Newgale Cliff Side Home
Triple Award Winning cliff side eco-dwelling
Winner of the 2021 Novum Design Award (Golden Level).
International Property Awards (2020-21) Best New Home in Wales and 5 Star Level Award.
Winner of the 2021 LABC Building Excellence Award (Regional Winner) Best Residential Property in Wales
The re-development of the remains of an existing ruined building into a new single, modern eco-dwelling incorporating the existing habitats into the design with a native wildflower green roof and a native coastal flowerbed.
The design evolved wanting to incorporate aspects of Pembrokeshire traditional architecture, the sea, shape of the hillside and maximizing on solar gain and daylighting into to the home and garden.
The signature undulating curved wave roof was chosen to sit into the landscape and from the elevated valley sides, Coastal Path and Penycwm village look naturally like part of the valley side. The roof aimed to feel like a continuation of the hillside slope, like part of the topography has hinged up to reveal the secret house.
The new home was to create an intrigue and reward; with capturing and framing the panoramic coastal views with the intelligent use of fenestrations. The design was to create a ‘journey’ through the property, a journey which leads the traveller naturally though the home to a final resting or destination. At the journey’s conclusion, a reward was to be waiting. This reward wanted to a framed view of the dynamic and living rugged Welsh coastline, crashing waves and ever-changing sky.
The sight and sound expanse of sea is a constant presence, a perception heightened by the sound of waves breaking onto the cobble beach when there is sufficient wind to raise the swell and apparent in short, medium and long distant views. The new dwelling had to respect but also ‘speak to’ its undulating surroundings.
Highly sustainable and energy efficient home, state of the art security, in-home smart control system, renewable technology, asap, mhvr.
The 3 large buttresses are based on the traditional Welsh vernacular “chimney fawr” and serve as visual ‘standing stone book ends’ to break the long verticals of glass walls. These buttresses serve as chimneys for two feature log burners and a folly stack which hides a secrete downpipe from the roof.
A sense of harmony between natural and manmade elements is one of the hallmarks of modern architectural design. Seawave roofs — also known as oceanwave or simply wave roofs — mimic the flowing, coursed waves of the ocean to create a naturally calming and utterly unique visual impression.
Seawave roofs require skilled installation techniques, and are often complemented with radiused roof edges, rounding hips and valleys and other architectural features. The full effect is one that truly captures the seamless flow of nature.
The buttresses also create an illusion that the cantilevered overhanging wave roof floats, the frameless corner glassing which kisses at the outer corners gives unhindered views of the coastal line.
The design was developed to the client’s vision and agreed design principles and as soon as possible with the local authority, local community, and key stake holders, whilst accepting that design is evolutionary. Equally important is an understanding of the future implications of the design decisions. Assessment of value for money was based on the "whole life" costs of the development and that the long-term management and maintenance implications of design decisions have been fully explored as well as assessing more immediate costings.
The house design has done this by using traditional materials, aluminium windows, zinc, sedums/living roof all certainly enhance the buildings aesthetics and help the building sit more comfortably within the landscape.
