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OCEAN DRIVECatherine and Adas Nicholson have replaced

a beach-side bungalow with a ‘forever’ home which takes every opportunity to

make the most of the sea viewsWords: Claire Lloyd Photography: Alistair Nicholls

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Project Notes

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Capturing the Views

Fabulous glazing with minimal framework was key to capturing those enviable beach views; it was also one of the couple’s largest expenses and one that they were not prepared to com-promise on. “We really splashed out with the glass. We pushed it to the maximum spec we could afford, and selected the largest panels of glass that we could get into the house by hand (a crane would have increased the costs),” says Catherine. (Note the built-in recessed tracks which will allow the couple to add curtains or blinds should they wish to in the future.)

Homeowners Adas and Catherine NicholsonProject Contemporary self-buildLocation West SussexBuild time Jun 2014 – May 2015Size 211m2 + 38m2 retained garageHouse cost £450,000 Build cost £320,000 (£1,517/m2)Value Around £1.5million

SUPPLIERS

Architect ABIR Architects: abir.co.uk; 01273 724384Main contractor Roots Construction: rootsconstruction.co.ukStructural engineer IE Structural EngineersQuantity surveyor RLF Brighton: rlf.co.ukEnvironmental consultant Delta Green: deltagreen.co.ukICF (insulating concrete formwork) Durisol: durisoluk.comGlazing IQ Glass: iqglassuk.comMicrotopping wall and floor screed supplied by Ideal Work: microtopping.it/en

ARCHITECT’S VIEW

Giles Ings of ABIR Architects: “Catherine and Adash had a very strong brief; in many ways, it was driven by how they live. They have young children and a strong con-nection with the sea. They love kitesurfing, too; in the morning, Adas grabs his kit and wetsuit. On his return, he didn’t want to be walking through the house dripping wet, so the ‘wet area’ (shower and utility) is contained to one side of the floorplan, by an exterior door.

“The couple also wanted to live upstairs, to take advan-tage of the views, with the bedrooms downstairs. The first floor kitchen, study and toilet are positioned to the north, street-facing elevation, with the main living space enjoying the best views and southerly aspect.

“It’s a unique home designed specifically for this family and for this location — the pebbles for the gabions, for instance, were chosen to match the beach. It couldn’t belong anywhere else.

“One key piece of advice I’d pass on to self-builders is to ensure you keep one beautiful architectural feature; don’t let this idea be watered down. The stone gabion walls and glazing were so important to the design here.”

BUILD TIMELINE

Sep 12 ABIR Architects first approachedAug 13 ABIR Architects appointedFeb 14 Planning permission granted for new houseJun 14 Build commencedMay 15 Couple moved into their new home. (Landscap-ing and recladding on retained garage ongoing)

Ground Floor

First Floor

Living Dining

Kitchen

Balcony

Playroom

Master Bedroom Bedroom Bedroom

Bathroom

En suite

Utility

Dressing

Bedroom

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The Balcony

Having lived in the former bungalow on site for a number of years, the couple were familiar with the harsh marine environ-ment their new house would have to withstand. As such, they opted for a south-easterly balcony. This space captures the best of the sunlight but is also sheltered from the prevailing westerly wind. (The cantilevered glass and timber-clad structure juts out, to shelter the balcony further from the elements.) The positioning of the balcony to the side of the floorplan also means the family can enjoy clear, uninterrupted views of the sea from the main living space.

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beach, the glass is fluid and reflects the sea, and the timber, which is silvering off now, is like driftwood,” smiles Adas.

“Giles came up with the materials. We wanted timeless materials that would anchor the build-ing to the beach. We fired our ideas at him and he came up with a package which ticked all the boxes — he brought it all together.”

The angular form of the beach-facing eleva-tion, while adding architectural interest, was again a response to a set of very site-specific issues. “The prevailing wind is from the west,” begins Catherine. “In order to make the best of the sun and to avoid the wind, locating the balcony to the south-east was the best decision for us.” This elevation projects out to further shelter this balcony. To the west, meanwhile, wrap-around glazing allows the family to enjoy glimpses down the beach and winter sunsets.

Sticking to BudgetForward planning was a key part of the success of this project. “A quantity surveyor was consulted at the design stage, and the builder, Tim Martin (who lives on the same street), also got involved at a very early stage,” explains Adas. “By the time we came to knock down the bungalow, we were confident as we could be that we could afford to build this house,” adds Catherine.

The couple kept a close eye on funds throughout the 10-month build. “Essen-

tially we had contingencies for everything,” says Catherine. They invested considerably in the fabric of the building, particularly in elements such as the glazing, with a view to creating a structure that would stand the test of time. In turn, the interior scheme was, the couple admit “budget driven”, but it’s something they look for-ward to enhancing and adding to in the future. “We’ve only just finished the master bedroom en suite. It was a luxury rather than a ‘must have’. We waited until we had enough money to finish that off,” says Catherine.

