Reimagining a medieval structure for modern living

A medieval Cotswold stone barn in the grounds of a listed manor house. We were invited to develop the scheme and interior design after Fowler Architecture and Planning secured consent to convert it, and our task was to make sure the concept and detailing realised the building's full potential, breathing new life into a long disused agricultural structure while keeping its integrity and poetic simplicity.

The brief was all about balance: respecting the age, scale and character of the barn while introducing a modern sensibility, letting its weathered limestone walls and hand hewn timber trusses speak without overwhelming them. Our approach was one of lightness and restraint, framing the building's beauty through proportion, texture and natural light. At its heart is a dramatic self supporting sculptural staircase, both structure and artwork. Working with master stonemason Ian Knapper, each tread was individually sculpted in French limestone, spiralling upward, while a rusted wrought iron balustrade sweeps through the space toward a mezzanine lounge and office.

Material honesty runs throughout: bespoke joinery in band sawn oak of random widths, its grain left expressive, and reclaimed oak floors laid in random widths to celebrate a little imperfection. Lighting was treated as an architectural material, revealing the texture of the ancient stone and washing the gable and timber in a soft glow, while large glazed openings trace the sun across stone and timber through the day. A suspended wood burning stove captures the whole spirit of the place, traditional at heart yet minimal and sculptural, its hearth carved from the same French limestone as the staircase in a nod to a traditional millstone. The result unites architecture, craft and landscape: unmistakably a medieval barn, yet inhabited, human and alive again.

There is a very special extra layer to this project, here. Photography by Lucy Walters.

A dialogue between heritage and modern design

A Victorian semi detached home in North Oxford, where traditional craftsmanship meets contemporary architecture.

Its centrepiece is a dining room extension built around an exposed oak frame, enclosed by elegant sliding doors and clad in brown red VMZinc, with a large triple glazed rooflight overhead and a sedum green roof edged in river washed pebbles. The result is a warm, light filled room that feels calm and natural, deeply connected to its garden.

Sitting within the North Oxford Victorian Suburb Conservation Area, the scheme was developed in consultation with Oxford City Council’s Heritage Team, balancing historic context with contemporary ambition so that every new element enhances the home’s period character.

Zinc, oak, stonemasonry and handcrafted metalwork give a tactile contrast to the original brick. To the rear, we added a new three storey brick and Bath stone bay window, its stone mullions mirroring the proportions of the original Victorian bay at the front, and replaced all the windows with high performance double glazed traditional sash windows, adding a gabled dormer to the fourth storey. Bespoke cast iron railings, handcrafted by local artisans, echo the fine detailing of the original Victorian metalwork.

Large sliding doors open the house to the landscaped garden and the Oxford Canal beyond. On the lower ground floor, where windows sat below ground level, we carefully lowered the external levels to draw in daylight, turning once sunken windows into open outlooks and introducing a new stepped approach to the front door.

Delivered in close collaboration with KD Design, Rogue Designs provided architecture, interiors and landscape together, managed from concept to completion, with construction by Belmark Nightingale.

A highly glazed extension to a Grade II listed home dating from the sixteenth century in West Oxfordshire. The design asked for particular sensitivity: the house sits in a Conservation Area, on the boundary of the Benedictine Eynsham Abbey, a Scheduled Ancient Monument. We secured Listed Building Consent with a careful scheme that lets the original building be appreciated, removing a series of unsympathetic late twentieth century additions and adding this clear, light filled, transparent single storey extension. Huge sliding doors with ultra slim framing slide away to open whole walls onto the private rear gardens. Original features are brought to the fore and stonework carefully exposed, while timber cladding in sustainable British grown sycamore is a modern but sympathetic nod to the random width joinery of the pre industrial period. Managed from concept to handover, so the finish matches the quality this historic property deserves. Photography by Lucy Walters.

A joyful brief from a growing young family: to completely restore this North Oxford Edwardian house inside and out, bring in energy saving measures, use sustainable and reclaimed materials wherever possible, and let colour run throughout. Architecturally we worked within the existing footprint but completely reimagined the interior. A new staircase winds up through the centre of the house, creating a series of linked yet private spaces, and doorways were subtly tweaked and reoriented so every room improves and the whole house flows, balancing privacy with connection.

