Grand Designs – Woodbridge Revisit

We went back to the Woodbridge build last night, the story began six years ago when Lucie Fairweather and Nat McBride set out to build an affordable eco home for their family. However before the project got off the ground the couple discovered that Nat had cancer and within a few months had passed away.

However not discouraged by the loss of her husband, Lucie decided to carry on with the project with the support of family and friends and build the dream home the couple had envisioned. There were huge demands on widow Lucie who was now a single working mum who not only had to support her family but also work on the new home.

They set out to disprove misconceptions of eco houses at the time, with a modern and contemporary build which also has to fit into the tight planning restrictions of the area. The home had to be multipurpose for the family to live and work in, making the most out of the small site. The home was designed to be quite open planned and light as well as being functional for their two children.

For many people delays and problems come from building issues, not the death of your spouse, however with Lucie choosing to carry on shows, the determination which she had throughout the build process. There were some changes from the original design, to fit the new reduced budget, however Lucie did still manage to salvage a lot of the eco designs and keep costs down.

When revisiting this modern and eco build, we find that Lucie still loves the overall look of the home. The home shows how functional it is with the rooms changing use over the years to fit the families changing needs. However the heart of the home is still used the same.

The modern and light bathroom, featured a simple and seamless design with white tilling, interlaced with coloured lines from the walls and down the side of the bath and across the floor. Villeroy and Bock stock a fantastic range of brightly coloured tile which you can use to re-create a similar look, with colours of your choice.

Simple toilet, bath and sink in white. If you like the tilled bath idea, fit a Roca Contesa ECO Steel bath 1700 x 700mm bath with cladding around which you can tile. We also stock, beautiful and simple Grohe taps which offer the same great style found in this bathroom. For more ideas, seen in the show and others, please check out our Grand Designs page.

 For more Grand Designs Inspiration, check out our Pinterest Featured on: Grand Designs board.