Christie House, Brighton

Budget: £250,000
Completion due: December 2011

Refurbishment and front first floor extension to 70s detached house

This property was initially built as a single storey dwelling. Side extensions and first floor additions were introduced over the years, but these appear to be simply tacked on without treating the design as a whole. Our brief was to bring together the different elements in a coordinated approach. In the centre of this almost square plan, we created a centralised hall and grand stair to help distribute light down through rooflights into the new open plan ground floor areas. We extended over the existing front full length balcony to gain additional first floor space.

We also introduced modern, geometric features such as curved and sloping walls, ceiling design features and glass link bridges. In addition, we strengthened the relationship between the interior of the house and garden by introducing large rear glass doors and a rear raised, first floor garden terrace, cut into the steep slope at the rear of the property. We are working with a landscape designer to create a seamless flow between outside and inside.