House Home Design Tips Building Diy Ivy Ngeow RIBA

BUILDINGDIY WITH IVY NGEOW ARCHITECTS INSIDER TIPS BOOK
Bathrooms, bedrooms, conservatories, basements, lofts, cupboards, fireplaces and much more.
Articles by Ivy Ngeow RIBA MA, London & Sydney
This is a free ebook from www.BuildingDIY.com and contains articles of a general nature, suitable for all property owners. We also have a full BUILDING DIY EBOOK, written by professionals, with over 350 pages available online. All of the text from this book can be read on our huge website which also has an image gallery, videos and a blog. www.BuildingDIY.com
CONTENTS
Articles from Ivy Ngeow Architects www.IvyNgeow.com Published 2009 by BuildingDIY.com Articles were first published in various magazines 2004-2008. Ivy Ngeow has written for Marie Clair, Cosmopolitan, Wimbledon Magazine and others. Photos in these articles are by Ivy Ngeow and Geoff Davis. All rights reserved, text photos and format. May not be republished or used in any form without express permission. A full cupboard of life Bathrooms Bedroom scenes Conservatories Decorating walls Home extensions including basements and sub levels Fireplaces Furnished for good Garage as a sculpture studio (with sculptor Sam Loggie) Giving new life to an old house (refurbishment, remodeling) Hard landscaping Home offices Kitchen makeover Lofts - Going up in the world - 1 Lofts - Going up in the world - 2 Malaysian house - project planning and design Open plan living Saving energy Summerhouses (with author Penny Faith) Ten alternative living ideas Out on the tiles (indoor tiling) Windows www.BuildingDIY.com 3 7 10 12 14 15 17 19 21 22 25 27 29 31 34 36 40 42 44 46 47 50
A FULL CUPBOARD
OF LIFE
Articles from Ivy Ngeow Architects
Shelving is put up first in any kind of accommodation, even student flats. They are the most essential and versatile storage requirement. Gauge what you intend to store by assessing your possessions. This includes length, width and height. For instance, not all books are the same shape and size. Vinyl records are of a totally different dimension to any books. Open shelves collect dust but are easily accessible. Because of the nature of the possessions, open shelves can be hard to clean. For example, tiny porcelain figures and teddy bears in large quantities must be every cleaner's nightmare. Timber is by far still the most popular material for shelving since civilisation. It is sturdy and naturally good looking. MDF is now more common, thanks to TV. It is used as a timber alternative but it cannot take too much loading. Books on MDF will cause it to become bananashaped, unless it was very thick (more than 18mm) and under 900mm in span. For health reasons MDF must be painted or varnished.
Walnut veneered inlaid audio-visual armoire Melamine-faced chipboard is the stuff that all budget kitchens are made of. It is inexpensive, practical and splashproof, if edged properly. It is tougher than MDF and flatpack bookshelf kits are usually made of chipboard.
Plywood is good for having a wood appearance and being the strongest over a long span. It can be covered in any veneer to give the appearance of real wood, if the edging is detailed properly. It can be used in wet areas because some types of plywood are waterproof. Other types of shelving include glass, which is decorative but tough. Glass is expensive and usually used for practical reasons, i.e. in kitchens and bathrooms or when you want to highlight display items in the living room using lighting. Galvanised metal is ideal for tough utility purposes, eg. office backrooms, garages, sheds and greenhouses. They usually come as flatpack kits and can be bolted to the wall for extra rigidity. Like cupboards, built-in shelving can store more items. In normal interior rooms, open shelving is only good if you have nice matching items to display, and if they are arranged neatly. If your possessions look messy and uncoordinated, cupboards are better. Consider the practicalities for all applications: cost is the biggest implication, which is why students have open shelving and furniture found from tips. Generally speaking, shelves are good for books and kitchenware which are 'hard' items, and www.BuildingDIY.com
A FULL CUPBOARD
OF LIFE
therefore easy to wipe. 'Soft' items such as shoes, clothes and the aforementioned teddy bears, need to be protected from dust and thus be stored in cupboards. Cupboards with complicated James Bond mechanisms, fancy handfinished surfaces, toughened glass fronts, designer knobs et cetera are all expensive. This is why you must anticipate how much you will want to access these items, because all cupboards should be easy to get at. If they are too hard to get at, you might as well put them in the loft or the charity shop. If you cannot access them easily, you will never. Another factor for built-in cupboards is whether or not you will move quite soon. Built-in cupboards are investments to the property, since you cannot take them with you. If you were renting, you would have freestanding furniture, either yours or the landlord's. Cupboards can be solid or semi-see-through. Fabric-fronted doors are suitable for kitchen, bedrooms and living rooms. I was quite keen on these some years ago after seeing them in a beautiful beach house. The fabric fronts usually come with chicken wire or glass for that shabby chic or country look. You can take the fabric off to wash, and even change the fabric entirely for fun. That way it is cheap to alter the appearance without spending money. Of course if you were using these doors in the kitchen, the fabric will quickly disintegrate from grease, fumes and spills, so there is the cleaning costs and hassle to consider. An alternative is glass doors sans fabric, but it's not for untidy people. Solid cupboard doors can be retractable, folding or sliding. These take up less space than the side-hinging normal doors. I find roller shutter doors, i.e. tambours, fun and good to work with for home offices, or small messy kitchens, for that Alakazam! instant tidy-up. 'Tambour', as in tambourine, comes from the word 'drum', due to the fact that it is like a thin membrane wrapped around a tracking system to guide the membrane. Tambours are based on the pulldown principle of garages and bureaus. They are expensive and need to be tailor-made.
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A FULL CUPBOARD
OF LIFE
Beech veneer walk-through cupboard Toe operated lower drawers
Kitchen cupboards
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A FULL CUPBOARD
OF LIFE
Mirrors with concealed medicine cabinet
Kitchen cupboards, small ones very useful, high level glass cabinet
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BATHROOMS
One of my memories growing up in Malaysia was the monsoon season. As children, we would run into a rainstorm with huge banana leaves as makeshift umbrellas. These are purely decorative, because resistance is useless. This kind of power shower is all-drenching and allencompassing. It rained so hard you were left gasping with exhilaration. There was nothing more invigorating in the steamy tropical climate. In the dry season, it was sweltering and sticky. For a therapeutic salt bath, we plunged into the warm sea. The water never got cold, nor ran out.
Traditional copper bath
The modern bathroom imitates nature. It should be designed as an all-inclusive resort of the mind. Bathrooms at the back of the house or downstairs or low-pressure showers are no longer acceptable. Decades ago, a bathroom was no more than a damp utilitarian space lurking with spiders. Bathrooms today increase the value of the house, because they reflect character, practicality, and lifestyle. The en suite bathroom is popular because it symbolises privacy and exclusivity, therefore hierarchy in the household. Early washing in the UK was carried out in a portable tin tub hand-filled with hot water from the fire. Family members took turns to bathe and depending on the family, bathing was not essential or regular. Smelliness was simply masked with perfumed oils. By the middle of the 19th century, bathrooms were installed in wealthy family homes. They were decorated with grand marble washstands, needle showers with overhead shower rose, dressing tables displaying the ubiquitous perfume bottles, and slipper baths. Cleanliness was obviously not next to godliness, because even pious folk could not afford to wash. The Great Unwashed simply remained so. By the 1970s, there was a glut of fitted bathrooms, with crazy tiling, wacky-shaped sanitaryware, jacuzzis and coloured bathroom suites including the infamous avocado suite. Only clever planning and design can make the tightest of spaces seem large and pleasant. Bathrooms are expensive to install, and they need to comply with building regulations. Lifestyle is the most important consideration because it will determine how much time each family member will spend in it. You need to assess how well you use the existing bathroom, and whether or not the layout works. If your wish list is long and complicated, involving moving the bathroom into another room altogether, or extending the existing room, you would consult a qualified architect. He or she will discuss your proposed bathroom and provide you with advice on building regulations relating to plumbing and wiring. www.BuildingDIY.com
BATHROOMS
The architect can specify the right sanitaryware for you. Glossy brochures are misleading. Many people have bought baths which are too big, showers whose doors cannot open due to a WC being in the way, taps which are too big to turn them on without grazing your knuckles. The architect can also design fitted bathroom furniture such as storage. He or she will provide you with a scale drawing to make sure that the layout works and looks good. An effective shower needs to have at least 2.0 bar pressure, and 3.0 bar for a power shower. The types of pumps, hot water tanks and boilers affect how many times a day you can have a shower, and whether someone else can have a bath when you are having a shower.
The choice of basins and taps depends on the number of people using them at the same time, how tall they are, do they own a lot of lotions and potions and are there children. Mixer taps are more practical for people with children to prevent scalding. With WCs, how well the flush works and the length of refilling time are important. There is nothing worse than going to someone's house and the loo cannot flush because someone else has just been in there. If space is tight, the concealed cistern and a wall-hung WC free up more space and make the room appear bigger. People now have seen enough Vicwardian style traditional bathrooms in the 1990s. The trend at the moment is the wet room. The wet room is originally an Eastern concept, Pool of reflection and which brings me back to the monsoon image.
Art Deco bath
Basically there is no shower tray and this concept is best applied in a very large bathroom, so that the water naturally runs off. In a small room, you will get the effect that you are in a Hong Kong bedsit, sitting on the loo, cleaning your teeth and having a shower all at the same time. The wet room is achieved by tiling over a concrete floor screeded to fall towards a floor waste. With beautiful tiles such as handmade Balinese tiles or limestone, the wet room can look www.BuildingDIY.com
BATHROOMS
magnificent. If you have a timber floor, there are many ways to make the room watertight, one being glass reinforced polymer tanking which takes the floor and wall tiles. There is always a risk when converting a timber construction space into a wet room because timber moves and is not watertight. Nowadays many boutique resorts in hot climates boast entire wet areas, using outdoor showers. See also the Tiles and Out on the Tiles articles for more bathroom and tile pictures.
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BEDROOM SCENES
When you are asleep, you are oblivious to your surroundings. Therefore all the more important that the bedroom is comfortable and pleasant, so as to enhance a sense of well-being, both unconscious and conscious. When I was a child I remember sharing bedrooms, either with my grandmother, my maiden auntie or my siblings. This is still very common in extended households of Asian families. You chat or row with them about your day when the lights are out. In the UK, children sharing bedrooms was also common only decades ago, and even parents would have had to share when the need arose. The 'master' in the phrase 'master bedroom' meant the biggest bedroom, not the room of the master. This concept has changed and expectations are now different. Having one's own bedroom is truly a luxury, no matter how small the bedroom is. We overlook this luxury in today's affluent way of life. The bedroom is considered a personal, individual, private space. Just ask any teenager! Even in budget housing, fitted wardrobes and en-suite bathrooms are now de rigeur. In more upmarket homes, where space allows, there are separate 'his' and 'her' dressing areas. Always buy the best bed that you can afford. It is the most important and the biggest item in the room, and therefore will set the mood and focus for decorating the room. Measure up before you buy your bed, which may sound obvious, but in many 'period' properties, there are only one or two walls where the bed could be located due to the window wall and the chimney breast wall. Next you would have to decide on the flooring. Most people would carpet the room because it is softer and warmer than wood. Once you have established the basic look and function of the bedroom, you need to plan your storage. Clothes, books, records and shoes are the 'stuff' of our modern lives. In a student's bedroom, these items dominate the room because often there is no other choice as space is limited. Children's rooms constantly amaze me. Children come into this world naked, yet they are inundated with possessions before they are even born. Therefore you need sufficient storage to keep (and find) these possessions. Many people underestimate the importance of lighting in a bedroom, because it is perceived as a 'darkened' room for resting. Lighting is not just functional, it creates atmosphere. For a truly efficient bedroom, work out a combination of lighting for both relaxation and working, if you work in your bedroom. I like chandeliers in bedrooms. They are spectacular in both modern as well as traditional bedrooms, like the icing on the cake. When getting dressed to go out, chandeliers make you look glamorous. If you have a very small bedroom, which is not unusual in London properties, you will probably need plenty of built-in storage and shelving. Fitted wardrobes can be unattractive. Coordinate colours, furniture and prints so as to give uniformity and the illusion of space. Use interesting www.BuildingDIY.com
BEDROOM SCENES
pieces of furniture as features, so as draw the eye away from the walls. This will also make the bedroom appear bigger. If you have enough space for an en suite bathroom, make sure that the lighting is subdued, or that there is a combination of lighting controls, so that when one person is in the en suite at night, the other (asleep) person is not awakened by sudden glaring light. In a spacious bedroom, a sofa next to a window is a nice touch, because it encourages reading or watching television in comfort.
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CONSERVATORIES
NOT JUST FOR PLANTS
The word 'conservatory' comes from the Latin 'conservare' or to keep. They were originally rooms in which young plants were nurtured, due to the fact that they were intermediary spaces between inside and out, and therefore warmer than outside but has plenty of light. The homeowner tends to fantasise about putting up a conservatory when the winter is over and thoughts of the last Christmas dinner are already a distant memory. One can actually see out into the garden now. At this time of year when the weather is still not very warm, the dream has always been to be 'in' the garden without being 'inside' it. It is always better to plan ahead if you are considering putting in a conservatory. You may or may not need planning permission. If the volume of the original terrace house is increased by more than 10% or 50 m (whichever is greater) and in any other kind of house, more than 15% or 70 m, than you would need to apply for planning permission. If the conservatory is built onto your existing wall and separated by a door, you may not need permission.
Gleneagles cafe in conservatory style extension
If you prefer the knock-through effect of having the conservatory as part of the existing house without a wall in the way, then it would constitute an extension and you would be required to apply for planning permission. If you've already extended, you would have eaten into your volume limit. It is best to check with your local authority or your architect as the rules are complicated. If you live in a Conservation Area (no pun intended), even more rules apply. Conservatories may be constructed from UPVC, timber or aluminium. Timber and aluminium are expensive options. Timber looks good with a traditional house as all sorts of period mouldings are possible to be in keeping with the character of your home. Timber is high on maintenance, because the paintwork or varnish will have to be renewed after a decade or so. Aluminium will have a modern appearance but can be used in a period property all the same to provide an interesting contrast. UPVC is the cheapest option. These are easily purchased in any of the DIY stores. Both aluminium and UPVC are low on maintenance, although white UPVC can stain in time and appear like well-weathered plastic white garden furniture. www.ecotist.com
CONSERVATORIES
NOT JUST FOR PLANTS
The choice of your ideal conservatory is limited by your budget. UPVC being the cheapest would cost around 2500 for a 15 m conservatory, or even less if you shop around. A timber one would cost approximately 25000 and the aluminium one could be slightly less. These prices do not include building costs so it would depend on the level of design complexity. If you decide on putting up the conservatory yourself, keen DIYers have to note that foundations have to be laid properly to take the loading. The floor will have to be insulated, damp-proof and level. There is the current trend of underfloor heating as well. The flooring can be ceramic-tiled, vinyl sheet or timber laminate. Any flooring is suitable except for carpet. It is not really hygienic to have carpet in the conservatory as it is almost an outdoor space. You can buy a UPVC conservatory from a DIY store and get your builder to fit it. The alternatives are to buy from a conservatory supplier who can supply and fit or just supply. These would be the more expensive option. The glazing would usually, though not always, be double-glazed. It is better to have double-glazing so that you can use your conservatory all year long. Laminated glass is better for soundproofing and safety because it breaks in one piece. Next to the price, comfort is the most important factor. Central heating, underfloor heating and double-glazing will keep the conservatory comfortable during winter (but not for plants ironically). It is important to have manual or automatic roof ventilation for climate control during the summer. If the conservatory is south-facing, blinds and light-reflecting glass will prevent you from scorching. In some cases, people have installed ceiling fans, which look pretty in the colonial way when they hover over terracotta tiles, parlour palms and cane furniture. In the height of summer, ceiling fans enable you to sip your gin and tonics in comfort. In that sense, conservatories can set the mood. They are essentially quite light structures from which you may admire your estate. As such, lighting is often overlooked but important for your Somerset Maugham evening soirees. Wiring troughs would have to be cut into the structure before installation. As the ceiling is literally glass, recessed lights would be out of the question. There are many options for lighting such as track lighting, or halogen. A small glass chandelier, or a Moroccan lantern, looks fabulous on its own. A pendant light, especially used with the aforementioned ceiling fan, can add a tropical relaxed feel. Some kind of garden lighting also helps enhance the conservatory, ultimately bringing the outdoors in.
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DECORATING WALLS
Everyone remembers that as a student you will always live in a flat with woodchip wallpaper. In rented accommodation woodchip wallpaper hides uneven plaster. Wallcoverings determine the character of the room. When re-decorating a space, you will have to make sure that the walls are flat and smooth. Or else you will have to go back to textured wallpaper. You can also line a room with very heavy gauge lining paper prior to painting. Whatever the case, the objective wou be to make the walls smooth or else there would be no point in decorating. Deciding on colour and texture are both considerations you have to make, because it is not a style issue. Room use, room orientation, temperature and lighting all affect the choices you make. For instance, wallpaper is not suitable for bathrooms or kitchens, which are warm and humid. For these spaces, hard surfaces are more durable and practical. Paint is the most versatile and the cheapest of wall finishes. In fact you can do so much with paint (including hiding bad plaster) that there is no reason why you cannot find the ideal colour to cheer up even the worst room. You can even make a bad wall attractive using paint effects such as 'bare plaster' effect. Architects normally have an aversion towards paint effects and I must say I am not so keen myself. However it is still an option, especially if you are on a tight budget (eg in rented accommodation). Wallpaper is now popular again. There are so many colours, designs and patterns nowadays to suit everyone's budget and taste. My favourites are those on a botanical theme, a la flock. In Merton Abbey Mills you can see the different William Morris patterns which will look right if you live in an Arts and Crafts house or Edwardian house and you want to show off the period. With strong patterns, you don't have to use it in the whole room. It can look de trop and claustrophobic, like a B&B. In fact these patterns are not suitable for small rooms at all. You can just highlight a wall, such as either the chimney breast or the alcoves. You can use it under a picture rail for that turn of the century look. The disadvantages of wallpaper are obvious: tears or damages are hard to mend, it is expensive compared to paint, and it may peel, especially near windows or radiators. With paint, it is simple to retouch the room where it is scuffed or damaged. The good news is that it is quicker to cover walls in wallpaper than paint, if time is an issue. Paint is not suitable if the walls are bad, because it is too smooth and cannot hide these flaws. Wallpaper can be very thick and textured (think kitchen towels) so the walls don't have to be perfect. Also you can get insulating wallpaper these days whereas insulating paints are rare and probably very rough to touch.
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HOME EXTENSIONS INCL. BASEMENTS

