Twin Gables
East London
Jim and Mary had almost given up finding a plot after four years, when they came across a dated bungalow in a suburban street ripe for demolition!
Luckily they had already discovered Facit Homes at Grand Designs Live earlier in the year so we were called in straight away to look at the possibilities of the site. The property had been built on a slope and the previous owner had some difficulty going into the garden. Jim and Mary were adamant that this had to be resolved with the new design. As the neighbouring buildings were in fairly close proximity to the existing house our designs needed to work largely within the original footprint. It was also the only single storey property in the road so we knew that designing a two storey home in it’s place would be acceptable to local planners.
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We came up with a few designs before finding just the right note for Jim and Mary. We quickly realised that flat roofs were not the clients preferred route, instead we achieved a somewhat radical design which Jim describes as breath taking. Each of the four bedrooms has a ceiling height of 4.5m at their peak sloping away to the sides, allowing for a large external south facing roof area to house photovoltaic panels to provide solar energy.
"The build was remarkably hassle-free, and now we’re living here we can enjoy all the details and quirky features. It really is a very special house."
Jim
The house is clad with a sustainable cedar facade complementing the colours and textures of the surrounding environment. Large triple glazed doors to the rear open onto the garden and fill the main living and dining areas with a huge amount of light.
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Jim particularly liked the fact that with a Facit Home you can get exactly what you want, without having to follow any pre-set models, and that we could work together to come up with ideas or dismiss them during the design process.
“By working closely with Jim and Mary’s ideas and requirements through the early design stages, their home is a bold and contemporary response to the surrounding streetscape, filled with light and generously proportioned spaces that closely reflect and respond to their lifestyles.”
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James - Facit Homes Architect
