On an unseasonably balmy morning in September, Reade Kontje Milne had just ushered her two kids, Greta and Felix, off to school. Though she was running a little late for work at MacNelly Cohen architects in West Tisbury, she eked out some time to talk over coffee and eggs about her experience as one of the Vineyard’s few female carpenters.

Milne’s path to motherhood, carpentry, and becoming an architect was not a direct one. It involved stops at several colleges around the country, including a Catholic school in Vermont, a Buddhist university in Colorado, and an architecture program in Boston. But being away from the Island for long stretches never felt right to Milne. “I’m a real home body,” she said, “Being near my family has always been most important.”

After graduating from the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School in 1998 Milne went to St. Michael’s College in Burlington, Vt., despite her parents’ encouragement to take some time off first. “They didn’t live on a linear path,” she said. “They wanted me to figure out what I wanted before going off to college.”

Milne stayed in Burlington for a semester but was becoming increasingly miserable. She called her dad, local general contractor Geoff Kontje, and made a plea to come home. His response was quick and clear: “Finish the semester and then you can come home. But you have to work.”

Though it would be winter on the Vineyard, Milne thought she might find a waitressing job. That wasn’t quite what Kontje had in mind. “Fine, then I’ll work for you,” she told him. That December she moved in with her dad on Chappaquiddick and for Christmas he bought Milne her first drill and pair of insulated Carhartt overalls: carpentry rites of passage.

Kontje, who owns 41 Degrees North Construction, was not wholly surprised by his daughter’s interest in carpentry. “She was always experimenting with tools and materials, even as a little girl,” he said. “She has a real exploratory mindset and in that sense, carpentry works well. She has to visualize the final result.”

And if he hesitated at all about hiring her it was not because she’s a woman. “There was no reason that she couldn’t do the same work as the guys. She’s physically strong and mentally agile. I had to think about taking her on because she’s my daughter,” he said.

Once hired, Milne was not afforded any special treatment on her dad’s crew. “He supported me but didn’t favor me,” Milne said of working with her father. “He might have even pushed me harder than everyone else. He wanted me to learn the skills, not just sweep up after everyone else.”

But as a woman, she was an anomaly on most jobs. “I very rarely worked with other women,” Milne said, “My days were full of men. And I’m probably more crass because of it.” Though she felt welcomed and respected by the crew at 41 Degrees North, Milne occasionally faced her share of stupid and sexist questions. “Do you know how to use a table saw?” people would ask. “Do you own a tool belt?”

After working with her dad for a couple of years Milne applied to Naropa University, a small, Buddhist college in Boulder, Colorado, where she planned to study early childhood education. But upon arriving, she knew it wasn’t for her. “I knew absolutely that I didn’t want to be there,” Milne said. She withdrew so quickly that she was able to get all of her deposit money back before moving home and into the big, empty Edgartown home of a family friend.

Milne started working for her dad again and decided that she was ready to lay down some roots of her own. Figuring she’d put her years of training to use by building a home for herself, she started to look for land. “I was back and forth about a career for a long time but I always knew that this is where I want to be,” she said.

At her dad’s suggestion she went to the registry of deeds to find people who owned large parcels of untouched land. She wrote letters explaining that she was an Island kid looking to build a home. “I only got one response and it basically said, ‘Sorry but no,” Milne said with a laugh. She applied for affordable housing lots but her name was never drawn. Her disappointment mounted and Milne started to feel stuck. “I had to do something,” she said of her decision to attend the Boston Architectural College.

As always, Milne’s father and mother, Island artist Fae Kontje-Gibbs, were supportive, but before she left for the BAC Milne got her contractor’s license, which pleased her dad immensely. “I’ve worked with a lot of architects,” Kontje said. “Some have more building knowledge than others. I thought it was great that Reade would be bringing her knowledge of every aspect of building.”

One month into school in Boston, Milne got a phone call. The people who were awarded the affordable housing lot that she had most recently applied for had defaulted on a payment, and the lot was available. “I just couldn’t imagine going through that process again, so I never called back,” Milne said. Two weeks later they called again, under the correct assumption that Milne didn’t understand: There was no process. The lot was hers.

Milne designed her home as a studio project for school. In the summer of 2002, friends from school came to help her build, including her future husband, Greg Milne. “Theoretically I was building my ‘forever home’ but how can you do that at 20 years old and single?” Milne said with a laugh.

Somehow, she pulled it off. The Milne’s 1,800 square foot, two-bedroom Vineyard Haven farmhouse-style home is bright and comfortable. Full of toys, books, maps and photos, it appears perfectly suited for a family of four. Milne admits that friends compliment the relaxed feel of her home frequently. “I must have done something right,” she said, with a casual shrug.

Architecture felt like a natural progression for Milne. “I’d always been interested in design and how spaces work,” she said. With architecture, Milne felt like she could utilize skill sets that she inherited from both parents: her dad’s practicality and her mom’s artistry. “It felt like a perfect marriage,” Milne said.

But there are times when she’s nostalgic for more hands-on work. Now, she hones her building skills with smaller at-home projects. A long, rustic dining table off the kitchen was a gift, built and designed by Milne for her husband on their fifth wedding anniversary. Felix and Greta’s room features mom-made bunk beds and storage shelves. Milne and her husband are currently working on plans for a home addition that will reflect changing sensibilities. “It will be more modern, clean and streamlined,” Milne said.

“I really, really love building,” Milne said, in the home that she built on the Island she couldn’t leave behind. “It still amazes me that I can take a pile of things and build something to keep you dry and warm.”