Windows throughout were replaced with thermally efficient double glazed joinery, faithful interpretations of the original single glazed design, and the original stained glass was carefully dismantled and restored. New openings in the kitchen and dining area finally connect the house to the garden, while new rooflights above the stairwell let light flood down through the home. Underfloor heating went into the ground floor, alongside internal and roof insulation, a new boiler, solar panels and a heat recovery system, and materials were recycled, upcycled or chosen for greener credentials wherever possible, from the worktop made of waste wood to the circular design of the recessed lighting. Photography by Lucy Walters.

Following the original renovation of this much loved Oxford landmark, we got back together to add a dining room extension, a sympathetic addition linked to the original building by glass. The initial designs and planning for this historic, listed site were by Anderson Orr Architects; the owners then began a fresh collaboration, with adapted construction phase design and project management by Laura Donald Architecture and creative interior and exterior design by Rogue Designs. Construction was beautifully executed by BarrBuild, who had completed the earlier 2016 renovation. Working closely with the owners, we drew a palette from the main building's interior and carried it on in a subtly updated but cohesive language, with bespoke furniture designed and made in our workshop to fit the space exactly. The result is fresh and punchy, with real warmth. Photography by Lucy Walters, courtesy of BarrBuild. Scroll down for the computer model animation of our design, which helped the owner picture exactly what was possible in this new space.

Our mission for this fine Jericho townhouse was to reconnect it with the garden, maximise light, and bring the character of the building back. Previous owners had stripped away its history, removing plaster covings and period features throughout. In the first phase, a fully managed turnkey restoration over four storeys, we decorated and restored, reinstating plaster covings, period doors and oak chevron flooring.

The second phase tackled the basement kitchen and dining room. Originally imagined as a basement extension, after long conversation with the clients we chose instead to work within the existing footprint, reworking the layout, lifting the ceilings, slimming the structural columns and reimagining the staircase. We gained planning consent in the Conservation Area with some sensitive changes to the existing windows. Inside, bespoke slatted oak balustrades let light pass through for an airy transition, new French doors and a box balcony open up the upper ground floor, and the rear wall below was opened for a Fabco steel screen. A gorgeous kitchen by Kitchen Architecture makes the most of the space. Managed from concept to completion, and a real pleasure to work with the team from Belmark Nightingale. Photography by Lucy Walters.

A place to watch the sky and the weather, and to bring the potager garden close, right through the year. The house is a traditional Victorian property in brick and stone, over five split levels, canal side in Jericho within Oxford's Conservation Area, its garden running down to the Oxford Canal. On the lower ground floor we added a west facing extension that opens up a kitchen diner and garden room.

Light is everything here. A large frameless glass lantern from Maxlight lets the overhead summer sun flood the space, while full height, minimally framed sliding doors catch the low winter sun. Corner posts and facade panels are crafted in Bath stone to match the cills, headers and mullions of the main house, an Oxford appropriate detail that makes the building feel light and up on its toes, open to its surroundings. Houses like this, with their high Victorian garden walls, often fall into dark voids; here we brought light in and around, in a simple form beneath a carefully detailed zinc roof for permanence. A sleek storage wall by Kitchen Architecture runs seamlessly from the kitchen into the new room.

The scheme is genuinely sustainable and future minded: mechanical trickle ventilators temper summer heat, a 1600 litre rainwater harvester with pump and a matching attenuation tank support garden irrigation and manage surface water gently on the old mains, and a former garden store now holds a heat recovery fan, with drainage and pipework ready for a future bathroom. Lighting is discreet, a few LED downlights alongside a large cantilevered FLOS light over the dining table. Finishes are simple: slate flooring matched to the kitchen, and lightly textured lime render on the old brick to let it breathe. A sensitive addition that draws the whole house and garden together as one. Devised and managed from concept through planning and construction to handover alongside KD Design. Photography by Keith Barnes.

Reimagining an Arts and Crafts home in Oxford

We carried out a wide ranging transformation of this handsome suburban home in Oxford's Cumnor Hill, working within its traditional Arts and Crafts vernacular. The aim was to expand and modernise it while keeping its distinctive character, opening it up to the garden and letting one space flow easily into the next.

