And so now it's time to plan...
Just sent Andre My vision brief for the house...
Overall I am trying to achieve a very ‘french’ feel to the house, and I would say that beauty and harmony of proportion and aspect should trump all else, however practicality and cost are also as you might expect extremely important. I value space and light immensely and wish to have lots of it throughout the whole property.
THE MAIN HOUSE:
As you enter the house:
Starting with the front of the house, I agree with you the front door needs to be upgraded and I think from a Feng shui point of view should be a single large door with it’s hinges on the right as you enter.
The front courtyard will be totally renovated and landscaped and from an architectural point of view the fencing and the gates have got to go. I presume I will need permission to put in railings and gates in the French style and so they should be included in the submission.
Ground floor:
As we have discussed I would like to take out all the walls of the corridor as far back as possible to the circular stairway at the back of the main house. I am not that interested in opening spaces in the main retaining wall in the centre of the house. I feel that the kitchen on the right hand back side of the house needs all the wall space it can get to allow for kitchen cupboards and fridges etc. And in the new hall way on the left as you enter needs a wall on which to put cupboards/coat racks etc. I feel that the light and space created by opening the corridor wall up will be sufficient to get the right overall feeling. To the left of the front door we will have the new “hallway” from which we will make an opening, to the left of the fireplace, of a stairway whose width should be a wide as possible. To the right of the fireplace should be a doorway to a toilet and washbasin. The space created to the right of the front door as you enter will become a sitting room with sofas etc surrounding the fireplace. We will bring the room back to the walling behind the current cupboards.
The single outside doors in the kitchen and dining room will be enlarged to become fully glassed french doors for maximum light.
The cold room running off the dining room will remain.
The door to the garage will remain. The area behind the door to the garage will become a utility area for washing machines and storage etc.
The soft seating area shows a couple of new windows (in green) but actually I think they are a bad idea so I don’t think we should put them in.
1st Floor:
My latest thinking is that in order to be able to create the largest possible rooms we should utilise the central corridor as per the attache diagram:
Obviously this would involve getting rid of the walls either side of the corridor which may have structural ramifications. If they are too great then I guess we won’t be able to do it. What I like about it is that it allows each of the rooms to be significantly bigger and allows for appropriately sized ensuite bathrooms. It will involve getting rid of that door at the end of the corridor into the big entertainment room.
The so called self contained flat leading off the entertainment room should contain a multi purpose room - Bed/desk/ kitchenette/sitting/ and a bathroom/changing room
2nd floor:
Basically I think we should put two ensuite bedrooms up there. And I guess in the space where there is not enough headroom we can make that bit in to storage.
THE OWNERS APARTMENT:
As agreed I think we should ask permission to put four windows in the far wall of the current barn.
As you can see I have put the proposed stair in the far right corner. This may or may not be appropriate. Suffice it to say that I would like to have a kitchen, Dining/living and utility/ toilet room on the ground floor, and a bedroom and bathroom on the upper floor. I would like maximum light to enter the apartment.
The POOL AND POOL HOUSE
Remembering the rule of harmonious proportion I would like a 10-15 meter pool positioned appropriately in the garden along side of which will be a pool house. I would like the garden area to be either paved or gravelled (no grass) with plantings and trees to give appropriate shade. I also like the idea of a pergola under which I could put a large dining table for 16.
The pool house should either be built as part of the current wall or up close to it as appropriate. The house should contain a living area attached to the kitchen (It will double as a cooking demonstration area), a bedroom, a bathroom, a gym, and possibly another shower/toilet for swimmers - this could be semi outdoors maybe(?). A covered patio in front. The whole front of the pool house should be a series of fully opening doors or perhaps concertina doors to give an impression of total indoor/outdoor living when fully open. The pool house should also house the pump equipment etc. The roof should hold solar water heating panels for the pool and pv cells and batteries to power the outdoor electrical and poorhouse requirements. I also think you should give thought to outdoor storage for bikes and garden equipment somewhere along one of the garden walls.
Parking and Gate:
Leading off the back lane I want to create a gate approachable from both directions behind which will be the main parking area for the house. One existing wall is straight. I envisage the garden side wall being curved to accommodate the existing trees. There is one rather ratty one by the proposed gate opening that will probably have to be sacrificed. We should try to have enough space to park up to 4 cars.
Finally André I would also like to seek permission to add more pv cells to the main roof of the house that would be connected to cells which would then be stored in the garage.
Priority:
Pool and pool house
Gate and parking area
Owners Apartment
Main house and entertainment room
Front railing and gate, and courtyard refurbishment
Just wrote to Andre about the pool house...
Hi André I thought I should more clearly share my ideas/ vision for the pool house prior to you starting your design process. Please find attached a sketch I have done to try to put down on paper my thinking so far. As you can see I’d like, if possible, to squeeze in two bedrooms and a gym area. The bathroom may be a bit small and as you can see I’ve sketched in a large cooking island between the kitchen and living area to satisfy that idea of mine to have a place for cooking demonstrations. The front of the house might be a series of French doors which would all open outward. Perhaps it might be possible to have concertina doors for the kitchen/dining/living area to give that inside/outside feel. Not sure how they would pack away and not be in the way of door openings either end of that area though. I’ve put a shed at one end to house the pool stuff. Not sure how big that should be. Maybe bigger to accommodate storing the garden furniture etc off season. I envisage am overhang in front of the appropriate width.
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