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This project was for a couple who love sunshine, entertaining and cocktails. Wanting to maximise their enjoyment of their Victorian terrace home, they called me in for a Home Design Workshop to explore the potential for a sunny roof terrace.  This couple were keen home improvers and had already extended their ground floor to create a beautiful open plan kitchen diner that opened out to their spectacularly lush back garden that rose up a steep slope behind their home. They had also reconfigured their bedrooms to make it easy for them to entertain guests with two beautiful double bedrooms with ensuites. Their own bedroom had been further maximised by opening up to the loft space to create a dramatic double storey space with a small storage mezzanine. Their garden, although stunning and well designed for entertaining, lost light towards the end of the day and was in shade by the evening. What they were missing was some space to enjoy cocktails in the sunshine towards the end of the day.  They had discovered that their mezzanine space enjoyed the last of the evening rays and they wanted to see if they might be able to have a private sunny roof terrace where they could enjoy time together as a couple, enjoying a full evenings worth of sunshine. This project explored if it was going to be possible to create a roof terrace given the size and configuration of the space. It also created sketches that could be used to discuss the proposal with planners to check on its potential to gain planning approval.  Although the balcony was feasible, the option to use a balcony rooflight, such as the Cabrio by Velux, seemed like a more affordable and flexible option for this couple. A rooflight balcony would maintain the same mezzanine space internally but allow them to open it up during the summer to create the balcony as and when they wanted it. Let's face it the UK isn't blessed with all year round sunshine so sunbathing and cocktails in the evening sunshine is unlikely to be a daily occurrence, unless we see some dramatic effects from Climate Change.  This sketch design gave this couple all the information they needed to help them make decisions for their next home improvements and saved them from making an expensive mistake with their home. Design Your Home Vision Checklist
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Maximise SpaceThe first way to improve circulation space is to eliminate it. Circulation space is just space that you're using to walk from A to B. It's often not very great space. The worst types of circulation space are narrow corridors with lots of doors. If you can, get rid of that type of space altogether. One way to eliminate circulation space is to make your place more open plan. In an open plan layout rooms are not separated off from each other and they don't have a separate circulation space in between the rooms. Instead there are different types of uses in the same room. So circulation spaces or hallways are not dividing up your floorplan and using up valuable space. If you are not comfortable with a completely open space then open plan space can be delineated by furniture, partial walls or sliding screens. Going from one room directly into another room then into another room is an ancient layout concept. You can see this in very old houses, Speke Hall in Liverpool is a really good example of this. Originally it was a courtyard building. It was built without corridors. You simply went from one room to another room to another room all the way around the courtyard. Most of us would consider there to be a lack of privacy for bedrooms if you have to go through one bedroom to get to another bedroom. So from our cultural perspective on privacy this probably wouldn't work for most bedrooms. However, it could work in your living room or in your kitchen. For most people there's no problem to go from your living room through your dining room through to your kitchen. Eliminating circulation space as much as possible and absorbing that into your living space can give you bigger and nicer living space that's more comfortable to use and fits in more of the furniture and activities that you want. Reconfiguring an existing house by opening it up and eliminating circulation space will make it feel more spacious without necessarily also having to build an extension to create more space. Give PurposeThe second way to improve your circulation space and your floor plan through circulation space is to make that circulation space have more purpose. To give it a use. Especially a use that will give value to you and your life. You can do this is two ways.
You could make corridors a little bit wider in some places. You could turn them from long thin narrow corridors and make wider spaces that are more useable. You should also consider really carefully the types of door that you use onto that circulation space and the positioning of the doors, and move them if it helps. If you've got an older home, you might have circulation space that was intended to keep spaces separate so that they were easier to heat and keep warm. In this case you will have a door that you would close to maintain more warmth in the room. If maintaining warmth is still a consideration for you in your home, at least at some periods during the year, then you could increase openings to double doors or sliding doors so that you can have some flexibility to treat the corridor space as part of the room. This gives you flexibility and the ability to use your space differently depending on the time of the year and the amount of warmth and comfort you need.  If you've got an older building, then maybe you're not actually looking at making lots of big changes. If you want to maintain the character of the rooms then you could give the circulation space more of a defined function to increase its useability for you. You could make it a room of its own in-between spaces. Here are some ideas of ways that you can make your circulation space more useful and valuable for you: Dining HallIf you've got a wide enough space for your dining table and chairs and still move comfortably around them, this can be a great option. Especially if you're not somebody who needs a formal dining room very often, but you'd like to have one for occasional use, then this can be a really good option. When you're passing through it can be quite useful to have a table in a hall to put things down on. When you need to you can bring shopping in, put it on the table and then take it into the kitchen, for example. So this can be a very practical solution. Then you don't have a separate dining room that you're not actually using. This gives you space with more function. You do need quite a big hall to be able to do this, especially if you want a big table and chairs permanently set up for dining. Alternatively you can look at different types of furniture, for example use dining tables that increase in size, such as extendable or drop leaf tables, and chairs that fold away or stack, if you want to make this approach work in a smaller space. 
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| If you've got enough width or if you've got a staircase and you're not using the space underneath then you can make a home office. Like many people maybe you now spend a day or two or even more working from home but you don't have a room that you can use as a home office. Creating a home office within some of your circulation space is a really good way to get yourself a dedicated workspace that's not eating off space from any of the other rooms that you want to live in. |  |
Playroom
More fun things that you can do are to make your circulation space into a play space.
Anywhere you've got a long corridor type space is ideal to hang a swing. Little ones love swings. Adults love swings. Swings are great! So if you've got a long corridor space then you could hang a swing in there and play. You just need to make sure that you fix it into something structural that will cope with the weight and movement.
Corridors are also great for racing. Driving cars up and down. Scooting. All of that sort of thing. You could paint road tracks, train tracks, even just lines or lay a stripy carpet to make it into a play space for your children, or even you, to enjoy that space in a different way.