We began by removing an existing single storey extension that felt boxy and cut off from the garden. In its place we designed a considered link to the landscape behind, with a light filled garden room and a traditional lead roofed study, so inside and out now belong together and the garden reaches into the heart of the house.

Working closely with KD Design, we increased the volume of the house by around a third, settling the new spaces carefully alongside the existing architecture. The first floor gained a generous main bedroom suite with a dressing room and a cantilevered ensuite looking out over the gardens. Above, a loft conversion became a self contained bedroom suite with its own sitting area, dressing room and ensuite, and throughout the rest of the house we reworked the layout to win back habitable space, adding further ensuites and dressing rooms and improving how the whole home flows.

We managed the project at every stage, from concept and planning consent through construction and interior design to the final curation. The result respects the home's Arts and Crafts heritage while meeting the demands of modern family life, full of character, light and comfort.

See more of the interior design for this project here. Photography by Lucy Walters and Rogue Designs.

A sustainable remodelling and extension for an Oxford University professor of music, adding a vaulted, light filled music room, a level access guest room and a bathroom to a 1960s Oxford home. Eco friendly, climate conscious design was the driving force throughout: less waste, careful material use, repurposing and reconditioning wherever possible, and new products chosen for their low embodied carbon.

The main addition is a bold extension wrapping two sides of the house and ending in a full double height glazed gable of solar glass, set behind a cedar brise soleil in an aerofoil shape pinned to a double framed Glulam structure. Shaped around its acoustics, with a lofty vaulted ceiling and projection windows for an almost ecclesiastical sound, the room is a proper music room, its centrepiece a bespoke maple organ. Handmade, simple seating in sustainable English maple runs the full width, echoed outside in larch. A double fronted wood burning stove punctures the original brick chimney, and the former living room becomes a book lined piano room that can double as guest accommodation. A new porch, in the same architectural language, carries a generous, thermally efficient front door.

Sustainability runs deep. A new solar PV array sits on a re-tiled garage roof that replaced a failing felt one, with two batteries storing six kilowatts, and high performance glazing exceeding building regulations to much of the ground floor. The original five finger block parquet was retained and, through a little social media detective work, exactly matched from a stash found in a damp Slough garage, then dried, cleaned and sanded to flow seamlessly into the extension, which is floored in PVC free, climate positive cork from the bottle stopper industry. Handmade UK tiles in recycled Welsh slate dust, glazed and refired to a dark, treacle like bronze, are used inside and out.

The detail is extraordinary. A Genelec system gives configurable surround sound alongside the custom organ, handcrafted in maple by Romsey Rogan Works with Grenadilla and maple keys and a Hauptwerk console. Lighting is by Orluna, whose LED fittings can be disassembled and repaired rather than replaced, and the sculptural light in the music room was commissioned from Charlie Whinney, steam bent from ash coppiced in the Lake District, roughly a metre across and composed around the client's love of Pythagoras, with a Mobius strip in its outer band. Outside, a re-landscaped, mixed habitat garden was planted to draw in wildlife and pollinators, using peat free, recycled topsoil enriched with organic matter. Photography by Keith Barnes.

Up in Oxford's prestigious, leafy suburb of Boars Hill, it is not often you get to work with bones as good as this house has, and it was such good fun. This interior design commission grew stage by stage, and along the way some really special spaces emerged, drawing out the house's original features and adding new ones where they had been lost: a bespoke fireplace in the drawing room, a new library in steely blue, and bronze column radiators throughout. We curated the furniture gradually, choosing pieces one by one over time, along with the art and accessories, which is one of our favourite ways to work. The rooms are so light and connected to the garden that the house can carry real colour, and with a wonderfully enthusiastic client we arrived at an expansive palette.

Photography by Lucy Walters.

An architectural commission to completely reimagine a property set in expansive private grounds. Given real licence, we produced a masterplan for the estate, including replacing a single storey bungalow with a new oak framed building. Where the existing house was all red brick and white uPVC, we designed an entirely new palette, mixing tile, Cotswold stone, zinc and lime render to give the effect of a natural, historically layered farm group that has grown over time. In the main house, we removed walls across the ground floor to create expansive open plan kitchen and living areas that open to the gardens, while upstairs vaulted bedroom suites each gained full height windows onto an oak and glass balcony. The new oak structure holds a private guest suite and gymnasium. A technically demanding project and a pleasure to work on with KD Design; we secured full Planning and Building Regulations approval and handed over a complete package for our clients to build. Sustainability and current technology run through it, including a ground source heating system.