The end result is an enviable place to raise a family. “I feel so lucky to be living in this house — everything about it makes me smile,” says Adas. “I still get a thrill when I walk upstairs to this view. It’s different every day; it’s the backdrop of our family life,” concludes Catherine.

he stroll along the Shoreham-by-Sea board-walk is anything but boring. To one side lies the pebbled beach and distant horizon over the choppy English Channel, to the other, a line up of individual homes — to say the vernacular style is varied would be an understatement. Nestled among this long row is a new house which both blends with the beachscape but also has the capacity to stop you in your tracks.

It’s where Catherine and Adas Nicholson and their two children call home; a forever home designed and built to take in the views and to function precisely around this family’s lifestyle.

The Nicholsons’ self-build journey began almost a decade ago when they purchased a bungalow in this enviable spot, with a view to ‘doing it up’. “We originally wanted to paint a few walls and replace the windows,” begins Catherine. “We then thought we’d convert the loft. This lead to the idea of adding another storey in order to make the most of the views.”

Once the Nicholsons began to discuss their ideas with a few architects, it soon became apparent that knocking down and replacing the bungalow would prove a more cost-effective and practical solution to achieving the home they really wanted. The couple admit, howev-er, that choosing the right architect to deliver their dream home and adhere to a budget of

T£320,000, was a long process. They decided on Giles Ings of ABIR Architects. “He just got it,” reflects Catherine.

A Design Influenced by LocationThe house has arguably become part of a new tradition of contextualism — in broad terms, architectural cues are drawn from the location, the physical characteristics of the site, and the history and vernacular of the area. During the judges’ visit, architect Giles leads us down the beach to a point where the gabion walls are no longer visible; the semi-transparent first floor appears to sit on the beach, as if a ship out to sea. The exterior cladding choices are key ingre-dients which tie this new build so strongly into its surroundings (and stand up to harsh marine conditions to boot). “The pebbles resemble the

“I feel so lucky to be living in this house: everything about it makes me smile”

Family Space

Key to the Nicholsons’ brief was an open plan living space at first floor level in order to make the most of the views. The study, kitchen and playroom have been positioned to the north side to allow the living and dining area to enjoy uninterrupted views to the south over the beach. A partial wall creates division between the kitchen and the play area (and enables toys to be tucked away from view). This space is flexible enough to be put to another use (a separate dining space or snug, for instance) as the children grow up. ➤

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The Knowledge: Gabion Wall Cladding

The Staircase

Birch-faced ply – used to clad the staircase (left) – has been intro-duced throughout the interiors to create a sense of flow; it’s a rel-atively inexpensive material that allowed the couple to achieve a minimalist interior scheme on a budget. The material has also been used to create the kitchen units and to clad the sanitary-ware in the family bathroom (below). The staircase sits just behind the front door and leads up to the living area.

Family Bathroom

Instead of using up valuable wall space and installing privacy glass, the family bathroom, which sits on the ground floor, road-facing elevation, is windowless. Giles designed in a rooflight above the bath to drop natural light into the room. The floor finish, a dyed and polished screed, has also been used on the bathroom walls to provide a water-resistant finish. “It was much better value than tiles,” says Catherine.

A gabion is a metal cage or basket typically filled with rocks or pebbles, and often employed as a retaining wall or as a form of sea defence; when it comes to domestic projects, gabions are more often seen within a landscaping scheme — not as a wall cladding. The gabions here, which were specifically designed to contain pebbles which matched those on the beach, were a key part of architect Giles’ design. “We fell in love with the gabion walls,” begins Catherine,

“but knew it would be one of the pricer elements of the build. This isn’t a product you source off the shelf.” The ground floor is constructed in Durisol, an ICF (insulated concrete formwork) which uses woodcrete –

a mix of wood and concrete – as its formwork. The builder, Tim Martin of Roots Construction, is well-versed in this construction system, but the system also provided a solid backbone against which the gabions could be fixed. A steel manufacturer prototyped and then manufactured the stainless steel cages.

Finding the pebbles to fill the cages was another hurdle; they couldn’t be sourced from the adjacent beach. “Although we had thought about taking a bucket of pebbles each night!” laughs Catherine. “They were in-stead dredged from Hastings, which is around 30 miles from here. The pebbles came in an array of sizes, so the builders had to sift through the pile to find pebbles of a similar size. It was a real labour of love.” H

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JUDGE’S VIEW: Architect Darren Bray “I though this house was very well conceived and is incredibly contextual. It stands out in this location purely because it sits so well within the landscape. There are many examples in locations like this where a building has no real connection to its unique setting and site, and does not engage with the landscape. But this house hits those notes so well — so big hats off to the architects on this house.

“The pebble gabions are unique as they are not traditional gabions and have been developed to save money, while achieving the overall aesthetic.

“This house is a great example of client, architect and contractor collaboration, too. It demonstrates how carefully and cleverly allo-cating sums of money to the key components will make a difference, either in the performance or overall aesthetic of the house. It’s also a fantastic example of how to deliver a self-build project on a very tight budget. If you look at this as a long-term investment in this location, then it just shows that by committing to build your own house, you can not only change your lifestyle, but it will also prove to be a very good financial investment.

“I think we forget how houses and architecture can change and im-prove our lifestyle, and benefit our health and wellbeing. Well, I think this project is right up there — I would love to wake up here every morning and start the day with a swim in the sea!” H