Anywhere you've got a long corridor type space is ideal to hang a swing. Little ones love swings. Adults love swings. Swings are great! So if you've got a long corridor space then you could hang a swing in there and play. You just need to make sure that you fix it into something structural that will cope with the weight and movement.
Corridors are also great for racing. Driving cars up and down. Scooting. All of that sort of thing. You could paint road tracks, train tracks, even just lines or lay a stripy carpet to make it into a play space for your children, or even you, to enjoy that space in a different way.
Home Gym
You could create a fitness trail through your circulation space. You could have hanging bars, inset a treadmill into the floor, or you could fix climbing nodules to the wall so that you can practice bouldering along them.
There are so many fun things that you can do with a corridor or hallway to lift it up and make it not just about circulation but give it more use and most importantly give your life more ease and enjoyment. More functionality in your home will make it work better for you and help you make the most of the space you have.
I hope these ideas:
- inspire you with ideas to make your home a more enjoyable and fun place to live
- show how you can maximise the space you have
- show how you can make small changes to the way you use your home
- will help you make your home an easier and more fulfilling place to live
Design Your Home Vision Checklist
For many of my clients one of their first questions, after they explain what they want to achieve is,
"Can I afford this?"
Before I answer this question I want to share with you a story about one of my clients.
Recently I caught up with my client and she told me how her extension was working out. When I worked with her and her husband on their family home I developed a few options including a fit-easily-within-budget option and a spend-to-the-maximum option.
She was really keen on the spend-to-the-maximum option. This was her dream home option. It included a large new kitchen diner that would overlook and open up to the garden.
In the end the fit-easily-within-budget option was their chosen way forward. This option met all their needs from their home, leaving the kitchen, dining and living room untouched, and giving them a new guest suite / hobby room, with a shower room and utility.
She was really keen on the spend-to-the-maximum option. This was her dream home option. It included a large new kitchen diner that would overlook and open up to the garden.
In the end the fit-easily-within-budget option was their chosen way forward. This option met all their needs from their home, leaving the kitchen, dining and living room untouched, and giving them a new guest suite / hobby room, with a shower room and utility.
I asked her if she felt that they had made the right decision going with a project that met their needs but not necessarily all her dreams. She told me that, although they could have afforded the bigger project, they are happy that they decided not to stretch their budget and to keep a financial buffer that they could use in other ways.
Since the work has been completed my clients, have traveled extensively and enjoyed many evenings out indulging their passion for music at concerts around the country. She told me that she was really pleased that they had chosen not to spend to their maximum budget as if they had then they wouldn't have been able to live the same lifestyle, with as many exciting holidays or rock-n-roll gigs.
I was so pleased to hear that they are enjoying their life, that their home works well for them, and that they were really satisfied with the choices they had made.
Since the work has been completed my clients, have traveled extensively and enjoyed many evenings out indulging their passion for music at concerts around the country. She told me that she was really pleased that they had chosen not to spend to their maximum budget as if they had then they wouldn't have been able to live the same lifestyle, with as many exciting holidays or rock-n-roll gigs.
I was so pleased to hear that they are enjoying their life, that their home works well for them, and that they were really satisfied with the choices they had made.
This high level of satisfaction and enjoyment of life is what I hope for all of my clients.
So back to the frequently asked question, Can I afford this?
In truth the simple answer is that I can not answer this for you. Only you know what your finances look like and what your priorities in your life are. But there is a more important question, that I can help you answer.
What you should be asking yourself is...
Is it worth doing this work?
Here I'm giving you 5 key things to consider that will help you to answer this question.
Only you know what your values, needs and desires are, and how much it is worth to you to meet those. All I can do is ask you questions to help guide you to making your best decision. A decision that you are not going to regret. I want you to be satisfied and enjoy your best life just like my clients.
1 | How long will you live here?
If you're planning to move in the next 5 years then look at other homes in your local area, which have the types of spaces and features that you'd like. Compare the market value of these homes to yours. Particularly look at homes that are similar to yours that have been added to.
Speak to a local estate agent to get some help understanding the current value of your home and the potential value once you've carried out the work.
Ask yourself if you can you do that work to your home and then recoup the costs of that investment when you come to sell.
Also ask yourself if it is important to you to be able to recoup your costs, or would living in a home that works for you, even if only in the short term, would be worth the spend even if you can't recoup it?
Or perhaps you're planning to live in this home for the rest of your life, or at least for as long as you can foresee. In that case it will be more difficult to assess resale value possibly several decades into the future and perhaps this is less important to you.
Ask yourself how much you feel it is worth live to live in this home but to make it better and suit your specific desires, needs and tastes. What value do you place on living in this home and having this home suit you better.
Consider how much it would cost to buy a house that meets your needs and desires without having to do any work to it. If you can find one then check what the difference in value is between your potential resale value and the purchase price of your ideal home.
2 | Do you need more space or better space?
If you decide that you need more space then as a starting point you can estimate around £2k per square meter for new build space and about £1k per square meter to upgrade and remodel existing space. This is in no way accurate costing for any particular project but is a reasonable guideline to start to outline what budget you will need.
As you can see it generally costs less to make your existing space work better than it does to build more space.
Estimating budgets based on cost per square meter is a method that you can use to get a ballpark budget figure, that can go up or down from this depending on the detailed decisions that you make. Sometimes these decisions may not be all up to you, for example if you have a really special building, such as a listed building or live in a conservation area, then you may have to meet special requirements and these figures can get much higher.
If you feel that you need more space then consider what do you need more space for? Then you can ask yourself if these uses are really worth the project spend.
If you have enough space but you want to make better use of your existing space then consider how your existing space is wasted or not working for you.
3 | How are you going to pay for it?
Is it from savings, mortgage, lottery winnings, a home building loan, inheritance? Where the money is coming from may affect your project. For example if the money is going to be released in stages this might affect your construction contract.
If you need to find the money somewhere then you need to get specialist financial advice. Speak to an independent financial advisor, a mortgage advisor or broker, to get advise on how to raise money to fund your project.
Do you really prefer to spend this money on your home or would you rather spend you money going to music concerts and extravagant holidays? Consider what other things you could be spending that money on and which is more important to you.