This North Oxford villa is an absolute gem, and we were involved from the very beginning, at the house hunting stage. A full turnkey architecture and design project for clients living abroad: once we had found this lovely 1920s property, complete with its own tennis court and store, we worked against the clock to design, draw and build so the family could move to the UK. They trusted our concepts from the outset, and with regular video calls and photo updates the whole process ran smoothly.

We extended and reconfigured the house with a new vaulted ground floor extension and a linking orangery, moving the kitchen to the garden side to catch the south facing sun, and using the rest of the ground floor for a self contained annexe, a dining room and a grown up snug and movie room. Upstairs, a new main bedroom suite with walk in wardrobes and a generous bathroom sits alongside colourful, characterful rooms for the rest of the family. The ground floor was dug out and given underfloor heating throughout. A pleasure to work with Keith Durham of KD Design, whose meticulous joinery detailing was a delight when realised, and planning and building regulations went remarkably smoothly. Built by BarrBuild and managed by us through to handover, the aim, so satisfyingly met, was a modern family home for twenty first century living that keeps all the charm and character of its period. Photography by Lucy Walters, courtesy of BarrBuild, with additional images by Rogue Designs.

We devised a fantastic scheme to add space, value and light to this classic North Oxford Victorian terrace, while keeping its period charm intact. On the ground floor, a single storey side extension creates an airy, spacious new kitchen and family room, sleek and functional but traditionally crafted and painted in muted period colours. A glazed roof floods the space with daylight, and the connection to the garden is improved with new French doors and a carefully authentic sash window over the sink. Working with KD Design, we matched the existing brickwork meticulously and detailed the new joinery to complement this heritage Victorian property.

Above, a generous loft conversion with an ensuite, and a great view, allowed the first floor to be significantly reconfigured, with a new main suite, walk through dressing room and ensuite. At the same time, the existing single glazed sash windows were upgraded for thermal and acoustic comfort, and the whole house redecorated inside and out. Managed as a turnkey service from first concept to completion, we obtained planning consent, detailed the construction and ran the build while the owners lived elsewhere. Photography by Keith Barnes.

A much loved local restaurant, given a brand new home. We designed the interiors for the new Mamma Mia in North Oxford, a busy Italian restaurant reborn in a repurposed and extended retail premises. Architecture by Laura Donald; interiors by Rogue Designs.

After a complete strip out, the premises was renovated and extended, more than doubling the floorspace with a deep single storey extension and carefully phased to keep disruption and noise low for the neighbours. Behind the scenes there is a full commercial kitchen, with generous storage and staff facilities; front of house, a spacious, welcoming and characterful dining room with a bar and an outside terrace. The apartment above was fully refurbished too.

A new bespoke timber frontage carries the familiar Mamma Mia signage, and a large central rooflight draws daylight deep into the room. Inside, red brick slips, timber cladding and dark green glazed metro tiles bring warmth and texture, and considered wall and ceiling lighting keeps the space inviting from lunch through to late evening.

Part of the internal reconfiguration of this Arts and Crafts home's two storey extension, which you can see more of here, the aim was to make the most of the living accommodation and improve the existing house. It was a wide ranging brief of new work and careful restoration. Alongside the architecture and managing the build, the project called for the full range of interior design: bespoke furniture, upholstery, soft furnishings and fabrics, lighting design, detailed bathroom design, and the sourcing of furniture and artwork, together with special touches such as commissioning stained glass and carefully restoring the original oak front door. We designed five bathrooms in all, finding room for two new ensuites and two bespoke walk in dressing rooms. Designed from first concept and project managed through to completion and final curation. There is an animation of our 3D design work at the foot of the post, a complete walk through of the proposed spaces. Photography by Lucy Walters and Rogue Designs.

Working with KD Design from an early stage, we designed this modernist extension to an Oxford home: a sleek glazed box in zinc and glass wrapped across the back of the house. Opening up the ground floor, we brought two rooms into one generous space while keeping distinct zones for different uses, and connected the whole interior to the garden. Outside, large granite paving makes a sheltered spot for a table and chairs.

