On Design

I remember many conversations with my ever patient wife Anoushka at the end of our last extension project whereby we both fully agreed that we would never "do that again!" Now, whilst the last job was a lot of hard work and a serious amount of mess, we did in fact both secretly enjoy it (i think) and it certainly has transformed the place.
We have therefore bitten the bullet and decided to extend the cottage again to provide a larger kitchen by way of a single storey barn inspired building which will feature a vaulted roof and give us a square kitchen with breakfast space also.

I think it was the lure of this seasons "must haves" such as the large double American fridge freezer, the instant boiling water tap or maybe hi-gloss units that focuses the mind of what is to come and gets you through the whole thing? Personally, i will love every minute of it and look forwards to getting my hands dirty again! Noush, i am sure will secretly enjoy it too.
The design aspect of the extension has been good fun as there were a number of restrictions but if these can be thought about laterally, you can often turn a potential problem into a solution. I have designed the roof to be asymmetric and vaulted both of which have engineering implications but if designed early enough it doesn't have to be too problematic. I will however at long last now have my vaulted space with Victorian style ridge glazing which is something i have wanted for ages! The interior will be fairly contemporary with either slate or polished screed flooring, high gloss units and at the moment, Corian is looking favourite for worktops as we can get these templated and cut to any shape and size which to a designer is always a dangerous thing to say!

You can check out the details at http://pjtdesign.blogspot.com/
We have also seen a large increase in extension enquiries generally but its refreshing to find that when people are considering extending or renovating they are at least planning to create their very own little slice of architecture that embodies good design principles and not just another extension that looks like everyone else's. Until fairly recently, many extensions have been the result of a sequential engineering and construction project rather than being based on personal lifestyle requirements and architectural correctness. This is a good thing.

Dont forget that you now have many more options than ever before to extend your home without the need for planning permission under the recently revised Permitted Development rules. There is a basic run down of the rules at www.planningportal.gov.uk but be aware some of them are open to various interpretation so get a second opinion from your intended designer/architect or to be fully sure, you can submit for an Certificate of Lawful Use for Proposed Development which the local planning authority would respond to as a formal yes or no as to whether you do or do not require planning permission.