White Cottage

This project came to me after the new owner bought it, along with my former proposal drawings for the previous owner. He fell in love with the historic building, which is one of the oldest buildings in the village and the oldest home I’ve ever worked on.

The project, rightly, involved a lot of conservation consultation, which uncovered clues about its interesting history. The original building is unusual in that its timber frame appears to originate from an older structure relocated here. As with most buildings, this one has been significantly altered over its history; it’s just unusual in that it now has a much longer story than most, being nearly 500 years old in parts. Aside from the timber framing, the infill panels employ an unusual mix of lime plaster and cobble (pebble) stone sourced locally.

The new client wanted a contemporary kitchen and dining extension, as I’d previously designed, but with changes. The proposal includes the new addition clad in timber as a modern take on the materials within the original building. The new kitchen will open to the sheltered courtyard garden and look back on the original house, the rooms of which will remain simple and unaffected by the somewhat invasive nature of modern kitchen requirements.

The historic building refurbishments and contemporary extension received full planning and listed building approval early in 2024. So far, repairs have been completed, many of which the client has undertaken himself, with a level of skill exceeding that of most professionals. Hopefully, the extension works will commence early in 2026.