MANAGING PROJECT CHALLENGES Jessica has a background in finance and decided to take on the role of project manager herself, arranging childcare for two days each week to attend site meetings and spend time running the build. The family moved into a rented house a mile away from the site, placing half their belongings into storage. Following a tender process, a local building company was chosen, based on positive references, although Harry and Jessica had a far less successful experience.
“Discovering that we needed to underpin the existing brick house was a particularly low point,” says Jessica. “We had a trial pit dug a couple of weeks before the build started, which was part of the party wall negotiation with our neighbour on the west. This revealed that the house had been built directly onto soil with no foundations. It was a miracle that it was still standing!”
The couple spent almost their entire contingency budget on underpinning work to stabilise the house, which involved engaging a structural engineer. Money was saved by cleaning the existing roof tiles, however, which have been matched with new tiles on the side extension for a seamless finish. “Only one original wall remained untouched – everywhere else new openings were made and chimney breasts removed,” says Jessica. “All the ceilings were taken down and rebuilt, too, and the builders found old bullets, newspapers, and even a wartime chewing gum wrapper as they were taking the house apart.” Bricks from demolished internal walls were salvaged and reused for the new extensions, with twenty-three new double-glazed timber sashes replacing the original draughty single- glazed windows. For the rear kitchen extension, huge aluminium sliding doors have been installed, causing numerous issues when they were initially made too small for the openings. “The floor-to-ceiling sliding doors really add the wow factor, so we were adamant that we would find a way to afford them,” says Jessica. Tracks and mechanisms have been concealed using the same non-slip tiles indoors and out, which means that the kitchen and dining areas merge with the garden when the doors are open.
LAYOUT & INTERIOR DESIGN “Part way through the build I discovered I was expecting Rocco, our third child, which meant that we needed to ask Concept Eight to revise the layout,” says Jessica, who has also recently launched a new business with her sister, Wellbeing Sisters. “Originally, Georgia and Jackson were going to share a bathroom, so we left the plumbing in place but covered it over to make this into a nursery. The guest ensuite was then converted into a family bathroom, accessed from the landing.”
Jessica undertook the interior design for the house, choosing predominantly white walls in
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www.sbhonline.co.uk
Various problems with the sale of their house meant that Jessica’s due date was growing ever closer
the modern living space, adding texture with polished plaster feature walls, marble-effect bespoke joinery, and smoked glass splashbacks. She chose traditional coving and dado rails for the hallway, lounge, and study, with cool greys above the dados contrasting with deep block colours below. Floor and wall tiles were also carefully selected, featuring unusual designs in the hallway and bathrooms. “Originally, we were just going to install underfloor heating in the ground floor extensions, but the builders explained that it wouldn’t cost much more to run this into the lounge, study and hallway – especially taking into account what we’d save on fancy radiators – and I’m so pleased we did, as it creates far cleaner lines,” says Jessica. “Wall space is fairly limited because we have so many windows, with Crittall-style double glass doors connecting the rooms, so positioning radiators would have been difficult anyway.”
The kitchen is a key feature, with its
concrete-finished cabinetry, copper accents, and a bespoke island unit which incorporates built-in seating. Initially, Jessica had chosen and paid a deposit for a more traditional kitchen, but then changed her mind and decided that a sleek, contemporary design would better suit the space.
“The local company who supplied our kitchen was excellent. However, just before it was due to be delivered the German manufacturer went into administration,” says Jessica. “Luckily an investor saved the company, and the kitchen arrived several weeks late.”
The family had given notice to vacate their
rental property, based on the builders’ predictions for a completion date, but delays left them without anywhere to live for seven weeks. After staying with relatives, they were finally able to move into the house in 2019, just in time for lockdown as the Coronavirus pandemic swept the world. “We actually felt extremely lucky to have such a wonderful home where we could open up the glass doors and relax out on the patio during the summer,” says Jessica. “It’s not been an easy project, but we love the way the new and old parts of the house work together to give us all the character, light and space we’d hoped for.”
CONTACTS/ SUPPLIERS
ARCHITECT
Concept Eight Architects
www.concept8.co.uk
TILES
Mandarin Stone
www.mandarinstone.com
KITCHEN
Brooklands Interiors
www.brooklandsinteriors.co. uk
BATHROOMS
Our Bathrooms
www.ourbathrooms.co.uk
DINING TABLE LIGHT Barker and Stonehouse
www.barkerandsgtonehouse
.co.uk
LIGHTING
Industville
www.industville.co.uk
ROOFLIGHTS Roof Maker
www.roof-maker.co.uk
DINING TABLE
Iluka
www.ilukalondon.com
POLISHED PLASTERING The Polished Plaster Company
www.polishedplaster.co.uk
SASH WINDOWS, FRONT
DOORS Greenmark Joinery
www.greenmarkjoinery.co.uk
SMART HOME
INSTALLATION IndigoZest
www.indigozest.co.uk
AIR CONDITIONING
The Air Conditioning Company
www.airconco.com
LIGHT SWITCHES
Dowsing and Reynolds
www.dowsingandreynolds.c om
ARTWORK SUPPLY
Wyecliffe Galleries
www.wycliffe.com
issue 02 2021
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