If setting your budget too high will mean sacrifices in other areas of your life then you need to be happy to live with those sacrifices. You might have your dream home, but if paying for that is preventing you from living the life you dream of then is it really worth it?
4 | Have you included for extra or unexpected costs?
On top of the construction budget you need to add 20% VAT and fees for specialist consultants. It is also wise to have some contingency money just in case something unexpected happens on site and this bumps up the cost.
Your basic consultants that you'll need to deliver a good project, are your architect and structural engineer. On top of these, depending on your project, your building and your area, you may also need surveyors to look at a range of things such as asbestos, drainage, trees (arboricultural), bats (ecology), amongst many other possibilities.
You may also want additional specialist designers on your team such as an interior designer, lighting designer, integrated technology or home cinema designers, sustainable renewable heating and energy systems designers and engineers. This depends on the quality of the build that you're looking to create. Which leads us neatly to this final question.
5 | What quality of build do you want?
Quality is a difficult thing to define. It means different things to different people. You need to define what quality means to you.
Then you need to decide if your idea of quality is more or less important to you than the cost to achieve it.
Here are some questions to help you decide what quality means to you.
How long do you want this work to last?
How long do you want this work to last? Do you want 25 years guaranteed and no more. Do you want something short term that you can sell on and don't really care about the long term effects because you'll be out of there. Or are you looking to create a legacy that will last for generations to come. Perhaps something that you can pass on to your grandchildren and great grandchildren. This leads on to other questions such as how durable do you want the materials to be?
Are you happy to carry out regular maintenance work, or not?
Consider the ongoing effort and costs of maintenance. Would you prefer to spend a bit more upfront so that you don't have so much ongoing maintenance to do? Or is there a particular material that does need ongoing maintenance, maybe is a bit more fragile, but you're happy to do that because you really love that material. An example of this might be timber windows instead of UPVc.
Is there anything that you want because you feel that it's the right thing to do?
For example would you prefer to use renewable materials, like timber instead of concrete, or locally made materials like Cumbrian sheeps wool insulation instead of imported German wood fibre board. Any aspect of quality related to ethical or environmental standards.
Will you have any special requirements imposed on your project?
For example if it's a listed building or a conservation area, you might have to use a particular material or traditional technique, such as a Welsh slate roof.
Summing Up
You need to consider and decide a few key things to set the right project budget for you. Improving your home can be an investment and it can also be fundamental to the satisfaction you get from your project and the basis of a lifestyle that you dream of.
Here are the points to consider in bullet form
- decide if this is your short or long term home
- decide if you need more space or better use of existing space
- decide where the money to pay for this is coming from
- include for any extra costs, like consultants fees, VAT and contingency
- decide what quality means to you and if that is more or less important than cost
Setting your budget is only one of the key decisions that need to be made when preparing for a construction project.
For guidance on other fundamental decisions you need to make at the beginning of your project get my free Design Your Home Vision Checklist.
Imagine arriving home to your stylish and characterful home that oozes Victorian period charm. Your roof a crowning example of good taste and fine design that will last long into the future. Imagine your dry and warm home, beautiful and comfortable, inside and out.
The problem is you have no idea how to get there. You don't even know what decisions you need to make. Or, you have an idea, but it's so overwhelming that you don't know what to choose.
This much you do know. You know you need to replace your roof. Slates have slipped, the battens have snapped, there's no roofing felt left if there ever was any, and it's leaking in several places. You know you need some more insulation. It's freezing in winter and too hot in summer.
The problem is you have no idea how to get there. You don't even know what decisions you need to make. Or, you have an idea, but it's so overwhelming that you don't know what to choose.
This much you do know. You know you need to replace your roof. Slates have slipped, the battens have snapped, there's no roofing felt left if there ever was any, and it's leaking in several places. You know you need some more insulation. It's freezing in winter and too hot in summer.
You call some roofers out to take a look, and to give you a price for re-roofing. You tell them you need a price for a new roof, leaving the details up to them. You get a standard looking roof. Thick concrete slate-look tiles, modern featureless ridge, black half-round UPVC gutters, UPVC fascia and soffit, just like every other bland mediocre roof on the street. Unlike the original roof that lasted somewhere around 100 years or more, this roof could last only 25 years.
Imagine you have your roofer working away already. The scaffolding is going up. Your roofer is asking you for some decisions and needs an immediate answer. They want to get on with the work and you want your new roof completed before the next rainfall. You've got an hour to decide, tops, because they need to get the materials from the builders merchants this afternoon so they can make a start tomorrow.
Then imagine lying awake at night worrying if those were the right decisions and not ones that you'll live to regret.
Imagine you have your roofer working away already. The scaffolding is going up. Your roofer is asking you for some decisions and needs an immediate answer. They want to get on with the work and you want your new roof completed before the next rainfall. You've got an hour to decide, tops, because they need to get the materials from the builders merchants this afternoon so they can make a start tomorrow.
Then imagine lying awake at night worrying if those were the right decisions and not ones that you'll live to regret.
It doesn't need to be this way. You can make the decisions before you get a roofer in. You can take your time to think about how you want your ideal roof to be, not rushed into snap decisions.
Imagine taking your time to think about it over the weekend. Chatting about it with your other half over a cup of coffee or a glass of wine. Filling a Pinterest board with beautiful photos of your favourite options.
You write a list of the things you want, and get your roofer to price for everything you'd ideally like. You get your contract in place, and then sit back while your roofer delivers what you want.
Minimum stress. Maximum chance of your best roof outcome.
If this sounds good to you, lets get started making decisions for your Victorian roof with this ultimate guide to Victorian Roofs in the North West.
Minimum stress. Maximum chance of your best roof outcome.
If this sounds good to you, lets get started making decisions for your Victorian roof with this ultimate guide to Victorian Roofs in the North West.
