Transformation of 18th century cottage earns award for architect
It looked ready for demolition when they bought it but the transformation of an 18th century cottage has led to national recognition for an architect.
Camilla Monk and her husband Simon have spent four years re-shaping their home, Mount Pleasant, in Myddle, with the results scooping the award for 'best interior' from a major industry publication.
Camilla, 38, who has run her own architectural design business ARCHITECTURE:Ventures for the past nine years, took on the task of redesigning the house to create the perfect home for her, Simon and their four children.
The £120,000 project has been recognised in the Daily Telegraph Homebuilding & Renovating Awards 2020, with Camilla saying it showed how people could draw out the potential of their own home.
The award recognises the architectural interiors created at the house rather than pure interior design skill.
The transformation involved opening up a double height space in the kitchen, exposing old elm beams, opening up window spaces to "flood the house with light", and re-shaping the rear facade of the house.
The result has delivered rooms for the family to relax and live their lives while giving a perfect view over some of the county's most beautiful landscapes.
Camilla explained how on first sight the house looked ready to be knocked down and rebuilt.
She said: "It was a demolition plot that looked absolutely appalling, it had nothing going for it apart from the views which are outstanding.
"We have completely transformed a family home and were able to retain the existing structure. Once we pulled back the layers we were able to reveal the beautiful structure of the building."
Camilla said the idea had been to create a home that worked for the family.
She said: "We wanted to bring in as much natural light as possible, to open up the rear of the house to the views where you can see right out to Snowdonia and Rodney's Pillar – where we were engaged.
"The idea was to create a family home so the layout was child-centric and the rooms flowed together with a mix of utility space, private space and public space, so the way you live as a family is not compromised when you have guests."
Camilla said she was proud the work had been recognised and hoped other people would see the opportunities for making the most of their own homes without relying on major extension work to achieve their aims.
She said: "I am most proud of the fact we have achieved a family home we could never have afforded if we had simply bought it already finished.
"I think that our hard work has been recognised at a high level with a national award is quite an accolade. We are hard workers but it is so nice to have that hard work recognised."
She added: "People have a lot more space in their homes than they think. The assumption from my clients is they often need to build an extension, but if you analyse the house you often see there is something wrong with the flow that can be solved without having to break ground at all."
