CONTACTS/ SUPPLIERS


ARCHITECT Richard Murphy Architects richardmurphyarchitects.com


BUILDER/JOINER PJ Green pj-green.co.uk


KITCHEN Howdens howdens.com


LANDSCAPING


Comfort Homes - Joinery & Building Services comfort-homes.co.uk


TILES (BATHROOM) Domus Outlet domusoutlet.com


TILES (PATIO) Paving Direct pavingdirect.com


STRUCTURAL ENGINEER Calum Bennett Engineering cb-eng.co.uk


to counter that. “From carpet colours to kitchen design, we just went with what he said. I think when I need to buy a new dress, I’ll give Tom a call! He has exquisite taste.” While the couple were keen to keep a tight


rein on the budget, there was an overspend. “The advice from Richard was to make up your mind at the start and if you’re on a tight budget don’t change anything. If you can keep to that it’ll keep the timescale and cost from getting away from you.’ However, we did go over budget.” This wasn’t due to underestimating, however.


There were a few changes implemented such as the bookcase between the sitting room and dining room which now incorporates a hidden drinks cabinet in the wall. “I’m so glad we did that,” says Kim. “But there were things we were faced with that would be better to do during the build rather than at a later date.” The couple chose to up the specification on the eternal cladding for a lower maintenance version and to pay for the additional carpentry to box in the ue around the wood burner. t continues the symmetry in the room, and it also gave us lots more storage and hidden charging points.” The couple did manage to make some savings by shopping wisely, however. In the bathrooms, the cabinets are owdens kitchen units fitted with mirrored doors. “Our builders said if we bought IKEA or Howden cabinets they could adapt to fit says im. They also sourced the bathroom tiles from a high-end website outlet which sells end of run tiles purchased from larger hotels. “This was a huge saving and gave


36 www.sbhonline.co.uk


us a really high-uality finish. The builders also made all the built-in


wardrobes using IKEA carcasses. Kim continues: “The principal bedroom is so uncluttered because we have a dressing room and again that was created from IKEA carcasses that the builders customised.” As Graeme and Kim hadn’t lived in a modern house before, they had a huge declutter before they moved and got rid of a lot of furniture that they knew wouldn’t work in their new home. “I decided to make a 3D model before we moved in because I’m useless at visualising in 3D,” Kim recalls. “It really helped me decide where to place the sofas, the wardrobes etc. However, it still seemed really ast when we saw it finished. We’d convinced ourselves it was going to be much smaller, but we have plenty of room and now need another sofa!”


n September  when the couple finally moved in, there was still work to do but since then, they’ve enjoyed every minute of living in their ‘Murphy’. “There are still things on the to-do list,” says Kim. “We’re planting a beech hedge along the perimeter so we can have a bath with a view and the landscaping will take some time to mature. We have nine trees in the garden that are still protected but we’ve built the driveway even further away from them than the original one was so they’re being well looked after.” “I will admit the project was stressful at times,” says Graeme. “However, at the same time I quite enjoyed the process and everyone that visits the house seems to love it, as do we.”


mar/apr 2024


WINDOWS RF Slight Joinery rfslight.co.uk


WOOD BURNING STOVE & INSTALLATION CW Fireplaces cwfireplaces.co.uk


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