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SUB LEVELS
Home extensions are synonymous with improving the quality of life, especially in the affluent Western world. We take space for granted and when we have filled it, we need more. People find it less drastic and costly than moving. For centuries, and even as recent as forty years ago, many families, often more than one generation, remain in the same house throughout their lives. Some families even remain in the same room in the same house all their lives. Interestingly, before 1962, extensions were built without planning laws. The style of the day determined the extension. Homes were extended to add a room. This was the main purpose. The very poor never added rooms. They were lucky to have a roof over their heads. Craftsmen added rooms for workshops, but it was also rare, unless they were very successful.
Conservatory at rear of house, retaining original wall
Craftsmen and their pets usually slept in the same room as the workshop itself, on a makeshift bed against a wall. Therefore only the very wealthy added rooms for servants' accommodation, or if they fancy it, 'folly' rooms, to show off to guests, fantasy spaces to define their status in society. Today, the demand is not for follies or servants, but for a less formal and more flexible space. This space can be a living, bedroom or office space. Also, the dense concentration of urban homes and the escalation of consumerism, means that many people live in smaller spaces than the last generation. Each new generation has more 'stuff' than the generation before, you only need to look at your child's room and compare it to yours. The brick-built extension is no longer the only of adding to your house. Some of the most exciting building techniques include entire prefabricated rooms that can be loaded onto www.BuildingDIY.com
HOME EXTENSIONS INCL. BASEMENTS
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SUB LEVELS
the back of an articulated lorry, and then onto your roof top, connected to your house by a flight of stairs. These prefabricated pods are usually made of timber. Balconies, rooms, sun decks, and other spaces can also be add-ons, and be literally bolted onto your basic room. Alternatively, if you are extending on the ground floor, the timber building arrives flatpacked and brought through to the back of your house. The whole building is bolted together in half a day, and after a week of fitting out, it is ready to decorate. These extensions are quicker and cheaper to erect. Planning guidelines will govern the materials you use for cladding your extension, especially so in a conservation area. Always check first with your local authority or your architect. Basements and sub levels Subterranean extensions in the basement, or by creating a new sub level, are extremely expensive to carry out. This is due to the amount of excavation and often structural underpinning of your house. It is also very messy and time-consuming as the excavation can only be carried out in the traditional way - digging. Sometimes there is no alternative if you live in a listed building because you need to protect the entire appearance of the building. Sub levels are also becoming popular in central city locations due to high square area prices. Media rooms are suited to the rooms which will obviously have a lack of natural light. Basements will usually need tanking. We recommend using a specialist basement builder, or check that any general builder has underground experience. There are a lot of contingencies with excavation and water proofing, quite apart from requiring good light design, perhaps using sun tubes or light wells. So they are an interesting mix of full-on engineering, hard labour, and intelligent space and lighting design. Ideas come from everywhere. A small change can make a big difference. Before spending any money, you should consider if extending is necessary and if you can afford it. Instinctively, you may feel that you absolutely must have a loft extension, when in reality a garden room is more practical for you and your family's needs. An extension is the most expensive way of spending money on yourself and your house and you should keep a notebook and sketchbook of all your ideas first.
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FIREPLACES
All rooms need a focal point. The living area is often the largest and most public room in the house, therefore would benefit from an interesting and more formal display. Traditionally, the most impressive and expensive paintings, furniture and ornaments are saved for this room. If you live in a pre-WWII property, every room would have been built with a fireplace. It is a traditional symbol of the home and the family. Also it is the heart of relaxation and entertaining because firstly it provides heat and secondly it is central to the room, and therefore a feature. In most homes nowadays, the television is now a focal point. This does not have to be unattractive, as it is an honest reflection of modern lifestyle. However, most 'period' homes would benefit from at least one fireplace as the chimney breast is so dominant. In many houses the original fireplaces were removed during the early to mid twentieth century due to the drive towards modernism. Fireplaces and panelled pine doors were considered the height of bad taste. Only in the nineties did they regain their popularity. The opening where the fireplace used to be was simply boarded up. Many people discover that their fireplaces are still intact under hardboarding. If your fireplace is missing under the hardboard (i.e. there is a gaping black hole of raw brickwork), it is relatively simple to install a new fireplace. The fireplace should match the character of the room. If not, it will be very difficult to decorate and the fireplace will be an eyesore rather than a beautiful object. This does not mean that it has to be old-looking, or reproduction. The fireplace design must be conceptualised with that of the room. You can scour salvage yards and antique shops if you want a real antique. However, reproductions and modern designs are all as attractive. You will also have to consider the type of fuel your fireplace will use. The four most common types of fuel are gas, solid fuel, oil and electricity. The first three will require a flue but electrical fires will not. There is now a gel fuel as well, which makes it possible to move a fireplace or tray from room to room without the need for flues, cabling or plumbing. However, this is a very expensive way of having a fire. Real flame gas fires come with or without heat exchangers. Modern designs conceal the heat exchangers and look like a real coal fire. You can have pebbles, coal effect or log effect fires. These are usually gas-powered. In most modern designs, you can have electronic remote control to operate or control the settings of your fireplace. www.BuildingDIY.com
FIREPLACES
If you have an old chimney breast, you are required to have the flue lined and a smoke test carried out before you fit a new fire. This is because the brickwork or pointing may be defective and the exhaust may enter the internal rooms above the fireplace. If a chimney breast does not exist, you can have a gas fire with fanned or balanced flues. This means that the burnt gas is extracted to an external wall. In any case, you will have to box in the flue somehow. This can be hidden in joinery within a carefully planned interior design. If not, the overall appearance could be like an industrial kitchen. Of course it is also possible to build a chimney breast. Fires should have a hearth for safety and a fireguard to protect children and the elderly. However, most people do not want this effect as the whole point of the fireplace is so that you can see it. It is recommended that you purchase your fireplace from a reputable company with full safety and warranty certificates. The gas fitter has to be CORGIregistered and you will be required to submit a building notice to the council if you are building a flue and chimney breast.
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FURNISHED FOR GOOD

My parents are still using the furniture that I grew up with and that they grew up with, left behind by my grandparents. They were from humble origins and the furniture was simple and straightforward, bought from local shops. The furniture was looked after and used with care, as though they were antiques (they are now, but of course, not then). We still have, for example, a small round dining table, with a marble top and carved wooden legs, which my grandmother bought for five dollars in 1934 when she was seventeen after she got married. In those days that was a lot of money. From my childhood, I remember that she made noodles or dumplings by rolling the dough out on this marble top dusted with flour. Even today all of the family furniture is in excellent condition. Every piece of furniture has a story. Nowadays it is common to 'upgrade' furniture after a few years. If broken and irreparable, I can see why. But to throw out furniture just because the colour is wrong is wasteful and pointless. The world already has enough rubbish to cope with. If you have no space or use for it, put it in your garage, give it to charity or sell it on. Do not leave it on the street. It is selfish and stupid to do so. Furniture is an investment, a part of the family, and we all have our memories about certain chairs, tables, sofas and so on. Furniture used to be built for life, and for living. If broken or worn, it would be repaired, and used for another lifetime. Modern lifestyle has changed our needs. People move out of home and hometown, and people get divorced and re-settled a lot more now. Therefore, the need for furniture and accommodation has increased. If you need new furniture, measure and plan the room first. The sofas, dining tables and beds are big objects, and they can fill the room to the brim such that there is no space for anything else. Firstly consider what sort of people would be using the room, whether you are formal or casual. These large items of furniture would set the scene and would be a semi-permanent fixture as they cost so much. Then make sure that you choose a material that is practical. Brochures and magazines are distracting because they only sell an image. Common sense would tell you that a bedhead which is made of metal rods is obviously going to be uncomfortable. So is a sofa made mostly of twigs. If you have children and pets, consider their needs, i.e. light coloured materials would not be suitable for you no matter how tempting it would be to your minimalist inner self. I keep seeing awful sofa ads on the telly. Sofas in wacky colours like purple and orange are very hard to match if the interiors change, so consider having changeable covers. It is important to choose the lighting at the same time as the furniture. Sofas and televisions go together, and the lighting would affect watching TV. Plan the room layout having measured the dimensions of the intended piece of furniture. Make sure that there is still room to move around it, get access to doors, windows and power points and that cupboards or drawers can still open. A quiet corner need not be a dead space. With comfy chair and light, someone could use the space for reading or studying. www.BuildingDIY.com
FURNISHED FOR GOOD
If you already have furniture, it is best to use existing furniture to furnish a space. If your bed is sagging or tired, you can get a new mattress and bedhead without getting a new bed. The same principle applies to the sofa. Most sofas can be recovered, with new seat pads and covers made. Renovating an old object makes it new again. Otherwise everyone's homes would look the same-a high street furniture warehouse. The most important factor when choosing furniture is cost (as you know, a sofa can cost anything from 5 if bought from Loot, to 5000 if bought from Kings Road), followed by comfort. If you feel comfortable, you will know straightaway that the piece of furniture is right for you. Never buy furniture that you have not seen or touched. To save yourself and the world the bother of having to throw out or upgrade furniture, always do your legwork and homework. Whether you are buying new or old furniture, buy the best quality that you can afford, in a classic style that fits your lifestyle. In this way, they will also become antiques in the future and still be in the family for years to come.
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GARAGE AS SCULPTURE STUDIO

