Sadly, the lovely cat in the photo died just after the work to this house was completed - at the grand old age of eighteen. He had waited a year to get back into his old lair - which of course was completely different by then. A year is quite a long time for a residential project but this house was completely reshaped, extended and replaced from top to bottom. Again, the key was to try and unlock some of the potential of what was latent - a great garden, some lovely views across London, an informal family who love books. There are some quite dramatic spaces here - and quite a few specialists were involved in the finishes. There is a new cat there now too.

The owners of this house were a delight to work with. They had bought a largish but extremely dowdy, bland suburban villa in a street which contained several such and wanted a modern house and garden inspired by some of the places they had stayed on the west coast of the US. More space for a growing family and a lot of potential for future technology were required. We thought we would have had more resistance from the planners - who were unusually relaxed and supportive. We kept just the original external walls really. It is now known locally as 'the house with the red column' which makes it easy to give directions too. The pillar box red theme continues inside with a brightly coloured curved wall to the kitchen and some ingenious folding doors which allow the spaces to be used in different ways.

Working With Newer Buildings

This was great for site visits, although a full day out - and sea legs - were required. It was the first project we completed outside London and the incentive was that it was for friends who wanted a very special room in their beautiful garden by the sea. The main house is large and comfortable but rather bland and suburban so we took more inspiration from the nautical character of the village. It is really just a room for cooking with comfort, eating with friends and digesting with a view - the glazed doors fold completely away so it feels as if the transition between inside and outside is very gentle.