BACK IN BLACK
Wilma Geddes has fulfilled a long-held dream of converting a once derelict mill in the Aberdeenshire countryside into a contemporary home
A barn in Scotland is carefully extended into a contemporary and flexible new home
This striking new single family home in rural Aberdeenshire started life simply. Known locally over the years as ‘The Mill’, this former utilitarian stone building was once part of a working farm. However, for owner Wilma Geddes, The Mill meant a lot more. Finding the building and site was the culmination of years of searching for a suitable place to build a contemporary, minimal house that could accommodate her family during their frequent visits. It would be, according to Wilma, her ultimate home.
“I’d been looking for a site for many years,” begins Wilma, who purchased the plot three years ago. “I work part-time as a picture-framer in a gallery, in the Aberdeenshire countryside. The owners of the gallery (and farmland around it) were selling some building plots and I liked the site. This site had the character inherent in the old stone of the mill. It also had plenty space around it to make a garden. A stream runs along the edge of the land, and there is a pond area.”
Restoring the mill
In addition to creating a new property that would be comfortable for a single person as well as being able to accommodate visiting family, Wilma’s initial brief was for a home with lots of light and big windows and views of the surrounding countryside. Retaining
as much of the character of the original mill, and repurposing where possible was also key.
At this stage Wilma approached architect Neil Taylor of Edinburgh-based TAP Architects to discuss taking the project forward. “We talked together about my ideas and what was important to me in a house, and I showed Neil images of houses I really liked.the design process went through several stages,” she explains.
The location of the house, however, had some inherent challenges.the base of the mill was set at the lowest level of the site, adjacent to a narrow burn, while the rear section of the building was embedded in a steep embankment, 3m in height. A flat plateau at the top of the bank matched the height of the mill’s eaves.
A tricky start
Flood risk analysis showed that development of the lower portion of the site was technically impossible, so any new accommodation would have to be set at the upper level. As a result, Neil developed a proposal that organised the house into two parallel bays; the first appearing as a linear structure with half its length on the solid ground of the plateau, and the other projecting out above the granite walls of the mill. The second, shorter bay, would be located adjacent to the first bay in such a way as to provide sheltered outdoor spaces to south and west. By removing the roof of the mill, the base of the building, which is built in local stone, functions as a plinth for the new construction above, blending into the surrounding rocky outcrop.
The overall design ethos was to reflect the farm steadings in the surrounding rolling, agricultural landscape. Yet at the same time, Neil was keen to give the simple building forms “a dynamic and crisp contemporary appearance”. Materials such as the dark, glossy Siberian larch rainscreen cladding and aluminium fascia help achieve this.
Obtaining planning consent was straightforward enough. “The landowner had obtained a planning consent for a new house, prior to Wilma purchasing, so we knew that the principle of converting the mill into a dwelling was going to be acceptable.the planners liked our strategy
“There’s lots of light, and amazing views, which are uplifting. I often feel as if I’m on holiday — the house is so easy to live in”