Style Standards
Victorian roofs come in many different forms. Around Manchester and Liverpool and throughout most of the North-West of England, most Victorian homes are in the Gothic style, or for older homes the Regency style. This means that, generally in the North West, parapet roofs are not so common and it's more likely that you'll have an overhanging eaves. Gothic styles tend to have a usable or inhabited loft space with steep roof pitch, pitched dormers, tall decorative chimneys, and fancy detailing for every element. Older Victorian homes in the Regency style tend to have bigger overhanging eaves, with simpler detailing overall, a lower pitch and less usable loft space. Consider the overall style of your home when deciding the details. If it's a simpler regency style, don't choose overly complicated details. If it's a gothic style then let yourself get fancy and choose more decorative details.
Chimney Considerations
Take the opportunity to repair and refurbish these while the scaffolding is up so you don't need to deal with these again for a good few years. You don't want your beautiful new roof damaged by other trades dealing with your chimney in a few years time. The buddleia and other plants that have made their home on your chimney need to be dug out. Think about repointing the brickwork, replacing the flaunching, and replacing broken or missing Chimney pots. Decide how to deal with your chimney pots and the flue depending on how you choose to use the fireplace inside: open fire if it's not a smokeless zone, wood burning stove, gas fire, decorative only with no fire, or chimney breast removed inside or blocked up.
Ridge Rules
The highest point on the roof is the ridge and is often the most visible. Gothic ridges can be super decorative with added cresting and you can still get elaborate ornate ridge tiles with cresting to use. Check if your home has an original ornate ridge, or if old photos of your home show that it did, or if other houses similar to yours in the street still have their original ridge. You can get similar cresting or even the original copied to replicate this detail and add a really special quality to crown your roof. If your home is more regency style or you prefer a modern look then a simpler ridge is a good option. If you like you can add some distinctiveness by having a contrasting colour or use a similar colour to the main roof if you prefer a simple unified look.
Slating Spec
If you're in a conservation area or your home is a listed building then you are likely to be restricted in the materials you can use. Most Victorian roofs in the North-West are slate from North Wales, but stone can be found, along with clay tiles. There are many types of slate available. Slate comes in different colours and strengths, which depends on where it comes from. If there are no planning restrictions then you can look at alternatives to slate that give a similar look. Manmade slate-look materials will be cheaper, but most will not have the same longevity/durability as natural slate and rarely look as good. Consider colour, texture, size and laying pattern. If you want to add more decorative detail you can use a combination of different slate colours or even add in different shapes.
Gutter Guidelines
The gutter is usually highly visible and choosing a suitable profile, considering the material and colour can make a huge difference. Most people choose black o white UPVC for the gutter but not only do they look terrible on a period home, they will also need replacing sooner than more traditional materials. Victorian gutters were usually cast iron and half round or ogee profile. Cast iron needs more maintenance and once it has rusted will need to be replaced but it can still last for many decades and longer than plastic with the right maintenance. Aluminium gutters can be made in heritage profiles and come ready finished with a paint coating. You can even get specially finished versions that have the same texture as cast iron. Aluminium is relatively low maintenance and long lasting. Copper is also an option and although it the most expensive choice it is likely to last the longest and has a very unique look as it weathers naturally to a green finish, needing little to no maintenance.
Soffit Standards
The gable and the eaves are where the roof meets the wall. Some have a parapet, some have an overhang, some have highly decorative gothic bargeboards, others have classical brick details, some have decorative brackets, and others have a flush fascia. In short Victorian roofs, and how they finish at the wall, can be very different. Take a good look at yours. Chances are you haven't really noticed it much, soffits and such details are often overlooked. These simple details are an opportunity to add quality and distinctiveness to your home. Modern roofs now often use verge tiles to finish a gable in a simple way. These were not commonly used by Victorians, especially not on a slate roof. Modern soffits and eaves are often covered by plastic strips that only have low maintenance in their favour. Consider your options and think about the shapes, materials, colours and textures that you could introduce here to give your home that refined Regency look or the decorative Gothic look, whichever suits your home and your tastes.
Energy Exemplar
The roof typically represents about 25% of the heat loss in your home. Improving the way the roof performs can make your home both much more energy efficient as well as considerably more comfortable. Simple and sophisticated changes can have a huge impact and if you are replacing your roof anyway will not cost a significant amount more to add in than doing it the standard meeting building regulations way. All works that involve a change to the “thermal envelope”, such as the roof, do require building regulations approval so make sure you factor this in. You can simply add more insulation. You can go further and improve airtightness, for example by changing a vented roof to an unvented roof. When carrying out energy improvements works it is important to get it right so that you don't add problems like condensation and rot risks in where they didn't previously exist. Check with product manufacturers or get specialist help to design your new build up. It is really worth considering making these changes because, although this is the bit that you don't see, you will really feel the difference both to your comfort and your heating bills, especially in the depths of winter.
Making the right decisions will help you to take your roof refurb from standard to stand-out.
There are lots of things to take into account but don't become overwhelmed. If you need help speak to a specialist eco-refurbisher. Look at The Green Register where you can find us and other fellow professionals. If your roof is leaking and its time for a refurb, you can increase the value of your home by making this key visible element a bigger and better asset that adds to the character of your home and makes your life more comfortable.
Instead of losing character and keeping the same existing and typically poor quality of energy performance you can enhance the original features of your Victorian home and make it easier to heat and feel more comfortable at home, both during the winter and the summer.
To help you visualise all these elements and options follow iarchitectuk on Pinterest, where you can see my Victorian Roof Pinterest board and other architectural design boards to inspire you on your home improvements journey. You can also join my free Facebook group Design Your Home Vision, for homeowners of period property with potential, to share advice, support and inspiration with other homeowners like you.
Instead of losing character and keeping the same existing and typically poor quality of energy performance you can enhance the original features of your Victorian home and make it easier to heat and feel more comfortable at home, both during the winter and the summer.
To help you visualise all these elements and options follow iarchitectuk on Pinterest, where you can see my Victorian Roof Pinterest board and other architectural design boards to inspire you on your home improvements journey. You can also join my free Facebook group Design Your Home Vision, for homeowners of period property with potential, to share advice, support and inspiration with other homeowners like you.
