This page showcases a few of the projects that I have worked on.
Some have been built, and some have only made it to sketch design stage.
They have all been good projects to work on, and I have learnt something from every single one of them!
A live link with my Facebook posts is also below, showcasing projects I have worked on, as well other articles of interest.
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Another Narrow house, this time a local Heritage place with a shared wall, so we could not do anything too visible from the street.![]()
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Fortunately, it was a narrow block, with a carport wall obscuring some of the house, giving us a bit of leeway in the design.![]()
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Space for a growing family is again the main issue, whist maintaining the heritage integrity, and also working to provide useable spaces on a narrow block.![]()
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The rear lean-to is removed, with this space now becoming a main bedroom with WIR and ensuite.![]()
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A narrow courtyard with garden helps to separate the new from the existing, with glazing on all sides to help make the building appear larger.![]()
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The rear extension houses the kitchen/living/dining space, as well as a small deck with BBQ facilities.![]()
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Tall glazing around the extension helps it seem open and bright, with skylights over the kitchen and living to help add light to this space.![]()
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We also carried some preliminary shadow studies to see how light may interact with the new extension at various times of the year.
Nesbit Castle in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe is the youngest castle that I have done, by far.![]()
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In the early 1900’s, Theodore Holdengarde founded a construction company, which went on to be quite successful.![]()
This allowed him to purchase 100 acres of land outside of Bulawayo and work on his dream, the construction of a gothic medieval castle in the middle of Africa.![]()
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During the week he ran his construction business, and on weekends he built the castle, bit by bit.![]()
However, there were no plans, only what was in his mind, so he sometimes demolished work and then rebuilt it.![]()
His dream was to be as authentic as possible, so no running water, flushing toilets, or electricity!![]()
When he passed away in 1948, his wife had these amenities installed.![]()
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Unfortunately, in the ensuing years it fell into disuse and part of it was even burnt down by squatters.![]()
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In 1988 it was sold to Digby Nesbitt, and it was a shabby, damp, rain affected ruin.![]()
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Nesbitt fell in love with the castle, but his family advised that he demolish the castle and build something new.![]()
He chose to renovate and repair it, and discovered rooms no-one knew existed as the corridors were so narrow and the walls had collapsed in.![]()
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Nesbitt Castle was opened in 1990 after 2 years of hard work to restore the castle, and it now sits a boutique hotel in Bulawayo.![]()
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Nesbitt Castle closed its doors late last year to begin a series of renovations and extension to begin a new chapter in its life.
You have an old narrow house, but you have young ones on the way. ![]()
How do you make your house work better for you. ![]()
Do you extend/renovate, or both?![]()
Well, how about both.![]()
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With this house we added a WIR to the front bedroom; converted the living room into another bedroom, with the kitchen becoming the ensuite and WIR; the bathroom/laundry renovated and updated to be a single larger bathroom.![]()
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And at the back we added new living spaces, with a laundry/storage area to the side, and a new tiled alfresco coming out from the living area.![]()
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The extension consists of James Hardie Axon painted white with dark trims and window framing.
An external elevation is a side view of the building, typically viewed from the four compass points.![]()
It can show the wall type (Brick/metal/other) and its colour.![]()
It can also show ceiling heights, eave heights, roof heights, where doors and windows are located and their heights and colours.![]()
It can also show site levels, external stairs, retaining walls, chimneys, and any other items that may need to be shown.