The counter viewpoint argues that it’s better to blend in and not shout too much. At the side of this impressive listed villa in the Grange, one of Edinburgh’s best-preserved conservation areas, is a structure that marries both ideas. It makes a statement, certainly, but it also complements the mellow sandstone that’s been here for a century and a half.
Completed last year, it replaces a run-down garage and shed that had become unfit for purpose. The owners didn’t need a place to park their car, but, as keen gardeners, they craved a practical area with ample storage.
“They could have bought a ready-made garden shed but they wanted a bespoke design that would respect its context,” explains Capital A’s award-winning architect Níall Hedderman. “Properties here are typically large and they often have garages at the side. This new garden shed keeps the form of a garage but is designed for alternative uses.”
Context was everything: the house might be Victorian but its neighbour is a 1960s chapel and this modern edifice is referenced in the proportions of the new shed, with its square elevation and clean lines. The house itself was subdivided long ago, with the clients living on the ground floor, which limited the height of any new structure. And the site is wide at the front (3.4m) but narrows dramatically further back (to 2.1m). Hedderman’s design was a response to all these factors.
This story is from the September - October 2020 edition of Homes & Interiors Scotland.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the September - October 2020 edition of Homes & Interiors Scotland.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Escape EASTSIDE COTTAGES
This tiny house, full of clever architectural solutions, is hidden away in a valley near Penicuik
THE WRITE ANGLE
This glasshouse in Edinburgh was a necessary upgrade for two writers who needed an escape from family life
Turn back the clock
Sometimes we have to look back to step forward. This home was stripped of its ultra-modern interior - and it has never looked better
A place of our own
Bold, brave choices paid off handsomely when the owners of this Edinburgh flat decided to put their stamp on the place
REFUGE FROM THE STORM
Two hundred years of Atlantic gales reduced this cottage to a wreck. Now, though, the gently restored Mull bolt-hole has a brighter outlook
The starting point
As the first project of both its original architect and the one who would reshape it 150 years later, this little coach house in Argyll has been on quite a journey
MORE THAN SKIN DEEP
The beauty of this Edwardian home lies not just in its gorgeous surfaces, but in a full-scale retrofit that's made it as energy efficient as a new Passivhaus
SPACE TO BREATHE
Several ugly extensions marred this cottage in rural Aberdeenshire until a rethink gave its owners a simplified layout and much more eco-friendly home
MELANIE O'DONNELL - Ceramic artist
The best thing about creating ceramics is the way you can get lost in another world.
Reading LIST
Design that will stand the test of time is the focus of our latest batch of books, all of which deserve a prime spot on a very stylish coffee table