in light, thanks to the room-height windows and glazed doors. All the glazing, here and throughout the rest of the building, is framed in anthracite grey and contrasts with the white- painted walls and ceiling. Notable departures from the black/grey and white interior colour scheme are the occasional use of cedar cladding and the rust- like appearance of the impressive front door, made from corten steel. The space immediately behind the door contains the stairs and is two storeys high, but walking on straight ahead, away from the door, you pass a downstairs loo, small gym room and utility room before reaching the garden room, a cosy snug that features bi- fold doors on two sides.


Back in the main downstairs living space, most visitors will agree the dominant feature is the very impressive, black-coloured kitchen, which stretches across the entire width of one wall. Just as likely is that visitors won’t guess that the ‘wall’ in fact hides a full-length pantry where Ashley says he can “make a right mess, and no one needs to see it.”


The downstairs flooring comprises porcelain tiles, but Ashley says their first choice was polished concrete. “Our builder said no, as it cracks and it discolours. We spoke to other self-builders, who also had a lot of negative feedback.”


While the glazing maximises sunlight penetration downstairs, the overhang of the cantilevered master bedroom ensures the space doesn’t overheat. Ashley says: “The cantilevers cleverly cast a shadow over the


48 www.sbhonline.co.uk


house as the sun moves around. They perform that function as well as providing us with extra bedroom and bathroom space, so it’s a win-win.”


Upstairs, the glazing again creates an airy and light ambience, while providing lovely views, too. From the top of the oak stairway balcony, you can look down on the hallway or out through a picture frame window across a field to trees beyond. There are four bedrooms, but the master


bedroom is the star of the show, with a hidden walk-in wardrobe, generously sized bathroom and shower spaces, and bi-fold doors leading to a balcony.


Upstairs and downstairs there is creative use


of recessed lighting and lights that are motion activated. The house is 100% electric with solar panels and air source heat pumps on the roof and underfloor heating in the ground level subfloor and first floor.


The house may be finished, but Ashley and Alison have now bought more land at the rear of the property. They already keep goats, chickens and ducks, and have plans to establish an orchard and landscape the pond that is fed by rainwater that runs off the house. Ashley reckons their overall spend on the


property, which includes buying the land and bungalow and then building their new home, is just shy of £1m. The property is currently probably now worth around £1.5m-£1.6m. “That’s good to know,” he says, “but we’re not going anywhere – we love this house, we love the village and we love the people here.”


ASHLEY’S TOP TIPS


• “We didn’t submit a planning application until we’d told people in the village and our immediate neighbours all about our plans. In the end we had planning permission in six weeks and not a single complaint.” • “Work with your builders not against them. Ours project-managed our build, but we talked to them every single day and had scores of other meetings, so we were very much involved.” • “We had zero


knowledge of building, and there’s the fear you might be taken advantage of, but to get the job done well, build good relationships with your supplier, builder, and architect.”


may/june 2022


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