You don't necessarily have to park your car in your garage. Garages of the 20s and 30s are actually not wide enough for today's cars. Most people use their garages for storage and for washing and drying. People who work from home can use the garage as a studio or office with minimal financial outlay. This is because the garage is connected to the house, so you don't have to extend or to put in new foundations or roof or extra security. The most work you will have to put in are basic services like lighting, powerpoints, heating and water supply. Sam Loggie is a sculptor who uses her garage as a studio. The space is very light and wellventilated. It is also warm without the central heating because the boiler, hot water tank, washing machine and dryer are also in this space. Sam makes her clay figurative sculptures here, with water supply taken from inside the house. It would be not difficult to have a water supply put in because there is already a washing machine in this area. According to Sam, self-discipline is the key to working from home, especially as an artist. Sam is a mother of two and she focusses on her art twice a week, from 9:30am to 2pm. Parents who work from home have to take into account that very little work can be carried out during school holidays. This refers to one parent being at home rather than both. During school holidays, Sam would not be able to devote so much time to her art as she has to spend time with her children. Creative work is one that demands complete attention and focus, and any distraction must be avoided. For artists and sculptors, Sam advises that the garage space should be comfortable and appealing. This doesn't mean that the space should be equipped with luxury finishes or fittings. Comfort is all about the senses. If a space is bright, airy and warm, it would appeal to any artist. Shelves can be fixed for storage of art materials, and the floor can simply be painted. Working at home can be lonely for anyone as there are no colleagues or fellow artists to discuss and critique work. Sam has a fellow sculptor whom she meets up with on alternate weeks in each other's studio. It is mutually beneficial for artists to establish regular contact with other artists. Another point to consider is that the garage space needs to suit the purpose, the kind and the size of the art. For example, Sam's studio is too small to have a foundry. The clay sculptures are taken to a foundry in North London and cast in bronze.
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GIVING NEW LIFE TO AN OLD HOUSE

