The Cottage

Character and quality combine to define a space designed to bring family together for the special occasions and the everyday. The client briefed DLM to design a unique space for entertaining. Somewhere equally suitable to have a family roast, play games, host a party, hold meetings or work from home. The challenge was how to incorporate the functional needs of these uses without compromising on the concept of the building as a single volume. The cottage was the first building on the farm and the original and primary accommodation. A replacement house had left it redundant, and it had fallen into severe disrepair, with the granite structure subsiding and the internal floors, partitions and roof rotten and collapsing. Following a detailed evaluation of the building condition with C&D Carpenters, a balance was found to enable the entire granite structure of the building to be underpinned and repaired, and re-use the original beams to form a new roof. The new roof was designed to span above the original beams, with rotten sections removed and braced between stainless steel brackets. As a highly insulated warm roof construction, precise positioning of the A frames was critical to retain the existing roof line and granite parapet to the gables. A secret gutter provided tolerance to the old building, maintained the simple external detail and provided a robust waterproofing detail. Internally the granite was fully tanked and insulated providing an energy-efficient and controlled environment within. The oak-lined mezzanine is inserted like a piece of furniture within this open space, enclosing a study, bathroom, pantry and other storage and services. A monolithic stone island is the transition between and designed to form the lower part of the stair. Above, a cantilevered stair floats over the bar providing access to the games room. The landscaping was an integral part of the project, this external space is designed to respond to the views from within each building, while offering sheltered pockets of space to enjoy between the beautiful listed buildings. There is obsessive attention to detail in every aspect of this project, testament to a client passionate about design and the skilled team of craftspeople involved. This is a modern reinvention of an iconic Guernsey style.