The project ground to a halt – one of the restrictive covenants in the deeds decreed that the estate had to rubber stamp the design, which they refused to do


Clare. “We were living in a caravan on site, and doing a lot of the work ourselves, so we didn’t want it to drag on longer than necessary. In some ways it did us a favour, because the new design is more traditional and will probably be easier to sell, if and when we eventually move. We were quite pragmatic about it.” While they were waiting for the green light, Clare and Mark continued with the demolition,


24 www.sbhonline.co.uk


hiring a crusher to grind all the old bricks and stone into rubble which went into levelling the ground ready for the foundations. All the interior walls of the original cottage


were stripped back to the original stone and the roof – what was left of it – was removed. “A lot of the roof tiles had come off and we


didn’t know what damage had been caused to the old timbers, so we played it safe and had the whole lot taken off and the building reroofed,” says Mark. “By the time we had stripped everything out there were just three stone walls left standing. It was virtually a full rebuild.”


The new SIPs structure was supplied and built by the Shire Timber Group, during which time the older part of the building was rewired and replumbed. The old portion was then plastered using a special lime and hemp mix to allow the old stone walls to breathe and prevent damp.


“The most challenging aspect of this was blending the old style plaster to the new plasterboard walls of the new extension,” says Mark. He adds: “We didn’t want to hide the fact that the house is in two parts – the old section and the new build – but achieving a


july/august 2019


HIGH POINT


“For a few weeks after we moved in we would come home, sit


together in the kitchen area and just marvel at the fact that we had finally done it.” – Mark & Clare Gittins


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