The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. Jack London It is our natural instinct as human beings to improve our way of life. That is why we have moved on from the cave. Even in the cave our predecessors drew on the walls, just to have something nice to look at. Sometimes I feel like the Cary Grant character in Rear Window as I observe the lives of my neighbours, who are making a killing! They are seriously increasing the value of their property. Without exception I see them in the middle of some kind of building work. From DIY-ers to those who call in the professionals, there are no limits or boundaries to the level of home improvement. 'You can't change the location but you can change the house' as the estate agents would chime. Refurbishment, renovations, or remodelling (as they call it in the States) all mean the same thing: our approach to improving our caves. As housing grew since the reign of Victoria, so did aspirations. Today many of us still inhabit these so-called 'period' homes. The first stage of refurbishment is carrying out what is absolutely necessary. This first stage is loosely termed modernisation. Putting central heating in, repairing all windows and external walls, dampproofing and installing an inside and upstairs bathroom all constitute modernisation. Of course, all these works add value to the property. Nowadays, refurbishments are not often so mundane. Domestic architecture is going through a very exciting and creative period at the moment. Some people may find throwing out an avocado suite or skimming over Artex ceilings therapeutic, especially in properties which have already been modernised (just). Most would go further, and with the help of an architect or designer, find a cohesive design concept for their complete refurbishment. There are many reasons for this. Firstly, the large positive equity on owned homes means that the owners can have the holiday in Barbados as well as have building works done. Also, it could be more expensive for people to move. Secondly, the glut of TV programmes and coffee table books have made lay people aware of design and house pride. Thirdly, changes in lifestyle dictate that these 'period' homes must be adapted for modern living. For example, people entertain, work, exercise and relax a lot more at home, which in turn feeds the national obsession with house renovations. In the second stage of refurbishment, additional uses of space may be incorporated by altering layouts, creating new rooms from old or renewing old rooms if the house is satisfactory in size. For instance, a higher quality new kitchen can be redesigned into an existing space. Dead spaces may be used too, for instance, the ubiquitous under-stair cupboard as WC. A utility room may be conceived from a broom cupboard, on the first floor landing. There is no reason www.BuildingDIY.com
why utility rooms should be on the ground floor next to the kitchen. If the house is not spacious enough, which is often the case, then it is worth considering extending. This is the third stage of refurbishment. There used to be only loft and kitchen extensions, but nowadays there are countless. Anyone with unused outside space has a potential to extend. For example there are rooftop conservatories for people without gardens, there are home gyms and luxury spa baths converted from cellars as well as playrooms from disused conservatories, music rooms from garages and home offices from summerhouses. Enthusing about renovating your three-bedroom house for months, even years, is not enough to turn it into a three-dimensional reality. It is best to enlist the assistance of an architect or interior designer. This is because every building project, even to experienced DIY-ers, is tedious, exhausting, stressful, disruptive and of course expensive. That's enough negativity for now. Your architect or designer will help you to visualise a project from start to finish, whether it is a little Moroccan fountain or a two-storey extension. He or she will provide you with ideas about space configuration or layouts, often in more ways than one, and help you work within your budget no matter how small. They are also used to dealing with builders and may take the pressure of you. It is not easy to juggle builders at home as well as having to go to work. Architects are able to advise if you will require a structural engineer. You will also be able to ask your architect about local authority issues like whether you need planning permission (the most popular question), party wall award and building notice approval. Finally, the finished product adds more value to your property specifically because it has been 'architect-designed'. You will read these words with satisfaction in the estate agent's blurb when selling your house. Successful refurbishment leads to a more enjoyable and relaxed home life. However, home renovation is a continuous process. Stainless steel worktops may be to the future what the avocado suite is to us now. It is easy to overlook that trends play a part on every level of refurbishment. The general rule is that a simple, classic design statement should outshine any of the more faddish treatments of your home. I personally do not entirely agree with this (although I have to say that it is eighty percent true). Sometimes you would like something to look dated just so you could date it. If everyone steered clear of the creative paths, there would be no great designers of the modern movement. There would be no classic Sixties design, or Fifties, or even Edwardian. Of course there were brown-paper-bags-over-heads blunders, but nothing that was invented would have been invented if everyone played hide and chic. Making a personal and intuitive design concept based on the user is to me more special and valid simply because we live in 'me' time, with little luxuries for the individual. Life would be so www.BuildingDIY.com
bland if everyone was fashionably homogeneous. How little delight we would experience when looking into our neighbours' or friends' newly-refurbished homes. And of course, not everyone likes to be trendy. Quality speaks for itself, and in a high quality refurbishment, what you get out of your property far exceeds what you put in. Therefore ultimately, it is the people who make the home, not the other way round. As the Chinese proverb goes: may you live in interesting times.
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HARD LANDSCAPING
The proportion between paving and lawn is the key to good garden design. Too much paving makes a large garden look harsh and bland, and in fact, not really like a garden at all. If your garden is very small or quite shady, interesting paving can complement plants. Real stone is very expensive but readily available. It can be from York, Devon or as far away as China and India. They vary in thickness between 30mm and 70mm. You can use an entire slab for the tread on garden steps, for instance. Cast concrete paving slabs are manufactured by casting in moulds or hydraulic pressing. Pigments and aggregates are added to the mix to create the appearance of natural stone's hues and textures. You can combine two or more types of paving slab to produce a realistic stone effect. Standard or modular sizes are available to help you produce a pattern to suit the area. A cobbled appearance is pretty. I have seen some slabs which have the cobbles 'built-in'. They look like giant Cadbury's bars, so they are already 'spaced' in a pattern. You can grout the gaps or alternatively fill them with gravel, which creates a nice contrast. Crazy paving came and went, like the infamous avocado bathroom suite. The random effect is achieved with irregular-shaped paving stones. I'm not crazy about crazy paving, but I know that if you use small pieces to form a large mosaic geometric pattern, it looks very striking and frankly, quite artistic. Also, it is eco-friendly because it uses waste materials and random offcuts. You are helping to recycle these materials. In Italy, it is very popular to use marble offcuts in crazy paving. Unlike brick walls, brick paving can be laid to any pattern. You should sketch some geometric patterns on grid paper, or look for ready-made patterns if your maths is rusty. If designed and laid well, brick paths, patios and driveways can be coordinated to give an overall pleasing scheme. Brick paving looks cottagey and in keeping with everyone's houses, which are usually in brick. There are so many textures and colours so you will need to make sure they are from the same batch. Slightly imperfect bricks are great for paving, because they wear well and look good when there is slight frost damage. These would of course not be suitable for parking your car on. Light human traffic is all they can take. Real cobbles are large flint pebbles, which suit both modern or traditional designs. They can be laid loose or in a dry concrete mix. You can buy the pebbles in bags, usually quite costly. They are not practical because they are very hard to walk on, a pebble beach being the more pleasant equivalent. They only exist to look pretty. If you are planning a large paved area, you should use cobbles decoratively and sparingly, for example in a circle, in alternate slabs, between flowerbeds, or at the base of a fountain. In any of these paving options, the substrate and the drainage are most important. Normally you would need hardcore on the ground, topped by sand blinding, before the paving is laid. www.BuildingDIY.com
HARD LANDSCAPING
Sometimes you would need edging (eg for driveways) and these may have to have a footing on concrete to prevent the driveway from cracking at the edges from the pressure. Paving is laid to fall, so pay attention as to whether there is a natural slope. If there isn't, you will need a soakaway (a trench 1 m by 1m square) or U-section drainage channels. If there is a slope, then it's grand. The rainwater will drain naturally, and water your lovely garden. (Incidentally, planning permission will soon be required in the UK to put in hard surfaces for parking, to encourage people to use permeable surfaces. This is due to flooding problems. See other articles on Water)
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HOME OFFICES
Working from home has not evolved from the nineties change in work practices, i.e. greater pressure on family commitments, increase of 'sick building' syndrome and ease of telecommunications due to mobile telephones, email and fax machines. Working from home was the original way to work. Artists, writers and tradesmen have converted spaces out of their abodes for working in. One of the images which springs to mind is Ernest Hemingway's "tower" in San Francisco De Paula, Cuba. It was simply an elevated platform in a room, with desk and chair, telescope and mug of pencils. George Bernard Shaw also worked from home in a garden shed. It shows that you require very little in order to have an office at home. In fact, the fewer distractions, the better. You should choose the right space in your home, and this will depend on the sort of work you will be doing. If you are a musician or computer programmer, gloomy light is quite acceptable. If however, you are an electronic musician, you will not mind being in the basement. In most professions, the lack of light and ventilation can be depressing and tiring. Architects, illustrators and designers require even, abundant natural light. A spare room would make an ideal home office. As space is a premium in London, many people do not have the choice of quiet rooms but looking onto a busy street is not good for the concentration. In this case, it would be wise to install blinds. In general a home office should not be too much like a home, or too comfortable, in other words. For instance, if there is a chaise lounge, TV or bed, you will probably lie down and watch telly. This is why the choice of furniture is very important. Today, the trend is for freestanding office furniture. Built-in office furniture shoehorned into the space under the stairs is rather pass, because the whole point of the home office is flexibility, mobility and cost-cutting. Choose your furniture by making sure that the piece of furniture has a dual purpose. If you do not have any rooms spare, you will have to look outside the house; for instance the aforementioned shed, turning your garage into a useable space, or extending your property. All of these require substantial budgets. This sort of home office would need professional advice, from interior designers, builders or architects. Creating a home office, no matter how small, would increase the value of your home. This is because home offices are an in-between space between personal and work life. People see the home office as somewhere to dump the computer, printer and files, even if no one works in it. You can save yourself money by finding pieces of furniture around the home which are little or not used, before buying new furniture, which tends to be expensive. For instance, tables and lamps which you may have forgotten about can easily be recycled. If you do intend to splurge, there are no shortage of shops, and you can get yourself a luxury leather exec chair and put it towards your tax expenses. The eclectic look is very stylish at the moment. I tend to favour antique furniture, mixed with modern accessories. For example you can have an old school desk bought cheaply from a www.BuildingDIY.com
HOME OFFICES
second hand shop, and you can finish it with a chrome anglepoise desk lamp and a flat screen monitor. Very chic. Colour scheme, stationery and office filing should be in keeping. Many people keep to black or white because it is easier and cheaper to keep track of all your work. This is quite true. Garish colour schemes lend themselves to chaos and distraction. You can also put up your own shelving to save money, and make sure there is spare space for when the number of files and other office paraphernalia increase. Label your files as soon as you get them. It will increase your efficiency and free up more time to do other things. If you cannot use typed labels, there is nothing wrong in writing them very neatly. At least all of the labels will be in the same handwriting - yours. If you need meeting space, consider how much room is required. Perhaps you could fit it in another more formal room elsewhere. If there is no space in the house whatsoever, you could always meet elsewhere, for instance in a business centre. If you do have the space at home, ensure that the furniture is easily put away after the meeting, and that home items such as family members and pets do not encroach into the space. The home office is a lifestyle choice. You should be able to control the entire environment. I have added to and subtracted from my office as I see fit. Decisions should not be rushed. For instance, to have an espresso machine or not, is a question that you have to ask yourself when you have already done at least one tax return.
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KITCHEN MAKEOVER