Reinventing a much loved family home after many years in it is a big step to take. Through careful design and visual modelling the owners could see exactly where it was heading and went ahead with confidence, and they are delighted with the result: a considered, contemporary extension full of light. Built with real skill by BarrBuild, whose finishing and detailing is exquisite, in close collaboration with KD Design. Photography by Lucy Walters.

A beautifully peaceful Cornish house, curated at a reflective pace through this interior design project. Gentle colours were chosen for the first floor sitting room, which looks out over the creek and fields, where a diptych by Sandra Blow, bought during a magical visit to her St Ives studio, hangs for maximum effect. The lighting design here mixes vintage film lights with pieces by Arturo Alvarez, Karboxx, Marset, Atelier Areti and Ango World, all chosen for their sculptural, tactile qualities. A bespoke side table in polished concrete and ash, made in our workshop, takes the form of a river washed pebble.

On the ground floor, a snug living room with a fireplace wall in Cornish slate is wrapped in comfortable sofas dressed with brightly screen printed cushions and some very special lamps. A pair of tables from our workshop are made in local English walnut and powder coated steel. Outside, the ever strokeable stone sculpture 'Blue Backed Angel II' in Ancaster Weatherbed, by Dominic Welch, settles gently into the landscape, with thanks to On Form for the introduction. Photography by Charlotte Holmes.

When we were first invited to this project, an unprepossessing brick garage dominated the entrance to an otherwise beautiful Arts and Crafts home. Our task was to improve it, while creating a double garage with storage and workshop space and a generous, functional home office. We chose a traditional look, carriage doors rather than garage doors, but with a technical twist: the doors are fully automated, something rarely achieved. We designed and built these solid timber automated carriage doors ourselves; you can see them in action here. A fitting home for a gorgeous Austin Healey, we think.

Above, reached by its own double height, light filled entrance, is a timber boarded studio office with room for two or three desks. Lead cheeked dormers carry beautifully made flush casement timber windows, and the landscaping uses clay pavers in graduated patterns to handle several changes of level. A lovely collaboration with KD Design, from concept and planning through a fully managed build to completion; you can see the wider renovation and two storey extension to the main house here. Photography courtesy of Salisbury Joinery, with additional images by Lucy Walters and Rogue Designs.

The brief was a substantial ground floor extension to work in both contrast and harmony with a traditional Edwardian North Oxford house, creating a generous social space for indoor and outdoor entertaining. Warm tones, open space and light pouring in lend a sense of calm. The clients had already secured outline planning for a basic scheme and asked us to develop it and make it more dynamic, so we reworked the box for flow and for the greatest possible light, over a long and considered consultation to reach real quality within a set budget. It ran alongside an extensive internal refurbishment, including a new main suite and ensuite. A rooflight the full length of the extension floods it with light while cutting glare, and a clever roof design allows a high vaulted ceiling within the planning limits. Soft plaster curves soften every junction, so the walls seem to float into the ceiling. A bespoke solid ash table from our workshop extends to seat twelve, alongside a bespoke vintage industrial daybed, also made in our workshop. Photography by Jamie Simmons.

This interior architecture project was an enormous pleasure to work on: wonderful clients, a fantastic BarrBuild team, everyone on the same page, and it shows in a thoroughly harmonious result. We transformed a rather exhausted maisonette, last updated around 1950, into a cool, spacious apartment, restoring and accentuating lost period features and redistributing the space. Knocking through a warren of small rooms, we created an open plan kitchen, living and dining room across the front, overlooking the park, with cosy bedrooms and bathrooms to the rear, complete with clever built in storage and a dressing table. We helped the clients invest their budget wisely: the structural work was essential, along with tackling damp, replacing all the windows with bespoke box sash double glazed units, and completely rewiring and installing new central heating. The result is a lovely space full of flair and charm, and while the clients call it amazing, we simply call it a total pleasure. Photography by Lucy Walters, courtesy of BarrBuild.

A beautifully calm interior design project for an adventurous client. Lighting comes from the wonderful David Weeks Studio in New York, alongside FontanaArte, Catellani and Smith and Ilide. An inset stove sits within a black steel frame above a floating glass hearth, set against lime washed floorboards, and we made bespoke floor to ceiling bookshelves in our workshop. Furnishings are by Vitra and MDF Italia. Photography by Jamie Simmons.

