Challenge

Aaron and Fiona loved their house in Chorlton, but dreamed of having much more space for their family. They really didn’t want to have to move, so they came to Blu Room Architecture for advice.

Like many houses of this style, they had a lot of wasted space. This included an empty basement and parts of the garden that weren’t being used.

The living room had previously been opened up to the dining and kitchen area, but the family only really used the dining room as a walkway between the living room and kitchen. We see a lot of houses with this kind of problem. An open-plan layout can create the illusion of space, but if not done properly it can mean that parts of the house aren’t used for their intended purpose.

Solution

After an enlightening consultation with our new clients, we were able to come up with plenty of ideas to provide more space and more fun for the family.

We built a wall to separate the living room, then used the existing dining area to create an L-shaped kitchen with a modern looking kitchen island.  To maximise the space as much as possible, we turned the dining room’s old chimney breast into a place for a large feature oven and refrigerator.

This creative use of kitchen space meant that we only needed to add modest sized rear and side extension to the ground floor, to create a large dining and lounge area.  Our designs included plans for bi-fold doors to create a light and airy atmosphere, with views of the family garden. We also utilised the side extension roof by adding a large pane of glass, bringing even more natural light to the dining area.

A little something for the kids

Upstairs we added a second storey to the rear extension, creating a larger bedroom for the children and even their own en-suite. We also had the idea of installing a feature window with a fantastic window seat, much to the excitement of the children.

A game changing basement conversion

The couple thought their dark and dingy basement might be too small to use as a living space, but we had good news for them. In cases like this we’re often able to lower the basement floor, creating a habitable room with much more height. With this done, we were able to use the space for a family media room and even an extra bedroom with its own en-suite.

The result is that the family has far less wasted space, a great deal more room and a significant increase to the value of their property.