I believe more and more people want to live in homes which are inspiring and individual –Mark Lee
THE TWO SECTIONS OF THE PROPERTY ARE LINKED BY A GLAZED EXTENSION
project costs
Overall cost of project: £395,000 Value of property now: £750,000
What was the high point of the project “Seeing the spaces come together and the quality of the workmanship shine through was very exciting. There were times when people didn’t understand why I was asking for things to be done in a certain way until they saw it all fall into place. They realised then, the visual impact of what they considered to be ‘over design’.”
The low point was: “The project took much longer than I’d hoped – 15 months in total from Autumn 2008 to Christmas 2010. We were trying to do too many things at once, which caused a few problems with co-ordi- nation and timing. It was frustrating at times.”
Contacts “A house has to be physically warm to be
comfortable to live in,” says Mark. “As well as having very high-spec insulation, I also wanted to have underfloor heating on both floors.” This is powered by a high-efficiency, gas fired con- densing boiler and each room is individually controlled from wall-mounted electronic pro- grammers. To create visual balance Mark also intro-
duced engineered oak floors in the main living areas and Douglas Fir for the doors, windows and trusses, which emphasise the link between outside and inside. “Some of the links are very subtle,” said
Mark. “I approached the design like a big jigsaw in which every piece had to fit and work together as a whole. The art to successful design is in the detail, so no room is created in isola- tion. A house should flow naturally from one space to the next. I tried not to keep my initial plans too rigid. The best results come from
TWO BEDROOMS AND AN OFFICE OVERLOOK THE TWO STOREY HIGH DINING SPACE
flexible ideas, which can be tweaked and deve- loped over time.” Mark recently sold the property to Ian Rodger,
a confectionary manufacturer and supplier, who fell in love with Mark’s forward-thinking design. But Mark believes inspirational design should be available to a much wider market. “People tend to have quite strong views about
a one-off build like this one,” says Mark. “But as an architect, I would like to see exciting archi- tectural design become more accessible and more affordable. The way we live is changing and I believe more and more people want to live in homes which are inspiring and individ- ual. It’s all about creating the ‘feel good’ factor, and that can be created through using light and space in the best way possible.”
• One 17 Interior Design
www.one17design.com • Sliding glass doors: Solarlux
www.solarlux.co.uk • Windows:
Standard Patent Glazing, Dewsbury
www.patent-glazing.com
• Tiles: Porcelanosa
www.porcelanosa.com • Oak Flooring: Ted Todd
www.tedtodd.co.uk • Bathroom fittings: Duravit
www.duravit.com Villeroy and Boch
www.villeroy-boch.com • Kitchen supplier:
Intoto Kitchens at Red Brick Mill
www.intoto.co.uk
selfbuilder & homemaker
www.sbhonline.eu
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