Listed cottage redesign in Appledore

Size isn’t everything when you employ good design!

The owner of this compact character cottage sought to rationalise and modernise the interior spaces, with the aim of finding a harmonious way to create more space and combine the existing period features with new, contemporary additions.

This property had been under-maintained and subjected to a significant amount of unsympathetic additions in the years prior to our client purchasing it. We were tasked with the brief of re-organising the existing layout to make better sense of the current space, in addition to replacing the current conservatory with a contemporary extension that realised a light-filled home. The cottage also had a wealth of features, some of which were hidden by later additions, which our client was keen to expose and celebrate; in particular a well to the rear of the ground floor.

Internally, we added a new partition wall on entry which increased the size of the lobby and allowed for a bench seat and additional storage. Removing a stone pier in the middle of the cottage improved the flow of the ground floor and offered space for a new feature staircase, which would allow increased light to enter the space from the double height void. We introduced a small ground floor WC, and what was once the kitchen became a spare bedroom.

A section of the first floor has been given over to a double height to enhance the feeling of light and space on both floors, and to provide a connection with the well from the first floor landing. This floor contains the kitchen, garden room, shower room and master bedroom.

Externally, a timber clad single storey extension to the rear replaced the tired conservatory and housed the newly-moved kitchen. The addition of a new glazed door and fixed window above to the south of the existing building flooded natural light into the rear of the property. At the back a fixed slot window set back from steel bifold doors within the smaller volume, provided a view straight through the extension out to the garden beyond. The black steel bifold doors mimic ‘crittal’ doors and tie in with the overall aesthetic. Once open they provide a seamless connection between inside and out. A corner window adjoining the bifold doors and continuing to wrap around the western facade opens up the corner of the space and made it feel larger and more spacious. Using a limited palette of materials realised an image of simplicity through considered technical detailing and consistency of design.