The clients for this project own an impressive mid-20th century stone house located in the Cotswold National Landscape. The exisating hosue is very traditional in form and had limited sized windows, cutting off connect and views to the extensive gardens. The client wished to modernise the living space within the house by infilling an existing patio area on the south side of the property. Thinking Buildings design a very modern lightweight extension with glass walls, bringing light and space to the existing house, and integrating inside living with the beautiful gardens and mature trees which surround the house.
Our clients originally approached us to provide a much more extensive scheme, adding a large additional wing to the house with the single storey extension as part of a link to the existing building. Thinking Buildings completed the design and obtained successful planning permission for that scheme. However, after their first summer in the house, the client came to appreciate the mature trees in the garden, that would have necessitated removal in order to build the new wing. Thus, the scheme underwent a revision to look at the single storey link as the primary element of the renovation, and a further successful planning permission was granted. Ultimately that this resultant scheme delivered a more desirable outcome. The extension provides an open, contemporary, living space to complement the more enclosed traditional spaces, with minimal additional footprint, saving both resources and cost.
Thinking Buildings designed the extension to the house with a clear sense of style. The idea was to create a space which sat well next to the existing structure, but which had a very clear definition of something that was contemporary. The flat zinc roof not only adds to the design aesthetic, but the low profile allows for the windows from the original parts of the first floor to be preserved. Whilst zinc is a more expensive material initially, it gives a wonderful sleek and modern aesthetic with minimal, to no, maintenance needs. Given the longevity properties of zinc there will be long term cost benefits to building with this material.
The existing house has thick walls, traditional windows and lacks light airy spaces, so it was key to the design to bring lightness to the feel of the house. The full length, full height, sliding glazed units bring seamless connection to the lush, green, outside space and flood the extension with natural light. Although the extension was restricted by being a shape infill, it was possible to maximise the floor space by the minimal glazing system that was used.
We developed a strong working relationship with our clients, accommodating their changed needs from the initial design, remaining flexible to their requirements whilst offering sound advice. Excellent communication on this project was of paramount importance. Although not their first project, it is the most extensive building scheme the client had been involved in. The clients split their time between the UK and Singapore, with this house as their UK base. They were often abroad whilst the project was in progress and Thinking Buildings acted as project managers, overseeing every detail of the brief and keeping the client informed and updated along the way. This was representative of the trust that had been established between client and architect through the development and execution of the resulting, stunning, extension.
