Projects

The brief

The owners wanted to create a master bedroom and ensuite in the loft space that already had an existing small and somewhat dated loft conversion.

The property

The property is a 1930s semi-detached house with three large living rooms on the ground floor and three bedrooms and a bathroom on the first. An earlier loft conversion used part of the front bedroom for the stairs up to the loft and the conversion accommodated a small bedroom and shower room within the existing roof pitches. The earlier conversion didn’t maximise the available space in the loft or the potential views.

The solution

The solution was to change the hipped roof at the side to a gable, with a small hiplet at ridge level to soften the visual impact of the works and to build a full-width dormer to the rear. In designing proposals the aim was to utilise all the available floor area whilst working within the permitted development rights that are available for the property. The hip to gable enabled the new stairs to the loft to follow the line of the existing and the owner has meticulously matched the balustrades and details of the new stairs to the existing. In the new loft space, the large floor area enabled the creation of a big bedroom with banks of fitted wardrobes and a large bathroom. In the rear facing dormer sliding doors with a glazed Juliet balcony provide ventilation and ample light to the new bedroom.

The result

The new stairs flow up from the existing and look as though they have always been there. The new bedroom and bathroom are both much bigger than the original rooms in the loft and the second floor feels very much part of the house rather than rooms squeezed into the loft. Mirrored wardrobes doors reflect light throughout the loft. Through the rear facing sliding doors, the bedroom is bathed in light from the afternoon and evening sun and the doors provide great views over the neighbourhood and beyond.