Killer Curves
Full marks for the design of this sustainable family home in Dunsford
21 October 2016
After Amy and Adam Greenman inherited a piece of land, they began a seven-year build process. After a first design was refused by the local planning authority, the couple went back to the drawing board, enlisting the help of Exeter-based Living Space Architects.
The brief was to create a split-level family home, sympathetic to its environment. With a road running down one side of the sloping plot and woodland enclosing the other, visibility and building materials were carefully considered.
To offset the cladding and roof, the house is framed by dark grey aluminium windows that flood the interior space with light and produce impressive solar gain in the summer. This, together with the roof, is part of a range of green features worked into the build.
Inside, a curved porch echoes the roofline and gives way to a large central reception. Off the hall are four bedrooms, a family bathroom and a utility room. The curved, vaulted ceiling makes a striking canopy over the open-plan kitchen and living room, while two sides of the space are lined with bi-fold doors leading out onto a patio and balcony. A wonderful inside/outside living area, the large black sandstone patio is bordered by white retaining walls that include a bespoke built-in wood-fire pizza oven and barbecue.
The Greenmans say: “Living Space really took on board what we were trying to achieve with the funds we had and the result is a perfectly formed, crazy hill house that we, our two kids, the dog and cat call home.”
