Zen Den

Rees considered how to use everything to its full potential from space, storage, light, views and flow. The staircase was clad in ply to work with the materiality of the intervention, bringing the narrative of the new loft design throughout the entire house. To avoid a reduced ceiling height in the loft, the ceilings on the two floors below were slightly lowered, ensuring that the fractional "stealing" of space would leave all floors feeling proportionally aligned. Beams were left exposed in the loft and painted the same shade as the walls to give a sense of depth and expansiveness, while improving acoustics. Focusing on space and flow in the loft, the corridor was used to provide multiple purposes: accessibility, views, light, privacy and habitable space. To create this, Rees designed bespoke doors fitted with magnets that could be held in two positions. The first, closing off the master bedroom and ensuite from the corridor, and the second, allowing a continuous view and access to the entire floor when fully opened and flush against the wall. To maximise the amount of light, strategically designed windows were installed. Two large roof windows along the length of the hallway create a corridor of light and light from the picture window floods through to the corridor, meeting the light from the roof windows. Overall, the look and feel is minimalistic monochrome with shades of green and off-white, wooden joinery, and a pale pink for the stairwell that omits a warm glow when lit up. Approaching the loft, you get a feeling of relaxation - making it the perfect retreat to escape to.