Self-Builders’ Own Stories
Self-Builders’ Own Stories is an opportunity to hear from people who have already completed a self-build or renovation project. Hear real self-builders and renovators talking about how they went about creating the home of their dreams. Learn from their mistakes, hear their top tips and ask them questions about their experience. Take a look at 3 projects discussed at Build It Live Bicester 2018. Presentations available each day in the Workshop Theatre at Build It Live.
“We built a package home on the Graven Hill development”
With three self-builds and a major renovation behind them, Maggie and Simon Kirkman aren’t newcomers to creating a bespoke home from scratch. Having completed their last house 10 years ago, they were looking for a new project, but struggled to find reasonably priced land in their home town of Milton Keynes. So, after learning about Graven Hill, they were excited about the opportunity it offered. The couple have worked with package home supplier Dan-Wood to create their new energy-efficient property, reworking the plans of one of the company’s standard designs.
“We designed an award-winning sustainable Passivhaus self-build home”
Paul and Belinda Wilson built their ideal Passivhaus home in Bedfordshire, with the help of MBC Timber Frame, after their planning application was initially refused. They wanted to create a special, energy-efficient house that preserved the view of their stunning acre garden.
With 35 years of construction experience, Paul decided to put together a package of contractors himself. This allowed him to closely overlook the whole operation and stick to schedule & budget. Remarkably, the timber frame structure took only 4 days to erect and fits in beautiful with its surroundings. Today they live in a modern, light & spacious home that has a cosy feel.
*Winner of the Bedfordshire Design and Craftsmanship Awards 2017 – Sustainability Category
“We renovated a tired detached house into a classy modern home”
When Paul and Nikki Blunden embarked on transforming an uninspiring detached property in Berkshire, they realised there might be a few obstacles. With the plot size and location that initially attracted them, lapd architects helped to realise their dream home.
With unforeseen rot and soakaways adding to their initial budget, as well as the risk of the shell of the house collapsing to accomplish their open-plan living vision, there was plenty of room for error. Despite the challenges and inevitable stress, The Blundens achieved their goal facilitated with the construction of steelworks. The brick, block and steel frame model retains the period character of the property while the inside vision is light and spacious, giving it a contemporary & classy feel.
