Fabulous location with seascapes and seasonally changing landscapes; natures materials, colours and mood.

The brief:

Complete refurbishment of a range of agricultural buildings, dating from 16C, converted to domestic accommodation in the latter part of the 20C.  We wanted to remain true the agricultural roots, to illustrate the story of the buildings, whilst fully integrating the needs and requirements of contemporary living and the advantages of 21C technology.

The project:

By moving or taking out walls to create new pathways and transitions and by raising ceilings the space was brought closer to original scale; the building  began to breathe again.  Large areas for living and receiving are balanced with smaller personal spaces – dressing rooms, studies, laundry, flower room, reading places and sunny corners. Bespoke systems for lighting, heating, plumbing, glazing, insulation and rain water collection are installed, and light now bathes the rooms from dawn until dusk through enlarged single pane windows.

A new family room with a virtually transparent glass wall extends into the original farmyard, now a sheltered courtyard. The hand welted copper roof will soon harmonise with  the terracotta  tiled roof of the adjacent building – the earliest barn, as it gains the patina of weathered age.

The materials:

Reclaimed timber for floor, doors and bookcases, and the old  threshing floor which is now the front door and the kitchen table,  300 year old stairs, and untreated oak floor planks laid with traditional dovetail joints all serve to trace the history. Stone floor tiles and solid stone work surfaces and basins throughout, even though in contemporary design were all cut to size, worked by hand and made for the space – in tune with traditional practice and ideals. Excellent craftsmanship and the resonance of age make this a good place to be. 

Old and new together in tension and accord raise the sense of expectation between interior and exterior space that flows easily.  The building is true to it’s agricultural roots and optimistic to the future, as it embraces and holds the narrative of it’s new purpose. Transcendent.