Extending into the future

A dramatic extension elevates a semi-detached sandstone Victorian house in Cupar into the realm of the grand design. Bi-fold doors, custom-made roof lights and vaulted ceilings bring modern living into a traditional home

From the front, Millbank House in Cupar is a traditional semi-detached house in a Victorian style.

Step into the back garden though, and a modern extension juts out onto a decked terrace that looks inviting on this warm summer’s afternoon.

The house is owned by Catherine and Stefan Sudjic, who bought it three years ago – and didn’t have to move very far.

“We lived further down the same street,” Catherine explains. “We’d always liked this house and when it came up for sale we seized the opportunity.”

The couple are no strangers to home improvement projects, having carried out two large scale conversions before – one in Edinburgh and another at their previous home in Cupar.

They set about overhauling Millbank House, rewiring, installing a new boiler and a wood burning stove, and replacing the old sash and case windows with beautiful handmade double glazed units.

Then they started on the extension, with architects Muir, Walker and Pride helping breathe life into their vision of a spacious, light-filled kitchen and family room that incorporates a pre-existing outbuilding.

“We wanted full length folding doors and the architects suggested the skylight windows, which were custom made,” Catherine, 43, continues. “We’re delighted with them – the extra light they throw into the room makes it very special.”

A new kitchen stretches the length of the old part of the house before blending into a dining area and a seating area with a corner sofa. Part of the original outhouse is now a utility room.

The two bay-windowed front rooms are both living rooms, one with a wood burning stove that is used by Catherine and Stefan, the other with video games that’s used by their two children, aged 9 and 11, and their friends.

“We do sit in the extension a lot,” Catherine says. “And it’s a great place for having friends round for dinner.

“We do still use the living room though, in the evenings and particularly in winter – the wood burning stove makes it so cosy.”

The room that was the kitchen prior to the extension is now a bedroom, while upstairs are three more bedrooms and a family bathroom.

The upstairs rooms have views to the hills around Cupar, with the front facing-rooms looking onto Hill of Tarvit. The front garden has a driveway, while the extensive back garden steps down past an outhouse and greenhouse to a large stretch of lawn.

Catherine and Stefan, 43, are planning a move to Edinburgh for work reasons. She shudders at the thought of doing another house renovation.

“I think three conversion projects is as much as I’ve got the stomach for,” she smiles.

They set about overhauling Millbank House