Developing designs
Designing the house was the big appeal of the project. Something designed and built around our lives.
We started with our design brief and drew out some plans on paper. Sketches to get an idea of the space and how we want to use it.
I then had a go at putting things into Sketchup so we could look at it and get a sense of the space.
Initial idea
The ideas was a simple shape with a large screen glass window facing south and a garden space to the west.
The front would be a kitchen/dining/living space with opening screen doors onto a balcony. The East side of the front would be the master bedroom.
There would be a separate workshop for me below accessed by outside steps. Cars would part on the top level and there would be a bike shed/bin store on the north east corner.
Version 2
The box shape was boring, the garden small and being on the top of a cliff it’s going to be windy. So we incorporated a sheltered entrance away from the prevailing wind. We added wind breaks to the balcony on the east side and narrowed the building slightly to have better garden and access to the balcony.
Version 3
When we started to get a feel for the kind of building and space we had we realised the garden was still exposed and no very private. We’re trying to make the whole building less than 1.6m high so a bike shed on the parking level was a bit small. So we added a bike shed on an intermediate level which also enclosed the garden better.
We also added access to the lower ground office by adding a spiral stair from the main living area. There would be all the bedrooms, including a guest room on the main floor. The central room would be a play room off the main living area.
We still weren’t quite happy with the amount of outside space and given the garden will be dug down we’d likely have to add retaining walls to the west which would make it expensive and overbearing. The indoor space was bigger than we were looking for (~300sqm) so could be reduced.
Version 4
We commissioned RX Architects who gave us some fresh thinking and based on their sketches we put this model together. Skylights bring light to the back of the building. The building is L shaped to create a bigger and more private garden. There is easy access via a wheelchair friendly ramp which is also handy for getting bikes down. The balcony also didn’t go the full width of the front making the master bedroom more private.
The building was quite a bit smaller than original designs but still~200sqm which is more than enough. The bedrooms are along the east wall so they are dark in the evening. The dog leg in the design incorporated a study/play room which will get natural light and look out into the garden and living area. The straight flight of stairs lead down to a small workshop and guest bedroom on the lower level.
We’re happy with where this has ended up and the Architects are drawing up the actual designs now!