This first step is the most important, not only for every home design project but for any and every building project from a 2-bed holiday cottage to a teaching hospital or even an international airport! This is the key to building design success.
In this blog post I'm going to explain why you need to take this step, what this step is, what the benefits are, and how you can take this step today.
Many clients come to me feeling overwhelmed with ALL THE DECISIONS! They are not sure where to start or who can help them. I know it can seem confusing and complicated to design your home but there are some simple steps that you can take right now and a few decisions to make at the beginning that will get your project off to the right start.
You need your characterful Victorian / Edwardian home to work for your modern family life instead of a typical family from 100 years ago. This is the first step that you need to take to reach your goal of living in a comfortable and beautiful home.
This first step is the most important as it lays the foundations for all that is to come. Think of this as being like the strip of concrete that goes into the ground that the rest of the building is built off.
So what is this significant first step?!
This first step is the foundational work that you need to do to create your vision for your home. Architects call this 'The Strategic Brief'.
Put simply, it is a description of what you need and want.
I call this designing your vision and I've created some worksheets and checklists to help you.
Put simply, it is a description of what you need and want.
I call this designing your vision and I've created some worksheets and checklists to help you.
Design Your Vision
You vision needs to be clear and include the following:
1. Your Needs
Describe your needs, as a family and for each individual. Your ages, hobbies, daily habits and routines at home can all be included. Also any special events that you celebrate at home. Think about how many people need to spend time in each space and how they want to use those spaces in your home.
2. Building and Site Information
Gather together all the information you have about your home and garden. Put it in one place so its easy to get to. If you can make this digital even better.
3. Decide your Priorities
The three key priorities for a project are time, cost and quality. You need to decide what deadline you want to meet, what your budget is, and what quality means for you. Then decide which of these is the most important to you.
4. Your Desires
These are the would like to haves. Describe the materials, styles and colours you love. Gather inspirational images from magazines or online. Pinterest and Houzz are both good ways to do this online and you can easily share these with your designer.
Why is this such an important first step?
Research by the Royal Institute of British Architects, shows that the clients brief is fundamental to the buildings success. ('Working with Architects' Client Survey 2016)
A great brief creates a great building
Getting a great building can mean many things, some of them more wide ranging than you might expect. Here are some of those benefits:
Financial
Studies have shown that quality design has a positive impact on resale and rental values, which can be as much as 11% to 20% higher for quality designed buildings.
Functional
Comfort, air quality, noise and privacy all contribute to your enjoyment of your home, as well as to your health and well being.
Image
The 'Wow' factor is known to encourage people to visit, so could help make your homelife more sociable with friends and family wanting to pop round.
Community
There is a lot of evidence that shows that good quality design can support better community spirit, a sense of pride, identity and even mental health. Although it is limited how much you can affect your entire neighbourhood with your own home, it is possible to uplift the image of your street, especially if your neighbours follow your lead, and this can have a positive impact for you and your neighbours.
Environmental
You can reduce energy and water use as well as protecting local wildlife and the planet through good design. This doesn't always have to cost more and even if it does initially it can save you money in the long term.
Cultural
If you own an historic building that you are custodian of, or you want to pioneer outstanding contemporary design, then your project could contribute to local and national culture and create a long term legacy for future generations to enjoy and be inspired by.
Are you ready to take the first step for your project?
Get yourself a copy of the Design Your Home Vision Checklist for free so that you can get started today.
Once you've completed this checklist email it back to get a free 20 minute phone consultation, when you can discuss your project further and find out how iarchitect can help you take the next step to achieving your dream home.
You're desperate for more space. Your home feels cramped and uncomfortable and you'd love a home that looks more like your pinterest board.
More space and more beautiful space is what the majority of our clients are looking for.
My favourite client brief from 2017 was “Please help me make my home more lovable”. This client didn't want to build more space, but wanted to reconfigure the space he had and incorporate better storage solutions so that his home both looked and felt better to be in.
My favourite client brief from 2017 was “Please help me make my home more lovable”. This client didn't want to build more space, but wanted to reconfigure the space he had and incorporate better storage solutions so that his home both looked and felt better to be in.
Please help me make my home more lovable
Building more space is a dream for many. It's a big investment and getting finance in place doesn't exactly happen overnight for most of us. Big developers spend around £1,000 per square meter for big housing developments. Most of us can't achieve that price, without physically doing the labour ourselves, because we don't have their economies of scale.
Typically in the UK it costs about £1,500-2,000 per square meter of new-build space. This means that to build the space for a standard wardrobe, roughly W1.5m and D0.6m, this is likely to cost you between £1,500 and £2,000. Quite a lot of money for hanging some extra clothes especially since it's estimated that the average person only wears 20% of their clothes. So making the most of the space you already have is a good place to start when you're feeling like your home is bursting at the seams.
Typically in the UK it costs about £1,500-2,000 per square meter of new-build space. This means that to build the space for a standard wardrobe, roughly W1.5m and D0.6m, this is likely to cost you between £1,500 and £2,000. Quite a lot of money for hanging some extra clothes especially since it's estimated that the average person only wears 20% of their clothes. So making the most of the space you already have is a good place to start when you're feeling like your home is bursting at the seams.
Follow these tips to make your home more spacious and beautiful without getting the builders in.
TIP#1 Gather Inspiration
Before you do anything else make yourself a nice cuppa and get comfy on your sofa. Then take a look through some home magazines, your Pinterest board, Google images or Houzz and find 2-3 photos of places or things that you love, as inspiration for how you want your home to be. Set these as wallpapers on your phone so you've got them as a reminder for your end goal. Come over to our facebook page and share your inspirational images.
TIP#2 Fresh Eyes
It can be hard to see how to improve your own home and to decide where to start. It helps to get a fresh pair of eyes on the job. One way to do this is to take a photo from every corner of each room that you'd like to work on. You'll often notice more when you look at the photos than you do looking around your space. You can take photos before and after as motivation to remind you of the improvements you've made. If you can, print these photos out and draw on them. Highlight anything you are happy with or don't like. Write a to do list for all the things you want to change and anything that you'd like to make more of. Maybe you need some better toy storage, or you'd like your windows to become more of an attractive feature. Use the photos to start your action plan.