If your kitchen, which is only a few years old, looks worn due to your cooking, children or pets, you may be hankering after a new look. It is easy to change the colour of the walls, but paint colour alone is not enough to change the look of a room. There are, instead, some quick revamp ideas which Domestic Gods and Goddesses would prefer. The first thing I would suggest to a client is, if you have a curtain, get rid of it. Curtains in kitchens are unhygienic and impractical because they gather grease and grime. Like stale colourless dried herbs, curtains should be discarded. If you must have some screening due to privacy from the neighbours, hang a sheer curtain which you should wash every fortnight. Or better still, choose a hardwearing material, like a venetian blind, or timber louvred shutters. You can wipe these down less often, and they last longer. You can also hang up new pictures. Try to steer clear of pictures of fruit and vegetables unless they are giant-sized and painted on canvas. I usually suggest something non-culinary, such as black and white photographs, or drawings of fish in the sea rather than fish on a plate. This will create interest and variety, so as to prevent the kitchen from looking stale. Children's drawings should be changed every now and then for the same reasons. You can save yourself money by re-arranging tables and chairs, if they are in good condition. You will be surprised how many dead corners there are in rooms, which have poor furniture layout. Use different table-runners and placemats for change of colour. If you would like to change the kitchen unit doors, in general, you would be better off with pale wood units such as maple, beech and birch. Dark wood finishes are more suited to city pads and very large urban kitchens. Any wood finish would look good with chrome and glass, so don't be worried about matching accessories. Worktops usually get worn out first, unless you have already invested in granite. Even Corian, which is more expensive than granite, gets nicks and cuts in it after time. Laminated worktops are cheap to replace, but of course they will not last more than a decade. www.BuildingDIY.com
KITCHEN MAKEOVER
Many people have found it easy to prime and paint their existing kitchen cupboard doors, if they choose to keep them. You need to use a wood primer first, which costs about 11 for 750 ml, followed by the satinwood or eggshell paint of your choice. Use good quality paint as the doors take a lot of wear and tear. Clients often ask 'what colour should my kitchen be?' I would suggest that bold colours be restricted to walls and accessories, and neutrals or metallics for tiles and flooring, which are more permanent and therefore harder to change. Many designers feel that red is a colour not suitable for kitchens because it encourages gluttony! (But I would leave that up to you to decide.) To ensure your kitchen lasts a long time, you will need to look after it. Items which are frequently used, should be on display. Firstly, it is more practical and secondly, it prevents the kitchen doors from wearing out. Other items should be in cupboards to keep worktops clear. To extend the life of worktops, make sure you always use chopping boards. Obviously, the more you cook, the more the kitchen wears out. Either you stop cooking altogether as though you are in a show flat, or wipe down your kitchen everyday, especially the microwave, hob, sink and the worktops. This way you will not need to revamp it again for some time.
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LOFTS
GOING UP IN THE WORLD
PART
The roof space, traditionally used for storage, can now be transformed into quiet and bright rooms, perfect for an extra bedroom or office. People would rather convert lofts than move due to the rising property prices and high population densities in London. Converting the loft increases the value of the property but only by the amount that the loft cost, which would be between 15,000 and 45,000, depending on these factors: type of roof, number of rooms, inclusion of bathroom, and the specifications. Having said that, a poor quality conversion reduces value from the property. People these days are very house savvy. They will simply not want to accept a badly built and low specification extension because it will cost double to improve it. You can only convert a loft if you have headroom of about 2.4m at the highest point. In properties built after 1965, this is unlikely because they tend to have very shallow roof pitches due to trussed rafters, leaving only a crawl space fit for storage. Houses built before 1965 have www.BuildingDIY.com
LOFTS
PART
rafter and purlin construction where the ridge beam spans between the side walls and rafters carry the roof loading down towards the front and back walls. Steel joists and new flooring add about 180mm to the level of the existing floor joists, thereby further reducing the headroom inside the loft. When you get up a loft ladder and poke your head through the access hatch, the space may appear very large but a new staircase and landing eat in to the space thereby causing loss of usable floor area. If you are thinking of converting your roof space, there are two options. First, the cheaper option would be for you to contact a loft conversion company who will provide the entire shebang of services from design to completion. They will take care of all the local authority issues. Make sure that you get at least three detailed, specified and itemised quotes. To do this you must make sure that you yourself know what fittings should be included; for example radiators, power points and light fittings. You must also visit at least two of their previous conversions to avoid being on BBC Watchdog. I cannot stress this enough. Secondly, the more expensive option would be to appoint an architect. When finding an architect, make sure that you view their portfolio and that you can communicate with them. There are different fee scales, which you should clarify with them: flat fee, an hourly rate or percentage basis, depending on the project. You can hire the cheapest architect but you can never ever make a bad design good. Therefore a strong mutual understanding between client and architect is key to the project. It is a relationship of trust and respect. An architect can advise you on planning issues. For example, there are many roof forms that are not acceptable to the council. There are numerous possibilities with regards to configurations and design options. Most people have a budget in mind. An architect will be able to sketch and demonstrate several layouts to you based on your budget so that you will be able to use the space most efficiently to suit you and your family. He or she will produce drawings for submission to the council for both planning and building notice applications, and also detailed schedule of works and specifications for going out to tender. These enable different builders to price to the same requirements. They will then go through a fair and square competitive tendering process. Without plans, schedules and specifications, the process is vague and you will never find out what was priced for and what wasn't. The cheapest builder may just have excluded a lot of essential items, and the most expensive may take you to the ceiling of your budget so that you may be out of pocket during emergencies. If you seek out a builder that you already know previously or through your neighbours, he may be able to advise you on ball park costs. These are highly inaccurate fluffy figures for the purpose of borrowing enough money from the bank. It takes about eight weeks for the council to consider your application. Once you have received permission, you have a choice of running the project yourself or to hire an architect as a project manager. The advantage is that you have an independent contract to the building www.BuildingDIY.com
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PART
works because the architect will be employed by you and be working in your best interests. Therefore there is more quality control. The architect's fee for managing the project is usually 15% to 20% of the contract sum (building cost). The larger the building cost, the lower the percentage. If you choose to manage the project yourself, it is of course more stressful as it is a job in itself unless you are an advanced DIYer or you are already in the building industry. Also you have to have organisational skills and a lot of spare time on your hands. All buildings are made by human beings. This is what everyone forgets. Each is unique. There are inconsistencies and irregularities in every old building. Unforeseen factors like structure or plumbing renewal work cost dearly and cannot be ascertained until opening up. Therefore there is a degree of inaccuracy in terms of cost, time and quantities in any works to existing buildings. If you run the project yourself, there is always a risk that you can specify wrong items or not notice defects, odd fittings, mistakes or unresolved junctions, what we in the trade call 'bad detail'. Basically, you have to ensure that you inspect the building works regularly, specify fittings and finishes correctly, check the contractor's programme, materials and workmanship such that the entire building project is on time and on budget. As the mantra goes, 'do not accept cheap imitations!' In the next part: roof forms, stairs, services and local authority issues.
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LOFTS
PART
In part one of this article, we discussed the possibilities of converting your existing roof space into a new usable room. We discussed planning permission, employing an architect and approximate costs. In order to submit your application, there are three basic roof forms which your new space will take: 1. Existing roof pitch retained: This is the cheapest of the three options because it facilitates the use of the floor space and roof area by inserting rooflights like Velux windows and a new staircase. However, you can only opt for this form if you have a steep pitch to begin with, for example 40 deg and steeper. 2. Existing roof pitch retained with new dormer windows: This is the second cheapest option. Dormer windows are those wedged-shaped windows with a roof and sides fitted into an existing pitched roof. By creating full head height areas in a pitched roof construction, it is a good option for those who cannot have the first option. Dormer windows help increase the usable floor area. Many houses in conservation areas are required to have dormer windows when converting their lofts. 3. Existing roof pitch retained on front pitch with mansard roof on back: This is the most expensive option, but it creates the most usable space, because it maximises head height on the entire back half of the house. The back pitch of the existing roof is removed, a new flat roof and mansard back pitch is added, into which windows are fitted. The mansard is often 70 deg in pitch in some councils, depending on the existing streetscape. In all the three roof forms, a front escape window of a minimum size of 450mm x 450mm is necessary for escape during a fire. This window size should generally be a tenth of the floor area as a guide.
Staircases most commonly continue over the existing stair direction. Staircases in the first and second roof forms have to 'wind' more. This means that a straight flight is out of the question. This is because as you are ascending, the roof pitch is getting closer because the roof is sloping down towards the back of the house. Therefore the disadvantage of retaining your roof pitch is that the staircases eat in more into the usable floor area of your new room. The minimum head clearance is 2m in domestic applications in order to building regulation requirements. Some people have used spiral stairs, but it is much more impractical when moving large items of furniture (eg mattresses) up and down. In the mansard option, a straight flight is possible, if the mansard is almost vertical, i.e 80 or 90 deg. When you increase your accommodation, it is normal that the loading on your existing services www.BuildingDIY.com
LOFTS
PART
would increase. Your new services such as plumbing and electrics should be connected to the existing supply, therefore you may need to increase the capacity on your mains. If you choose to have a new bathroom in your loft room, it can increase the price by five to ten thousand pounds depending on the size, design and the specifications of your bathroom. If you have not budgeted for this aspect of the construction, it is best not to embark on it unless you do not mind the cost implications. Bathrooms should always be thought of at the beginning of the design process, not at the end. This is because altering and adding to existing plumbing, sanitary fittings, and tiling are very expensive if they are of any quality. Also, another reason why you should design the bathroom into the scheme at the earliest stage is the issue of head height. The shower and handbasin, for instance, can only be where there is full head height, whereas the WC can be at points where there is lower head height, if needs be. The first issue about plumbing costs is that if the new WC cannot be located near an existing soil vent pipe, you may have to install a macerator. This is an electrically powered waste disposal machine, chopping up and pumping waste through a smaller pipe to the nearest soil pipe. They are not that noisy these days but still you should install them only when the normal soil pipe is not possible. Your architect, builder or plumber will be able to advise you. The second point to mention about plumbing is that shower fittings are expensive. Make sure that another shower or bath being run elsewhere in your property will not affect the water pressure. There are numerous ways of ensuring that the high pressure is retained for modern showers, for instance, pumps or a higher capacity tank. Again, seek advice from the professionals. There is no point in installing a new shower that has poor pressure because it is a complete waste of money.
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MALAYSIAN HOUSE
New house, Malaysia Role: Architect. Completion in January 2004. Site inspection and photos By examining existing site conditions it is possible to ascertain sun angles, noise, level of vegetation and location and extent of existing infrastructure and services. These also assist clients in formulating their requirements. The client brief was for a family home for a retired Malay couple and their three grown-up daughters.
Existing North East elevation - road access
Existing North East elevation - back door view
Existing South elevation
Existing South West elevation - front door view
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MALAYSIAN HOUSE
Sketch Initially I looked at the justification of the spaces based on the concept, in order to produce the sketch design for discussion with clients. As the house was surrounded by orchard land, and therefore with view on four sides, it was vital to facilitate cross ventilation and daylight by taking advantage of the natural siting.
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MALAYSIAN HOUSE
Ideas sketch We started looking at concepts for laying out the spaces. I think that separating the private spaces using a communal space not only achieves direct line of view to the orchard, it also aids natural cross ventilation. Therefore by keeping the western sun to the utility areas of the house, we maximise heat loss for life in the tropics. The wide verandah which wraps around the western face of the building helps keep cool. The concept is the most important aspect of an architectural project. If the concept does not work, none of the house will work.
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MALAYSIAN HOUSE
Plan The definitive and accurate client presentation plans are called the schematic design. They are developed from sketch design. These may be developed into a more technical version for tender purposes. However, for the client and architect, the schematic shows the relationship between the house and its context.
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OPEN PLAN LIVING

