Last summer we shared our home with a team of builders. It was a summer I had been dreading because people always tell you getting building work done is a nightmare. In reality it was okay, I might even go so far to say it was fun. Honestly, our builder Paul was amazing, ensuring we could live quite comfortably in our home whilst the build was happening.
Why did we do it?
When my husband and I first bought this house - ten years ago, we always knew we would extend the kitchen, we just didn't know how. The dream was to have an open plan kitchen dining area, more suitable for family life.
This is a typical Victorian terrace with a small galley kitchen tacked onto the back. When in the kitchen, you were completely cut off from the rest of the house, which did not make for easy family mealtimes, or sociable dinner with friends.
Access to the garden was also tricky, accommodating steep steps onto a slippery decked terrace and then another drop onto the grass. I couldn't let my young daughter go out in the garden without assistance, so when she was out there I had to be too. Our dog is a delicate, spindly legged Greyhound, who would not venture down the steps into the garden unless carried. This was not ideal. We just didn't feel connected to the garden.
We pondered the question of what we could do many times over the years. Our wish list was quite long and we couldn't figure out how to fit it all in. A number of things meant that the ground floor of the house just didn't work for us as a family, especially since the arrival of our dog and toddler daughter. With a pre teen boy thrown into the mix we needed the house to work for us all, giving us each space, but without feeling separated.
Of course these things take time, so we concentrated on renovating the rest of the house until we were in a position financially to start the extension.
Planning
We met with three different architects, which was an extremely useful process for us in terms of narrowing down what we wanted.
A couple of glowing recommendations from friends helped us decide on the architect and build team we eventually went with. Dan Gibson - Gibson Architects and Paul Usher -AUS Construction, had worked together on numerous projects and were open and keen to work on something a little different. This was the best decision we made. It was even worth waiting a year, once we had planning permission, for Paul to become available.
The first meetings with both Dan and Paul respectively just felt right and we knew that they both 'got' what we wanted. Dan also helped to manage our expectations, for example my wished for downstairs loo was just not going to work without awkward compromises. What definitely helped in these sessions was all of the time Nick and I had spent discussing and gathering images of the types of build, kitchens, windows etc that we liked. We'd been living in the house for 8 years at this point so we'd had a lot of time to dream and browse Pinterest. By having this information to discuss in those initial meetings, we were able to influence the designs. As a result the architects drawings included key features - such as an internal brick wall, birch ply stairway and fitted bench seating with storage - which in turn the builder could quote for and include in his build schedule.
We were honestly blown away by Dan's design. He picked up on things we hadn't even mentioned. We had just been envisaging a simple side return, we were not looking for anything extravagant, just a space that worked for us. Dan really focussed on the plot of land and connecting us to the garden. Our garden runs at an angle from the house, so the design follows that. Rather than looking out of my kitchen window at next door's garden wall, I now look at my own garden. So simple, but we honestly hadn't thought of it.
The other ingenious element was an internal window which connects the new space to what was the old dining room. It was tricky to visualise this, but we trusted Dan. I'm not exaggerating when I say this has honestly changed our lives. I no longer feel cut off from the rest of the family when I'm cooking a meal. They can join me in here (there is room now), but even if they don't we can still see each other.
The interiors
There was another benefit to having waited 8 years, plywood and formica came back in vogue and therefore more accessible. These materials really appealed to our longstanding love of mid century style. We decided to get our kitchen from a company called Plykea. They make bespoke worktops and cupboard doors for IKEA Method base units. Plykea were unbelievably patient as we initially contacted them way before the architect was involved. We just wanted to make sure it was an option that would work within our budget. We couldn't be happier with the end result, the quality is phenomenal.
The kitchen really set the tone for the whole design. It is a mix of all of our favourite design references - mid century, scandinavian, retro, Bauhaus.
We wanted it to be a bright, fun family space that had to be practical and hard wearing.
The other key element to our design was the flooring. We both agreed that terazzo was our ideal. It nods to the mid century style, whilst also hiding a multitude of sins. It's the perfect camouflage for dried, crusty wheetabix!
Diespeker had the design we loved, but the terrazzo tiles were just too thick at 20mm to work with our raised floor and planned underfloor heating. Thankfully earlier last year they released a ceramic tile version, which honestly looks like the real deal. It's just perfect.
Paul used a large piece of plywood to create our 3 metre long dining table and we added simple Etsy purchased hairpin legs. This is surrounded by L shaped fitted bench seating with under seat storage, which also incorporates a window seat at the end connecting us with the garden. We can now seat at least 10 people around our table, so we're looking forward to inviting friends and family around more often.
The Middle room
The other area we were concerned about was how we would use the space that was the old dining room. We didn't want to build an extension to end up with dead space. The dining room, is now a playroom for our daughter and works brilliantly. Sandwiched in between the lounge and the new kitchen, it's the perfect space for our daughter to play. We used IKEA Stuva benches and storage, with an off cut of the kitchen worktop to create a long desk. This sits under the internal window so my daughter and I are at eye level when I'm in the kitchen.
Furniture we loved, but was languishing upstairs - buried under laundry in the spare room - has now found a new lease of life in this room. So whilst its a playroom, it also couples as a more grown up lounge.
If there's one thing I've learned from living in this house for 10 years, it's that homes naturally evolve and change over time. I wonder how we will be using each room in another 10 years.
My top tips to help make your project stress free
Think about what features you really want up front as it is tricky and sometimes impossible to add them at the end.
Consider how you want to use the space and create a wish list. You may need to compromise, but you soon realise what the deal breakers are.
Do your research when it comes to choosing a builder. Go with recommendations and don't be disheartened if they're not available straight away. The year we waited went by so quickly.
Banish the dust! Our builders put up a stud wall across our old dining room to block out the building site created at the back of the house (positioned so we could still access the cellar door and therefore the washing machine). We used the old kitchen worktops and sink unit. The sink was plumbed in so we had hot and cold running water. We hooked up our fridge freezer, borrowed a halogen oven from a friend and bought a portable induction hob from IKEA. It was like very posh camping. Plus it gave me a taste of how our new space would work. The kids and I lived in the lounge and the new temporary kitchen during the summer holidays and it was honestly an improvement from being shut away from them in our old kitchen.