TIP#3 Spark Joy
The Japanese home organisation guru Marie Kondo recommends gathering all your belongings of one type in one place and going through them, touching each one and asking yourself if it sparks joy. Doing this helps you to identify the things that you don't need or love and can get rid of. This reflects the golden rule of the designer William Morris who said, “Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” This technique of decluttering doesn't stop at the small items but includes furniture. If you really want to create more space clearing out the large objects and pieces of furniture - that unused chair / cello - is where the biggest gains can be made. Have a look around your room. Is there a chair that nobody sits on because it is really uncomfortable? Clear out the large things that you don't use and you will instantly see your room transformed.
TIP#4 Minimalist Game
There are lots of minimalist challenges on the internet. The Minimalist Game, by The Minimalists, is a manageable way to have a clear out and over the course of a month get rid of 465 things. It's up to you what you get rid of, maybe its some paper clips or maybe its a table. If you want accountability you can tweet about it and tell your friends on Facebook, posting pictures of the things you're getting rid of. The game works like this: On day One, you get rid of one item. On day Two, you get rid of two items, On day Three, three items, and so on. If this is too difficult just get rid of one thing on each day of one month. You can make up your own rules. The idea is not to get rid of everything but to have a clear out and get rid of all those things that you never use and you don't love. We all know that if you're selling you need to have a declutter and the same applies if you want to create more space and make your home look more beautiful so that you can enjoy it.
Tip#5 The Clockwise Sweep
Once you've decluttered and got an action plan, the next thing is to take action and make everywhere look clean, tidy and stylish. You can do this for your whole home, plus the garden, or just one room. Starting at the door of the first room you're dealing with go around in a clockwise movement picking up out of place items and dusting down surfaces. Rearrange your pictures, etc, as you go and make your space look styled and well put together.
Now that you've completed your Spring Clean and have a fresh view of your home it's time to get the kettle on and enjoy your space. You've given your home a lovely refresh, and the chances are that you know your space better now than you did before. Come over to our Facebook page and show us your before and after photos.
Now that you've completed your Spring Clean and have a fresh view of your home it's time to get the kettle on and enjoy your space. You've given your home a lovely refresh, and the chances are that you know your space better now than you did before. Come over to our Facebook page and show us your before and after photos.
If decluttering and restyling aren't enough for you and you know that you really do need to add more space then we have a free 'Design Your Vision' workbook for you. This will give you a series of exercises to go through on your own or with your partner. Once you've completed this you will have your list of needs and wants for your home clearly set out. This is the first step for any home project, and will make it easy for you to speak with designers and builders to let them know what you want.
Let us know in the comments below if you need more space and a more beautiful home and what you're doing to make it happen.
You're wondering if iarchitect is the best architecture practice for your project?
Stick around and you'll find out why it is!
Stick around and you'll find out why it is!
At iarchitect we can be a bit too modest about shouting about our achievements and as the architect director I realise that this needs to change. Now the tax returns are in and 2018 is in full swing I am going to give you an update on our successes from the past year and hope you'll join me in some virtual toasting and celebrating.
At the beginning of last year I transformed iarchitect from a sole trading entity to a limited company and am now celebrating nearing the end of a first successful year as a limited company. After setting up the practice 9 years ago as a sole trader in the depths of recession, through perseverance and optimism it has thrived. Now it feels like iarchitect is growing up! Cheers to transformations and developing!
Over the course of the last 12 months iarchitect has received a number of awards and completed many successful projects for our customers.
Best of Houzz for Service Award 2018
Our latest award is from the online residential design platform Houzz. They have awarded us “Best of Houzz for Service” for which we must thank our kind customers, their glowing reviews and 5 star ratings.
Houzz also awarded iarchitect with “Best of Houzz for Design” in 2017 as our project photographs were among those most shared on the platform.
Houzz has also marked iarchitect out as an “Influencer” as we regularly help out members of the Houzz community through the dilemma forums.
We use Houzz with many of our customers to create ideasbooks which are great for communicating ideas and visualizing options. Cheers to communicating beautiful ideas and delivering good customer service!
Houzz also awarded iarchitect with “Best of Houzz for Design” in 2017 as our project photographs were among those most shared on the platform.
Houzz has also marked iarchitect out as an “Influencer” as we regularly help out members of the Houzz community through the dilemma forums.
We use Houzz with many of our customers to create ideasbooks which are great for communicating ideas and visualizing options. Cheers to communicating beautiful ideas and delivering good customer service!
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"Jane's help and advice has been invaluable" Caroline Ellis, Homeowner
"Jane was able to come up with some fabulous ideas that ticked all our boxes and then some." Trasie Einig Jones, Homeowner
"Made the whole build process much less stressful and delivered on every level" Tracey Gibbs, Homeowner
"We are very pleased with the result" Elise Watson, Homeowner
Best Full-Service Architect Firm, Manchester
and
Excellence Award for Conservation Services, North West
Also in 2017 construction industry magazine Build awarded iarchitect with 2 awards:
Best Full-Service Architect Firm, Manchester and Excellence Award for Conservation Services, North West.
Since joining the RIBA conservation register as an accredited registrant, iarchitect has worked on a number of conservation projects. Our highest profile conservation project being the landscape refurbishment and access improvements for Northenden War Memorial. Cheers to protecting and enhancing architectural heritage!
Best Full-Service Architect Firm, Manchester and Excellence Award for Conservation Services, North West.
Since joining the RIBA conservation register as an accredited registrant, iarchitect has worked on a number of conservation projects. Our highest profile conservation project being the landscape refurbishment and access improvements for Northenden War Memorial. Cheers to protecting and enhancing architectural heritage!
