WORK IN PROGRESS OCTOBER 2007

Some of the projects that are currently under construction or due to begin in late 2007 are shown below. These are at various stages, and also included are photos of work now completed but shown at an interesting stage. If you have any questions regarding them, please ring me or e-mail me.

New villa proposed for a site at Malviés
This project is for a new villa on a site near to the small village of Malviés, to the north of Limoux. The design features the main house, a swimming pool and a guest annexe. The site has sweeping views across open countryside to the Pyrenees in the south and the village to the west. A gentle slope across the site has allowed different levels to be created, giving variety to the elevation and ensuring that the building fits into its location. Construction is due to start in September 2007, and the work is being undertaken by a French contractor from Carcassonne.

Barn Conversion,Genouillé
Work has now started on the conversion of this lovely old barn in a village in the Vienne. Like most projects, the first priority is to protect the structure from the elements, and the timber structure and roof have been repaired and replaced over the past few months. Ugly metal straps had been introduced to reinforce some splits in the main tie beams, and these have been removed and replaced with steel rods in epoxy resin, set within the centre of the beam so that no repair is visible. Roof lights have been introduced, and this will allow the interior to be completed without further alteration of the main structure, although openings in the stone walls are to be created in the near future.

Project for Six New Townhouses
The site for this development of new three-bedroom dwellings is adjacent to two Listed Cottages as well as a large modern development of five stories. The challenge has been to reconcile the difference in scale between the two, without either overwhelming the Cottages or being too subservient to the new development of flats. The site is also extremely complex in terms of rights of light and daylighting requirements, which, without the use of computer models, would have proved extremely difficult to resolve. At the same time, we wanted to make the design relevent to living in the 21st century, with due regard to environmental and space planning considerations.

New kitchen and dining area.
This property benefited from very generous reception rooms, but the kitchen was rather small in comparison. By demolishing some outbuildings the kitchen was enlarged to include a spacious dining area. The new room retained a pitched roof that was re-built, as well as a new flat roofed area with a Victorian style lantern rooflight inserted over the kitchen. Not only is the new space more in proportion with the rest of the house but it provides much better views of the garden and is flooded with light.

THE FRENCH PORTFOLIO