Open plan living is more commonly found in flats and situations where accommodation is tight, for example in London mews houses. The general concept is derived from confined spaces such as houseboats and cruise ships. Open plan need not mean loss of usable space. There are many advantages, for example, it is more economical to heat and to light. However it is more suited to couples without children and the Bridget Jones and Mr Darcys of this world. For many city dwellers, there is no choice but open plan accommodation. No space is truly open. This is because accommodation has to protect the privacy of its users. Bathrooms are nearly always with walls, for obvious reasons such as hygiene and flood prevention! Even an open plan bedroom would still have screens, either permanent or sliding. The most applicable open plan would be living and kitchen areas. In yuppie flats, the users have no time to make three-course meals. When they come home from work they would prefer heat and eat their TV meal and watch digital telly. The open plan living area would enable more than one yuppie to achieve all of this simultaneously. The most important issue about open plan accommodation is "less is more", to borrow Mies van der Rohe's phrase. Space is manipulated by increasing natural light, the most valuable and malleable tool for changing the character of an open plan space. If you look at any art gallery, which is really an open plan space, you will realise that the art is made alive by the distance between the artwork and the quality of light. Increase your light source by having large windows, or if that is not possible, rooflights. If both are impossible, fit good quality light fittings, mirrors and other shiny objects. Align two spaces such that they are on a major axis. Since there is no solid wall interrupting the view, light can travel in a straight line and the room will appear ordered and symmetrical. For your dining area, you should consider folding tables and chairs especially if the space is limited. Use screens to separate spaces if required. They can be in the form of sliding glass doors, bamboo blinds or papery Japanese panels. If you simply have to have walls between spaces, keep them to half-height level. This way, you will not hinder light penetration. Space can also be divided by changing the floor levels. For example, a workstation or home office can be on a raised platform, with two or three steps leading up to it. Bathrooms can be sunk, and bedrooms and dining areas can be raised. When changing floor levels, use all the interconnecting spaces for underfloor storage such that no space is wasted. For example, the steps can be used as drawers, or storage with lift-off tops, and handrails can be completely lined with bookshelves. Steps can store tools or toys. This also helps to keep the space visually interesting. The houseboat has many such features. You can also increase your space physically, if you have the luxury of very high ceilings, by installing a mezzanine floor level. This is one of the most successful design recommendations for open plan living. The mezzanine can be used for numerous purposes, a spare bedroom or home office being the usual. www.BuildingDIY.com
OPEN PLAN LIVING
Generally, as a guide, ceiling heights should be at least 4.1m before you can even consider a mezzanine level. Otherwise you will not be able to stand up. The mezzanine can be connected via a spiral staircase, or a ship's ladder, which is basically a very steep, straight staircase. Finally, keep the open plan interior coordinated. Use compatible materials, such as natural colours and finishes so that the space appears warm and peaceful. Fabrics and paint colours should match, and as a rule, strong colours should only be used as an accent.
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SAVING ENERGY
Energy comes from power stations, and fossil fuels are burnt to generate energy, which in turn releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. These gases cause the greenhouse effect which causes global warming, and ultimately climate change. If we can reduce our energy consumption, the amount of gases can be reduced too and we save energy in the meantime. The most basic and most important way of saving energy is the insulation of your home, including the walls, roof/loft and pipes. Heat loss can be reduced to half with the correct amount of insulation. The house is then warm in winter and cool in summer, and additional means of heating and cooling such as radiators and air conditioners can be minimised. It is actually easier to save energy than to talk about it. It's all commonsense and based on what your gran or mum told you, such as 'don't leave taps running' and 'switch off lights and the telly when you leave the room'. Ten to fifteen percent of your electricity bill is attributable to lighting. Open the curtains or blinds fully to that you can have natural light for longer in the day, especially in summer when you should aim to minimise your energy consumption. It may be worth it to use energy saving light bulbs for example in areas of high lighting usage. The disadvantage of these bulbs is that they may not always work with dimmers so hallways and landings are perfect because they are spaces that do not need dimming. If your boiler is more than 15 years old, a new condensing boiler with the right heat output can save you a third on your heating bills straightaway. Radiators can have thermostatic valves so that each room can be adjusted. Also most boilers have timers too, to control the period of water heating and space heating. Another tip for hot water heating is setting your thermostat at the lowest temperature that will give you the hot water required. This way you are not over-heating excessive amounts of water. Get rid of all dripping taps as soon as you can. They waste almost a hundred litres of water per week. Imagine that quantity as a hundred bottles of those 1 litre Coke bottles. You could have a party. A fast shower lasting no more than two minutes (!) uses only a third of water in a bath. Water your garden with greywater (water from baths) or collecting rainwater using a water butt, adapted to suit your downpipes. Choose and use energy-efficient appliances, if you are replacing your existing ones, with those rated 'A'. For example, a separate oven and hob always work out more expensive, even though convenient, because they count as two appliances. Another example: if you have an Aga that is turned off in the summer, you will still need a back-up oven and hob. Lastly, if you are looking to live somewhere new or designing a new home, choose to live in a sustainable building.
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SAVING ENERGY
What is sustainable architecture? It is architecture based on the following principles: Site layout - buildings are facing the sun to reduce energy costs Building design - materials used, insulation, double glazing, natural ventilation - such as using timber that is renewable (regrown) or Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) approved. Tropical and African hardwoods are to be avoided. uPVC is a no-no: the production and disposal of which releases 6 of the 15 most hazardous chemicals listed by European governments for priority elimination. Heating, lighting, ventilation systems. Water use in construction and use - to be minimal, ie. building is constructed off-site, plus water-saving features for taps, WCs, showers. Local, renewable or recycled sourced materials. The less distance the material has to travel to come to you, the less time, money, energy you are wasting. So goodbye to Chinese granite. Renewable energy such as wind, solar, biofuel. Transportation - roads, use of cycles. Cut down on your commuting and save yourself time, money and energy. Waste and recycling strategy. Rainwater harvesting, as previously described.
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SUMMERHOUSES
If you are lucky enough to have a large garden, you can enjoy the comfort and flexibility of a summer house. It is one of the most viable options for increasing space without moving or extending. It is also less stressful as it is outside the house. The summer house is a stand alone, detached structure in your garden which means you will not need to live with plastic sheeting, tinny radio music or plywood boarding while waiting for (or enduring) builders to complete an extension. As the structure is completely new, it is also much quicker to build. In fact most summerhouse manufacturers build the entire building as a flatpack construction so that it is just assembled on site. The summerhouse is a timeless favourite with people such as artists and writers. Penny Faith, London author of two books, Hello Mr Magpie and From a Past life, is a novelist who works from her summerhouse. 'One of the best things about a summerhouse is that it feels like going to work somewhere else, rather than at home,' she says. Her advice for people like artists and writers who are considering building a summerhouse is that they have to think carefully what its purpose would be, and what space they actually require and can afford. 'You should also decide what kind of lighting you need,' Penny says. In effect the summerhouse is a mini-house, and its lighting is affected by its siting and orientation, just like any building. Penny's summerhouse is designed with her in mind. It is painted in dream-like Caribbean colours both inside and out and she has decorated the interior with prints of palm trees and decorative bird cages. It is an inspiring space that really feels like you've made a journey somewhere else. There are also two sofas for when her creative writing students come around and read out their work. Outside, a covered timber painted verandah the full width of the building gives the summerhouse that Somerset Maugham quality. On a clear evening, one can toss one's straw hat aside, sit in a white wicker chair scribbling a new chapter in a leatherbound notebook and fantasise about Whisky stengahs amidst orchids and birds of paradise. And now the reality. You should enquire with your local authority regarding what is allowable, especially if you live in a Conservation area. There are some general guidelines such as it should not be more than 50 cubic metres or within 5 m of the house. It cannot occupy more than 50% of the garden or be more than 3 m high (flat roof) or 4 m high (pitched roof). If you make this sort of enquiry first, it will save you a lot of trouble and waste of time later on. Once you've determined what is allowable, you may contact a designer or a summerhouse supplier. If it is a bespoke structure you may like to contact an architect. You need to consider where you would like your power points and lighting, for instance. Running water from the mains will not be easily achieved without the protocol and written consents from Thames Water. This would make the project very expensive and and not to mention time-consuming. This is because mains connection makes the shed a proper habitable room. But if you are an artist you will probably need water supply, and you can achieve this via a bib cock tap (external tap) www.BuildingDIY.com
SUMMERHOUSES
from anywhere outside the summerhouse. You may already have a tap on the outside of the back of your house, for instance. Good security is also a key point. There is no reason why you shouldn't use 5-lever locks for top security, and high quality doors and windows. Good security also makes the building more valuable. Penny uses a laptop which she takes to and from the house every day (on her oneminute commute to work) so as not to leave it in the summerhouse. Very important if you have written a novel!
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TEN ALTERNATIVE
LIVING IDEAS
In between holiday periods this summer, you may like to consider some ideas in which you can improve the way and the style in which you live. 1 If you have the space, you can create a room within a room, just for dressing. Dressing areas are often found in larger bedrooms like loft bedrooms. In this way, the bedroom can be kept relaxed and neat, while clothes chaos can be confined to the walk-in wardrobes 2 Choose wash basins with tops, or simply add a under basin cabinet to your existing basin. You'll find it much easier to tidy bathroom things and store bottles and loo rolls, especially in a small bathroom where there is always the risk that toothbrush or paste may fall into the loo. 3 Get and electrician to install more lights where it's needed, such as in the kitchen and bathroom. 4 Get solar powered water heating, if you have at least one pitch of your roof facing south. It's expensive to install but it's worth it in the long run. The heating system can spply 50% of hot water use. You can save 50 to 100 per year on your bills. 5 Treat wood floors to varnish. They will be slick, revitalised and look new again. Similarly, get your carpets cleaned. Often the entire room looks different with clean carpet - you don't need to change the carpet in fact. 6 Get your loft insulated. It is the easiest and cheapest way of saving energy. The thicker the material (at about 250mm thick) the greater the saving. Wool is the best insulation, because it is eco-friendly and natural, but it is the most expensive and it's like making your house wear a jumper. 7 Cut flowers and pot plants look fantastic indoors during summer, due to the quality and quantity of light. A beautiful display brings a pleasant ambience to any room, old or new. Also, there are plants particularly good at removing pollutants out of the air. For example, the spider plant removes formaldehyde. Water your plants with greywater (eg water from baths). 8 Get your bedhead covered in new upholstery material. This will make it more comfortable to stay up late and watch telly or staying in bed longer on weekend mornings. The padding should be thick enough to be comfortable when leant against, like being on the furthest back seat of a bus. 9 Paint an old piece of furniture, such as a chair or a wardrobe, and use it for something else. For example the painted chair could be a bedside table in a spare room, and the wardrobe could be fitted with shelves for filings and office stuff. 10 Go out more. www.BuildingDIY.com
OUT ON THE TILES

