Rose Cottage

A contemporary basement extension in Devon to a period mid-terrace home transformed from an old conservatory.

A beautifully crafted stair leads down from the entrance level into the new space. Light floods up the staircase drawing the eye down to the garden as you enter the home. This new intervention adds real drama to the entrance sequence to the house. The basement extension has an elegance matched by its functional use. The period property in Lympstone now includes a light and spacious dining area that opens up to the garden. Neatly hidden behind the modern kitchen is a small but functional utility space, floor to ceiling cupboards and wet room. Clever understair storage is incoporated to allow the new living spaces to be minimal and clutter free.

This project turned a cold and damp basement into the heart of this Devon home. The extension increased the ceiling heights in the basement and connected the house to the rear garden. The spacious kitchen and dining area links the old house to the new.

This project retains the feel of a period property in a street location and provides generous living space for the occupants. By reconfiguring the original property’s layout, a utility room, linked dining and kitchen areas with breakfast bar on the basement level have been provided. Carefully placed roof lights over this rear extension – such as over the kitchen and the dining areas –  create an impressively bright and open space. A planted sedum roof incorporating native wildflower species finishes off the project.

Colin James now of James and Co Building Contractors in Lympstone sucessfully built the project despite difficult access arrangements.