Words and pictures by Heather Dixon
Garden designer Elaine James and her antique dealer husband Ian used their combined skills to design a tranquil home around the ever-changing view of the north Yorkshire countryside
James’s house near Harrogate is a haven of peace and tranquility. Between them they have designed a home
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which is virtually noise-proof, a property which embraces its peaceful rural outlook while all but eliminating the daily hum of traffic passing their door. Ian’s vision for the house was intuitive. He
wanted to build a U-shaped house that focused outwards on the open fields that stretch as far as the eye can see. “The house is north facing, which has many advantages,” says Ian. “We get the best sunset views and lots of natural light without excessive heat in summer. For this reason we decided to have all the main living rooms on this side of the house, with lots of glass so that the views became an integral part of our day-to-day lives.” Ian was also keen to create extended
sight-lines through all aspects of the property. This means that anyone stepping into the hallway can see straight through the building to the garden
t can be blowing a gale across the field at the back and the traffic can be thundering along the road at the front, but Elaine and Ian
By developing the house and garden together we’ve been able to seamlessly link the two, rather than the garden being something of an after-thought
and countryside beyond, while anyone standing in the kitchen has an uninterrupted view through the conservatory into the sitting room at the far end of the house. “This automatically makes the place seem light, large and spacious,” he says.
Linking home & garden
This design ethos is echoed in Elaine’s symmetrical garden, which links the house to its rural views through a series of mini-gardens, carefully structured paths, colourful borders and unobscured vistas. “By developing the house and garden
together we’ve been able to seamlessly link the two, rather than the garden being something of an after-thought,” says Elaine. In fact, long before they started the build, the
couple had a very clear idea of what they wanted from their new house and how to make the most of the plot. They had lived in the house next door for many years and its large garden had included a commercial showroom-style building, built in the eighties.
selfbuilder & homemaker
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