Marble marquetry in old house being refurbished
Tiles have been around as long as people have been baking bread. Tiles baked in the kiln were used as a basic building material and had a variety of applications, from roofing to flooring. Nowadays, tiles are mostly used in kitchens and bathrooms due to the fact that tiles are hard-wearing and waterproof. The most hardwearing and impervious of all tiles is the glazed ceramic tile. They are almost indestructible; a point to note when having them removed. They are mass-produced and easily obtainable in such a variety of colour, texture and size that you are not really limited by anything but time. You can certainly find one to suit your budget. They are unfortunately slippery when wet and cold to the touch. The grout can be unhygienic as it discolours or stains in time. Underfloor heating can be used to counteract the effect of cold tiles but could be an inefficient way of heating the room. Glazed ceramic tiles are popularly used for walls due to the thin grouting and therefore ease of cleaning. As they are also heat resistant, they are suitable for cooking areas. The key to using glazed ceramic wall tiles is colour. Darker colours are less hardwearing. This www.BuildingDIY.com
OUT ON THE TILES
is because they contrast more with the grout lines, and darker colours show up irregularities and damage more. Too much wall tiling can look offensive and detract from the character of a room. Wall tiling should be used as an accent in a practical area.
Hand-made Balinese tiles
The unglazed ceramic tile could be used for floors in wet areas such as bathrooms and swimming pools. They provide slip resistance and tend to be less garish. They may be used for a larger expanse of floor area. Unglazed tiles may require sealing so that they would not stain easily. Terracotta tiles are warmer than stone and come in a variety of interesting shapes (such as hexagonal and rectangular) but have to be sealed to be waterproof and stain-resistant. Old or reclaimed tiles have a natural beauty, but are quite hard to match. New terracotta tiles, which although look dull due to their uniformity, will acquire the aged patina in time if you have the patience. Mosaics were fashionable with the Romans, who used ornate marble mosaic decoratively. Today's glass mosaic tiles, when used creatively, add character and appeal not just to a surface but to a room. They can be incorporated into the overall interior design. They are hard to lay if the surface is not perfectly level, but it is very rewarding to see a completely well-laid mosaic pattern. Mosaic tiles are very popular in the bathroom, but due to the hard nature of London water, the grout can harbour soap, limescale and dirt. An entire room tiled in mosaic can look municipal. Once again, less is more. Natural stone tiles such as limestone, marble and granite are the most expensive types of tiles. They have the timeless quality of excellence and glamour. They are also low maintenance and hardwearing and their natural beauty is enhanced by age. Marble and limestone tend to stain, so they would need to be sealed. All stone flooring is cold to the touch, therefore many people would consider underfloor heating. Granite and marble are slippery when wet, but you could have alternate finishes like honed or waterjet finish rather than a polished finish. You would need to make sure that the floor is strong enough to take the loading. Your architect or marble supplier can advise you before you purchase your stone flooring. Slate has always been a bone of contention. Although it gives the impression of good colour variation, the rough surface makes it hard to lay. Even the smooth finish tends to be slightly textured, therefore hard to clean. Having said that, slate is long wearing if you don't mind the ingrained dirt. The trend at the moment is for glass tiles, which come in many wonderful colours and sizes. The rules for wearing see-through clothes and matching underwear would apply: make sure the adhesive is laid well and is in a compatible colour. The tiles are quite thick so they could be used for the floor as well as the walls. The simple rule when tile shopping is that large rooms suit large plain tiles and small rooms www.BuildingDIY.com
OUT ON THE TILES
suit small patterned tiles. If you only have small rooms to tile, don't despair. The good news is that there is currently a craze for everything ethnic and global. Think Hideous Kinky in a Smeg kitchen. Handmade tiles, such as Moroccan or Spanish, are very popular for celebrating pure geometry and colour. Marble mosaics, laid in Greco-Roman style, are also painfully fashionable, so there is never a better time to design your own unique flooring pattern. See the Bathrooms and Tiles articles for more tiles pictures
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WINDOWS
Traditionally, sliding timber sash windows in period properties were painted all sorts of colours. They are now usually painted white. The sash window is the most popular and practical form of glazing. Firstly, you can allow ventilation without opening the entire window. With added security bolts, you can lock the window in position for continuous ventilation. Secondly, you can easily escape when there is a fire because the half the window area can open fully. The minimum opening size that people can climb through is 850mm high by Skylights 500 mm wide. This may seem generous, but bear in mind that uPVC double-glazed windows have pivoting scissor hinges, which reduce the effective window opening size. Also, they project out and are less secure. If you have uPVC windows, which have small opening areas, for example, large fixed panel below and small openable fanlight panel above, it will be impossible to escape during a fire. It is also very difficult to break the glass of a sealed double-glazed unit unless you are incredibly strong. Safety is the most important aspect of window design. In French windows or glazing within 800mm up from floor level, the glass will need to be safety glass. Laminated glass is the most secure of safety glass against intruders. It is made by laminating two panes of double-glazing with a clear plastic interlayer. The glass will crack without any sharp edges. Toughened glass is less secure because it shatters into small pieces, which can be knocked through afterwards. Older properties are draughty. If you have old windows, they will need renovating. If they are too damaged, you can replace them. New windows would have to comply with British Standards and Building Regulations Part N - Glazing - safety in relation to impact, opening and cleaning, and Part F - Ventilation. You will need to check with the council if you require any permission to replace your windows, because if www.BuildingDIY.com
WINDOWS
you are in a Conservation Area, you will need Conservation Area consent first. Bay windows are popular because they allow a lot of daylight. They are now notorious because of the ignorance of the uPVC window replacement industry. Traditional timber bay windows contain timber posts, which form the structure of the bay. When these are removed, there is nothing to support the opening. UPVC windows are not structural, so what happens is the window fails under the load of the brickwork above, and will collapse with time. If you look carefully at properties with uPVC bay windows, take note of the sagging of the window opening. If you must have uPVC bay windows, always remember that structural support is necessary.
Window with seat and shelves
Steel windows are often seen in architecture of the Thirties and Forties, and many warehouses. There are still companies which manufacture them so replacement is costly but not difficult. Casement windows are preferable for the same escape reasons. The traditional British access to the garden is via a solid timber door. The only view is via the cat flap. The trend is now to widen the opening of the door, and to replace the solid door with full length windows. They give the illusion of space just through abundant daylight and view of the garden. This is a continental idea hence the term French windows. There is now the very modern term "window wall" which is essentially a glass wall to allow the garden to be fully appreciated. If your window is deep, you can have window seats built in. These can have toys or bedding in them, so space is not wasted. A good interior designer can find creative ways of addressing and dressing your windows (especially if the view is not good).
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BUILDINGDIY WITH IVY NGEOW ARCHITECTS INSIDER TIPS BOOK

