The Project
The works to this imposing home near Boston involved the design of two single storey rear extensions, replacing the existing conservatory area. Our clients knew that they wanted to improve the usability and comfort of their home but reached out to us when they weren’t quite sure on the next steps. Their existing conservatory was becoming increasingly impractical because of its limited thermal performance meaning it wasn’t highly integrated with the main house. As a result, it was underused for much of the year and didn’t give our clients the ‘indoor/outdoor’ feel with their garden which is what they were striving for. The brief also included their desire to create a more defined relationship between their home and garden, with a more sheltered courtyard space which could be enjoyed throughout the seasons. We set to working, making sure we could offer designs that would appear cohesive with the main house.
Interior and Exterior Design
Our proposals involved using the two proposed single storey rear extensions to frame a central courtyard garden, which allows the areas to work together in the summer and create a seamless ‘indoor-outdoor’ living area, but also function well separately, with the benefit of the new areas being fully insulated. The courtyard will now act as a focal point for the new living areas, strengthening the connections between the home and garden. Creating two smaller rear extensions as opposed to one large one allowed for the courtyard garden to appear integrated into the home. Another key consideration throughout the design process was how the new extensions would relate to the existing building in terms of scale and material choices.
Our clients knew that they would struggle to match the bricks, so they chose to contemporarily contrast their existing house by choosing a light walnut-toned cladding, introducing a new warmth and texture to the rear elevation. We feel that although this is a contrasting design, the colours are sympathetic and sit well within the context of the existing house. The proposed extensions feature flat roof forms with rooflights in each area, so they remain visually subservient to the house whilst still providing generous internal ceiling heights where light can flood in. We positioned the proposed doors to face each other to maximise natural light as well as enhance views into the courtyard area and garden, creating openness within the new spaces, reinforcing the connection between inside and out.
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Submission to Local Planning Authority
We are extremely delighted to say that this project has now been lodged with Local Authority to go through the planning process. These designs have significantly improved the functionality and character of the home, and we hope that the planning officers will agree. As always, we included our 3D architectural visualisations with this planning application so the officers can visualise the colour scheme and how the proposed extensions sit against the main house.
If you want to explore the potential of replacing your conservatory with a modern extension, we would be delighted to discuss your ideas in a free initial consultation. Get in touch today!
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