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Featured in Ideal Home, Dream Homes Edition
Another highlight of 2017 was a beautiful editorial piece published in Ideal Home, August edition. This piece showcases one of our completed projects in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, South Manchester. It is a lovely example of a Victorian Terrace for which we designed the extension, reconfigured rooms and refurbishment throughout to create a striking and comfortable modern family home. Cheers to warm, energy-efficient and characterful homes that meet the needs of modern families!
If you'd like to read about this project you can still get a digital copy of Ideal Home August 2017 edition:
Read about our project on page 100, August 2017 edition. |
and every day...
We've had many every day successes too including planning approvals, building control approvals, tender returns within budget and completed built projects. This is what we do. Cheers to successful projects!
We specialise in helping homeowners with period property and recommend starting with our Home Design Workshop. If you have a cold house with an outdated layout that doesn't work for you then we can help you create a home that suits your lifestyle and sense of style, while maintaining period character and being kind to the environment.
We are expanding
We are recruiting and looking for a new junior design team member to join us. If you are a student architect looking for part-time work while you study, need some flexibility to fit around course project deadlines and want to get some relevant experience on your CV then request an application form.
The easiest thing to do is to select the obvious materials for their standard uses, such as glass for windows, but to get a design that really stands out and delivers a unique solution we need to consider materials in different ways.
While travelling this summer I was reminded of the beautifully subtle but relatively rare use of marble for windows. Examples of marble panes for windows can be found in historic ecclesiastical architecture (churches, monasteries, etc), particularly in Mediterranean countries. Although I had heard about this use whilst at university and proposed it in one of my student projects for a museum, I had never seen any real life examples before this summer.
Jaca, in the Spanish Pyrenees and the heart of the Aragonese kingdom, has several examples of buildings with marble windows. Two of these examples really stood out to me, one modern and one historic. I then did some research into marble windows and found a few more examples to share. As the images in this blog piece show, marble windows, create a gentle light source and striking patterned visual effect which can be breathtakingly beautiful.
While travelling this summer I was reminded of the beautifully subtle but relatively rare use of marble for windows. Examples of marble panes for windows can be found in historic ecclesiastical architecture (churches, monasteries, etc), particularly in Mediterranean countries. Although I had heard about this use whilst at university and proposed it in one of my student projects for a museum, I had never seen any real life examples before this summer.
Jaca, in the Spanish Pyrenees and the heart of the Aragonese kingdom, has several examples of buildings with marble windows. Two of these examples really stood out to me, one modern and one historic. I then did some research into marble windows and found a few more examples to share. As the images in this blog piece show, marble windows, create a gentle light source and striking patterned visual effect which can be breathtakingly beautiful.
The cathedral of San Pedro in Jaca is an historic building with most of its apertures paned with marble. The official website for this church doesn't mention the windows and the use of marble, perhaps as it isn't seen as anything particularly unusual in churches of its era and in this region. The marble used is white with a fine grey vein, similar to carrera marble. The internal light this creates is dimmed, soft and warm. It doesn't let through as much light as the stained glass usually seen in churches but it has a calming effect and is peacefully beautiful. As you can see from the photograph the light levels are very low so when the camera light levels are set to show the interior it's not possible to see much of the detail of the marble. Conversely when the light levels are set to show the marble, the interior is too dark to see anything in photo. At least this was true with my very basic photographic equipment - my mobile phone.
The modern example of a marble window screen was in the refurbished museum at the monastery of San Juan de la Pena. The original baroque facade of the monastery includes a circular marble oriel window. This historical feature was perhaps the inspiration for the large gallery of marble screens within the original cloister. This space is now used as an art gallery and the cream marble with striking highly contrasting chocolate brown and caramel toned veins create a bright and subtly decorated space, with the controlled light levels perfect for viewing and protecting art work.
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Historically marble was used instead of glass as a single sheet built into the window aperture or set in a frame, but this doesn't work very well thermally so for modern uses thinly cut sheets of marble tend to be used as internal window screens or incorporated within a system using double glazing. In the monastery refurbishment the screens are set about a meter from the external fully glazed envelope. The glazing system provides the thermal skin of the building while the marble sheets create a decorative and sunlight controlling screen.
The external aspect during the daytime of an historic marble window is like looking at an area of marble wall. They look the same as a much thicker piece of marble until you can see light falling through it. At night the effect seen internally during the daytime in sunlight is reversed as electric lighting will create a glow seen outside.
Away from the med in northern europe the light levels are not as strong, so using thin-cut marble is most effective orientated so that sunlight can fall on it. In spaces where a lot of light is not needed, such as those for prayer or meditation, or is undesirable such as for storing and displaying light sensitive objects such as books and art works, marble can be used to both control the daylight while creating a striking decorative interior.
There are some particularly striking mid-century examples of marble windows and two that I'd love to visit are the Yale University's rare book library and the Pius Church in Meggan, Switzerland.
The external aspect during the daytime of an historic marble window is like looking at an area of marble wall. They look the same as a much thicker piece of marble until you can see light falling through it. At night the effect seen internally during the daytime in sunlight is reversed as electric lighting will create a glow seen outside.
Away from the med in northern europe the light levels are not as strong, so using thin-cut marble is most effective orientated so that sunlight can fall on it. In spaces where a lot of light is not needed, such as those for prayer or meditation, or is undesirable such as for storing and displaying light sensitive objects such as books and art works, marble can be used to both control the daylight while creating a striking decorative interior.
There are some particularly striking mid-century examples of marble windows and two that I'd love to visit are the Yale University's rare book library and the Pius Church in Meggan, Switzerland.
Yale University's Beinecke rare book library has no windows at all as its walls are made from translucent marble. This lets in light while keeping the books protected from the sun. The marble is set within a light grey granite framework which gives a sense of solidity to the walls and sets up a strong rhythmic pattern of repeating squares which is echoed in the book storage. Built between 1960 and 1963, this library was designed by the architect Gordon Bunshaft, who worked in the large architectural practice of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill.
The marble used is white, grey-veined, Vermont marble cut to a thickness of approximately 3cm.
The marble used is white, grey-veined, Vermont marble cut to a thickness of approximately 3cm.