Articles from Ivy Ngeow Architects

Beech veneer walk-through cupboard Toe operated lower drawers

Mirrors with concealed medicine cabinet

Art Deco bath

NOT JUST FOR PLANTS

Articles from Ivy Ngeow Architects

Gleneagles cafe in conservatory style extension

NOT JUST FOR PLANTS

HOME EXTENSIONS INCL. BASEMENTS

Conservatory at rear of house, retaining original wall

HOME EXTENSIONS INCL. BASEMENTS

FURNISHED FOR GOOD

FURNISHED FOR GOOD

GARAGE AS SCULPTURE STUDIO

GIVING NEW LIFE TO AN OLD HOUSE

GIVING NEW LIFE TO AN OLD HOUSE

GIVING NEW LIFE TO AN OLD HOUSE

GOING UP IN THE WORLD

Articles from Ivy Ngeow Architects

GOING UP IN THE WORLD

GOING UP IN THE WORLD

GOING UP IN THE WORLD

Articles from Ivy Ngeow Architects

GOING UP IN THE WORLD

Existing North East elevation - road access

Existing North East elevation - back door view

Existing South elevation

Existing South West elevation - front door view

OPEN PLAN LIVING

OPEN PLAN LIVING

Articles from Ivy Ngeow Architects

OUT ON THE TILES

Marble marquetry in old house being refurbished

OUT ON THE TILES

OUT ON THE TILES

Window with seat and shelves

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