the utility room into a bar and the log store into the utility and we changed one suare window to an arched one. he bar space was too good an opportunity to waste heresa adds: ne of the fi rst things Stuart asked us was how would we live when we were here When you turn up in the car from erthshire he response was there had to be a fi re, there would be family and people and the kitchen would be the hub of the house. owever, while we knew it made sense to have an open plan design, we didn’t want a vast, cold space. Stuart did things like lowering the ceiling in the kitchendining area to make it feel cosier. he space is perfect for us, and  think that was because of the relationship we had. e understood us and we could trust him. Stuart’s design incorporated an entrance hall, den, bathroom, bar, and a staircase to a bedroom and bathroom at the front of the house. nce into the main body of the building there’s an open plan kitchenlivingdining area, a utility room and the main bedroom suite with a dressing room and ensuite. ark came up with the design for the handcrafted staircase which is a work of art in itself, and this leads to a meanine level and an upstairs bedroom and ensuite. With the design fi nalised uickly and planning


permission granted, the couple were good to go, but the next part took a little bit longer.


20


“Mark was


HIGH POINT


learning on the job and for his fi rst build he couldn’t have picked a more diffi cult one.”


n  we bought the land, and we fi nished the build last year t did take longer than we thought, says heresa. After planning was granted, the next two or three years included the purchase of a caravan so we could continue to holiday here along with working on site, then ark built the shed and next came the foundations. t was during the fi nancial crash, so we were trying to pull funding together. nce the foundations were in, the couple


secured funding for the timber structure and the huge steels that were reuired, and ark made the decision to work on the build full time.  took a step back from the business and concentrated on this for approximately three years and for two of those years it was only my son and  working here, ark remembers. here’s nothing conventional about this


“The high point, quite literally, was when we fi tted the round stone cap on top of our epic stone chimney. This was a moment that signifi ed the beginning of the end of the build. We could at last imagine ourselves sitting in front of the blaing fi re, sheltering from the winter winds. And of course, we had to celebrate the capping off in the traditional way, with a wee dram or two – Mark


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