Part of a complete refurbishment of a beautiful, historic five storey house in Oxford's Parktown. The brief was to restore and revive the property while staying sensitive to its age and history, taking a gentle approach so none of its character was lost. Inspired by a 'new' Arts and Crafts spirit, a bespoke kitchen handmade in our workshop in solid maple, with hand carving and brushed brass detailing, leads through to a living room with relaxed seating and bespoke alcove shelving behind relief carved doors.

French doors open to the garden, each with a hand painted mural revealed only when the shutters are closed, abstracted hellebores in the living room and fennel heads in the kitchen, motifs echoed on the illuminated splashbacks we designed. Lighting is suspended to avoid piercing the original lath and plaster ceilings; in the living room, a floor lamp by Ango World, made from hundreds of natural silk cocoons, reads over a vintage chesterfield daybed in Marimekko fabric. The handcrafted maple kitchen was made by Rogue Designs, with lighting by Album, Secto and Ango World and furniture by B&B Italia and Hans Wegner. Probably one of our favourite projects ever, this was a home that truly deserved the hands on approach to craft the design called for. Photography by Rogue Designs and Jamie Simmons.

Working with exacting property developers Belmark Homes, we created some breezy and inviting styles for their exclusive developments.

We worked with our lovely clients on this North Oxford Victorian Gothic family home over a number of years, realising its full potential in careful stages. A whole house renovation in one go is often more cost efficient, but not always practical for a busy young family, so we structured the work into phases. First came the essential interior work: electrics, heating, new bathrooms and layout changes. Then a complete basement remodel, relocating the kitchen and adding a lower ground floor dining extension. The final stage was the landscaping to the front and rear gardens.

We designed and gained planning consent for a new Victorian porch within the North Oxford Conservation Area, reusing and restoring the original arched door surround to more than double the space, with a specially made iron railing carrying a rogue-designed motif. Tiered planting beds echo the bay window, and a new curving driveway in thin handmade Dutch clay pavers manages drainage while adding flow and a sustainable material choice. To the rear, a basement extension with a curved copper roof and curved stone steps rises from a sunken terrace, opening the lower ground floor from front to back with a living area, central kitchen and dining space connecting out to a beautiful, leafy English garden. Copper, deep iroko decking and crisp white render bring warmth and a clean modernity to the meeting of old brick and new. A real pleasure to work with returning clients across every phase, restoring their five storey North Oxford home from top to toe.

A classic Oxford Victorian house brought into the twenty first century with a new, light filled side extension designed alongside KD Design, dramatically increasing the ground floor and housing the kitchen and dining spaces, moved out of the formal front rooms. Warm wood tempered the modernity of a sleek, high performance kitchen, and hardwood bi-folding doors, custom made, open the space up to the garden. A concealed cloakroom, boot room and wc was discreetly inserted on the ground floor. Alongside the extension and kitchen shown here, our brief was to bring a smart townhouse feel to the whole property, its bathrooms and its exterior included, with a full range of services from space planning to furniture and lighting design. Photography by Jamie Simmons.

Restoration and refurbishment of this landmark Grade II listed country inn at Binsey, just outside Oxford, given a sensitive overhaul after a devastating fire and the first stage of rebuilding.

We worked closely with the wonderful owners of this much loved pub and restaurant to find a gentle, fitting aesthetic: room for a little quirky charm, but above all letting the simple elegance of the countryside come through. Architecture by Anderson Orr, sensitively built by BarrBuild.

Out in the garden is our lovely little pop up shed bar, a sweetly designed outdoor kitchen and bar where, through the glorious summer months, you can order drinks and food out among the lush, willowy grounds, and which shutters up tight when the weather turns.

Principal photography by Lucy Walters, with additional images by Rogue Designs. Visit the pub at the-perch.co.uk.

A complete refurbishment of a beautiful listed building, bringing it back to life as a proper local, and a seriously cosy, characterful place to be. A long design lead in made it possible, just about, to turn the pub around from over modernised and minimal to quirky, warm and welcoming in only ten days. Huge thanks to a great team, and to the locals and friends of the village who pitched in and brought such a sense of community to the project. To help the owner picture every decision before work began, we produced a computer model of the proposed scheme; you can see the animation at the foot of the post. Photography by Matt Pitt.

