Original projects to inspire your own self-build or renovation
Low-impact project
To preserve the peace of a meadow on the edge of a nature reserve in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, Dutch architectural practice WillemsenU designed a three-bedroom home that’s partially buried beneath the ground. Built for a young couple on the site of an old goat shed using cast-in-situ concrete, the 170sqm house has three storeys linked by a glass staircase and lift, with a skylight above to let light down to the lowest level, which sits 6m below the ground. (willemsenu.nl)
Soaring skywards
A double-height extension at the back of an Edwardian house is the star of a renovation by practice Emil Eve for a young couple with two children. The six-bedroom terraced home in Highgate, north London, had three floors plus a cellar, three staircases, several small rooms and a poor connection to the garden. The new brick structure includes impressive glazing overlooking the outdoor space and incorporates the cellar, creating a lofty kitchen and dining room. A similar 250sqm project would cost around £3,000 per sqm. (emileve.co.uk)
Historical restoration
With a £100,000 budget, James and Charlotte McLean asked Woodrow Vizor Architects to restore an 1850s coach house in the grounds of their home on Loch Long in Argyll, Scotland. The 40sqm listed building had its original roof slates and barn doors recycled and its stone walls repointed with lime, while an air-source heat pump and solar thermal panel supply hot water and underfloor heating. A new first-floor structure made from exposed glulam has plywood-clad gable-end walls and a staircase to two bedrooms. (woodrowvizor.co.uk)
On a natural high
This two-storey, four-bedroom house by DWM Architects perches on one of the highest vantage points on the heathlands in Dorset, with views to Poole Harbour and the Isle of Purbeck. As well as taking advantage of the setting, the family of three have a 260sqm low-energy home, built for £575,000. The timber-clad, steel-frame structure has a 5.84kW array of solar photovoltaic panels on the roof and an air-source heat pump. (dm