A modern ecclesiastic example is the Pius Church in Meggen, Lake Lucerne, Switzerland. Here the marble is set into a slim steel frame to form the external walls. There are no other windows and the light created is so unusual and desirable that this church is a popular local tourist attraction, and a place where many people choose to get married. Built between 1964 and 1966, this church was designed by the relatively little known architect Franz Fueg.
The marble used is Penthelian Dionysos marble cut to 2.8cm thick and in panels of 1.5x1.02m. To create an effect of columns of marble, the panels were carefully selected and cut from the same block for consistent veining. This marble appears as white with grey veins until seen with light shining through, when more depth and colour is revealed.
The marble used is Penthelian Dionysos marble cut to 2.8cm thick and in panels of 1.5x1.02m. To create an effect of columns of marble, the panels were carefully selected and cut from the same block for consistent veining. This marble appears as white with grey veins until seen with light shining through, when more depth and colour is revealed.
Marble is a premium material because it is long lasting, durable, beautifully decorative and each piece is unique. The process of selecting and cutting marble thin enough to be used in this way is also specialised and costly, but this almost magical effect is well worth its cost in the right place.
Did you see any beautiful architecture during your summer trips? Have you used marble or seen it used in any interesting ways? Would you like to use marble as a light source in your project? Let us know in the comments below.
Did you see any beautiful architecture during your summer trips? Have you used marble or seen it used in any interesting ways? Would you like to use marble as a light source in your project? Let us know in the comments below.
Thank you to all clients, colleagues, collaborators, co-designers, friends and family for helping make 2016 the most successful year that iarchitect has had yet.
It has been filled with many achievements including:
This year has also had many memorable moments such as:
It's been a fantastic year and I hope it has been for all of you too. Lets hope that 2017 brings more of the same.
Best Christmas wishes to everyone.
Jane x
It has been filled with many achievements including:
- a successful application to the War Memorial Trust, funding works to Northenden War Memorial
- several successful planning and building control applications for homeowners and businesses
- opening of the first Sultan Ahmet restaurant - an exciting new UK franchise
- helping worthwhile causes with Landaid though their pro-bono programme
This year has also had many memorable moments such as:
- meeting the latest in voice controlled technology with Steve and Siobhan
- many Home Design Consultations during which I have loved getting to know homeowners and their homes
- chasing around after a toddler whilst discussing bandstands with Joy and the ups and downs of projects with Julie
- behind the scenes in photoshoots for completed projects
- catching up with past colleagues starting new adventures like Sally
It's been a fantastic year and I hope it has been for all of you too. Lets hope that 2017 brings more of the same.
Best Christmas wishes to everyone.
Jane x
Part 1: Which Architect?
This is the first part of a series looking at working with an architect throughout a project. I'm going to give you my top tips for how you can get the best from your architect.
I often get asked for advice on how to choose an architect. There are so many factors to consider and all architects are different, so how do you choose the one that will suit you? This post gives you my top 5 things to consider when selecting the architect who will turn your dreams into reality.
1. Is an architect really what you need?
Obviously as an architect I'm a little biased here and can see benefits for architects to be involved in all types of design work! However, there are often other designers or construction professionals who might be better suited for the particular type of work that you are looking at having done. Here are some examples where you would choose another building professional over an architect:
- Where you want a single structural opening, or a wall removing, perhaps to create a more open plan space. While it is beneficial to get an architects input to decide the positioning of an opening or which wall to remove, to create the space the best suits you, once these are decided then what you really need is a structural engineer to check structural stability and provide calculations for building regulations. It's important to note that any structural alterations require building control approval.
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2. What kind of architect do you want?
Architects have similar training so develop ways of thinking that they tend to have in common, however, we are all human each with our own biases and idiosyncrasies. I believe that the most important thing about architecture is creating spaces for the people who are going to use it. For me people's enjoyment, comfort and ease of use comes first. Some other common primary drivers for architects are:
- Form: strong sculptural approaches to design often using unusual shapes. Think Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry. “Less is a bore.”
- Function: clear to understand spaces that are easy to use and move around in. Think Mies Van de Rohe and Luis Kahn. “Form follows function.”
- Technology: cutting edge use of materials that push them to their limits or integrate the latest technological advances. Think Norman Foster and Santiago Calatrava. “Machine for living in”
Consider which kind of architecture most moves you and discuss this with the architects you are considering. Ask which buildings they love and why to get an understanding of the aspects of architecture which are their primary drivers.
3. How involved do you want your architect to be?
Architects work in different ways and some will do the initial design and pass the rest of the project onto a team in their office, possibly outsourcing some work, while others deal with every aspect of a project themselves, or maintain a close eye on work done by an assistant or junior architect working alongside them. Ask your architect how they work and who works with them.
4. What have they done before?
An architects portfolio can show you what types of project they have experience of and areas of specialisation. All architects work to brief and within budgeting, legal and technological restraints so the designs may not show all that your architect is capable of in design terms, but they should give you some idea. Ask your architect what it is about the designs they are showing you that they are most pleased with and conversely what would they change about the designs if given the freedom.
5. Do you feel relaxed, comfortable and confident with your potential architect?
You're putting a lot of faith into your architect who is going to interpret your needs and desires, creating a life-size three dimensional semi-permanent representation of these that will cost a fair amount of money to build. It's probably best that you feel some kind of connection and that your architect “gets” you, as a common understanding is going to be key to delivering a built result that will suit you.
If you'd like to see if iarchitect is your best fit to design your project give us a call.
Has this been helpful? What criteria will you use to select your architect? Comment below.
Has this been helpful? What criteria will you use to select your architect? Comment below.
- make the fundamental decisions
- gather the essential information
- set your priorities
- define your wishlist
Design Your Home Vision
The Design Your Home Vision Checklist will help you kickstart your home improvements.
Download yours with the button below to get your home project off to a great start:
Get started with the free Design Your Home Vision checklist.
Download yours with the button below to get your home project off to a great start:
Get started with the free Design Your Home Vision checklist.
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Jane Leach, principal architect at i-architect
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