We were asked to design the conversion of a former swimming pool building into a self contained artist's studio, a place for quiet reflection away from the noise of the day. The exterior would stay as it was; the interior was completely reimagined. Our scheme worked with a light touch and a series of screening elements, sliding and pivoting screens that open and part to reveal glimpses through, so the space feels diaphanous and adaptive yet simple.

A key requirement was that the whole interior could, if ever wanted, be removed to return the building to its former use as a pool. That, with some height restrictions and a need for storage, led to a beautiful removable structure of southern yellow pine cubes, set within the pool itself to form the floor and sub structure, and tailored to hold storage or sliding floors for paintings and art. We kept materials to a considered minimum, bronze, glass, slatted cedar and pale wood, and flamed basalt, letting the quality of the space speak. The bathroom is a particular delight, finished in basalt with a Hinoki style bath, its bronze and ceramic echoed in the main staircase and storage as a handrail. A picture window at the end of the run becomes an infinity window when the screens are open, visible right through the building. A real pleasure to work with the creative energy of Neil Clarke at NCA Architecture. Do scroll to the foot of the post for the 3D animation.

Extending and reimagining a rather unloved thatched cottage in West Oxfordshire into a wonderful family home, complete with games room, wine room, boot room, gym and swimming pool. Through the concept and feasibility stage we studied the existing footprint, looked to add volume without excess, and kept the whole scheme low so it settles into the rolling Cotswold countryside. The result is bold and engaging, linking buildings, spaces and landscape with real openness and flow, and drawing on a considered material palette that ties this historic house to its conservation setting and its own history. A fine next chapter for a much loved building, bringing it comfortably into modern life while making the most of its heritage and its exceptional rural setting.

Making is an integral part of how we design, and often essential to achieving the bespoke pieces our projects call for. Paul comes from a background in fine furniture making, and while we mostly use that expertise to design bespoke furniture and cabinetry for others to build, we still love being close to the materiality of things, and are easily tempted to get the tools out ourselves.

A whole house refurbishment for a DJ and fashion stylist couple, and one of our early projects at Rogue Designs, this home made the cover of Living Etc. We think it still stands the test of time.

Solid black walnut flooring, walnut joinery and alcove cupboards from our own workshop, and an eclectic mix of 1960s vintage lighting give the house its glamorous, disco character. There is a bespoke handmade kitchen, an in situ cast concrete fireplace, a cast concrete bathroom vanity, and concrete kitchen walls set with volcanic glass. The custom DJ deck, in a deep red gloss, was made in our workshop too, and the specialist paint effects are my own.

Photography by Matt Pitt.

A warmer, greener Victorian home in North Oxford

This is the same North Oxford house as our extension and craft work on the property, seen from a different angle. Alongside the new architecture and the craft, we set out to bring a fine Victorian home up to modern standards of comfort and efficiency, without losing any of the character which makes it so special.

We upgraded the whole house from the fabric outwards, upgraded the insulation throughout, adding internal insulation and underfloor heating, and fitting solar PV panels with battery storage and an electric vehicle charging point, with the system readied for an air source heat pump. The house is now run on smart technology throughout, including Casambi lighting controls and heating that can be tuned room by room, as well as an integrated Sonos music system.

Every sash window was replaced. To preserve the period integrity, and since the house sits in a conservation area, each new window was crafted to match the existing profiles exactly, at the same time as gaining the thermal performance of double glazing. This thermal improvement is felt rather than seen. Inside, we reworked the layout comprehensively, refining and altering the internal structure, making room for ensuite bathrooms and dressing rooms and creating a self contained annexe across the third floor. Every piece of replacement joinery was made bespoke to match original period styling. Cornices and plasterwork were faithfully reproduced using traditional methods. We maximised storage on every level with bespoke shelving, dressing rooms and built in wardrobes.

The result is a warmer, greener and more energy efficient home, one that works far harder for the family living in it, while still looking every bit the impressive period house it has always been.

This upgrade sits alongside the bay window extension and dining extension to the same house, which you can find in our Heritage craft and modern design project.