Since joining LBA in 2017, I’ve been fortunate enough to work on a multitude of exciting, dynamic projects, both built, and others yet to come to fruition. My favourite project however is that of the conversion of a former vintage car garage into two dwellings at Belgrave Mews. Everything about the project provided so much excitement from the earliest stages. One of the primary reasons why I became an architect was to repair and transform existing, perhaps sometimes dilapidated structures into a new lease of life, with clear and unashamed contemporary interventions. So this charming stone property, just out with Edinburgh’s Dean Village was a hidden gem, and the walks to site weren’t too bad either!

We were fortunate enough to have a client who shared our vision of a sensitive restoration, celebrating the existing features. The most celebrated feature perhaps is that of the existing ground floor garage door openings. Given the property’s north facing frontage, we felt it was vitally important to insert as much glazing into this elevation and the existing openings as possible to maximise internal natural daylight levels. To celebrate the openings, we designed a steel frame which frames each opening and acts as a clear delineation between the old and the new. Steel was selected as a reference to the garage’s former industrial past, which before this, would likely have been used as a stable barn. In each opening, vertical timbers provide privacy for the ground floor openings. These timbers are a unique detail that took many hours detailing and collaborations with other consultants, which makes the final outcome all the more satisfying.

Evidence of the dwellings’ former stable barn use is retained within the aesthetic, the first floor ‘bale window’ in which hay bales would have been tossed from into carts below, has been retained as well as the steel arm above the opening, used to hoist large items into the barn. Internally, the roof ties were fully treated for wood rot and lightly cleaned to present a natural blonde colour to the existing timbers. This is one of the elements I particularly love about working with existing buildings, you can plan as much as you want, but you will always find hidden details or uncovered gems like this, meaning in other cases, you have to be adaptable to alter the design, or incorporate said elements. However, in the Mews, it was easy – leave the ties unfinished, protected against rotting only. These ties are fully exposed within the properties and allow for the adjustable light fittings to be fixed to. Up lighting of the cathedral structure over the bail window in the large first floor open plan living area was also provided. New openings to the first floor provide plenty of light to the contemporary material palette. The project proved particularly successful in gaining space where any opportunity arose.