Private Home, Cumbria
By Smith Architects
This recently converted farm building sits on a valley shoulder with the morning sun rising over the Yorkshire Dales in the east, and setting sun behind the Lake District hills to the west.
Frustratingly, these views were compromised inside the house, and while the owners were happy enough to be outside, it rains 200 days a year, which is not ideal for taking in the views.
Furthermore, the single storey element to the north of the building was a converted garage with low ceiling, cold, and difficult to get to past a WC and utility room.
The project quickly became known as ‘Project Light’ – how to make subtle changes to the layout and fabric to maximise light in and views out.
At first floor we introduced four new rooflights – one over the stairs, and three more over bedrooms, which, along with bathrooms were re-fitted and decorated.
The single storey element was to become a multi-use space – a study for working at home, a work room for sewing, again with rooflights above and rooms made taller by removing the ceiling and building into the roof.
Larger windows and French doors were also expanded or added. A discrete utility room (again toplit) re-used the existing kitchen cabinetry, appliances and fittings; and a small WC were relocated to this end of the house. Finally a ‘cat tunnel’ through half a metre of external wall for the newly acquired rescue cat was installed.
The front entrance already consisted of a large glazed door and window, although we found this was slowly rotting; and entered into a small lobby. We knocked through to the dining room and out the other side with another large set of French doors, extended the kitchen into the former utility room and installed a log burner (which also additionally heats the upstairs bedroom).
The result is that now the owners can sit in the house and take in the views to both sides almost anywhere on the ground floor. The work room is now warm and cosy and the first floor is flooded with light.
Client: Private
Location: Cumbria, United Kingdom
Construction cost: Confidential
Area: 230m²
Programme: Completed 2019
Construction by: Ecotec Design and Build Ltd
Image Credit: Photography By Ward
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Private Home, Cumbria
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Smith Architects is an award-winning international architectural practice creating beautiful human spaces that are unique, innovative and sustainable through creativity, refinement, and care.
Phil and Tiffany Smith established the practice in 2007. We have spent more than two decades striving to understand what makes some buildings more attractive than others, in the anticipation that it can help us design better buildings.
Recent advances in neuroscience and psychology have enabled scientists to unlock some of the reasons why we find certain works of art, objects and environments more attractive than others, and at the heart of it is simple Darwinian theory: if we find something attractive we will be more likely to choose that thing over another – be it a painting, a piece of music, a landscape or even a building.
At Smith Architects, we use these learning to inform our designs, striving to create beauty in everything we do, in the belief that beautiful spaces create better environments for human beings or ‘beautiful human spaces’.
We carefully integrates architectural, landscape, interior and furniture design skills to ensure projects achieve an holistic integrity that meets our client’s needs. At the core of our design rigour, we believe that modern, sustainable, research-based design delivers a successful project with innovative solutions that work for our clients.
Our Auckland, New Plymouth, and Arrowtown offices design and deliver projects ranging from refurbishments to new-builds; from domestic scale to urban master plans; from conception to completion. Our experience covers a broad range of typologies – masterplans, mixed-use schemes, residential; offices; cultural; educational; healthcare and childcare.
We work with a diverse client base, including developers, private, government and charities and have experience of working with multiple stakeholders on challenging sites around the world.
We are a member of the New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA), the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), the New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC), Site Safe New Zealand, and the Sustainability Business Network.
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