

I’VE DONE MY BIT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY THIS WEEK 🫡

TOOLS DOWN. WEEKEND MODE: ON.

Who else is officially DONE for the week? 👇

Another week grafted out. Another week closer to where we’re going.

Have a good weekend lads — switch off, enjoy it, and we go again Monday. 🧱💪

#Bricklaying #Construction #Tradesmen #Building #FridayFeeling

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 4