Our latest site visit to west Edinburgh captures a full house renovation and new build garden room nearing completion. The project brings together improvements to a traditional semi-detached home, carefully fitted interiors and additional living space in the garden. Within the house, the works include a new kitchen, bathroom and heating system, with high-performance aluminium-clad timber windows and doors fitted throughout. Alongside these practical upgrades, the contemporary living and dining spaces introduce a simple palette of timber, white joinery and soft neutral finishes.
An oak slatted screen defines the compact dining area without closing it off from the adjoining space. The gaps between the vertical slats allow light and views through, while built-in bench seating makes efficient use of the available floor area. Nearby, fitted cupboards and open shelving combine everyday storage with room for books and objects. At the rear of the house, glazed doors open onto a timber deck. A pergola frames an outdoor seating area, with a raised timber planter forming its edge and broad steps leading down into the garden. These elements create a transition between the house and the outdoor spaces, making room for sitting, eating and planting close to the kitchen.
The new timber-framed garden building provides a separate living space with a small kitchen, WC and workshop. Rooflights and tall windows bring daylight into the interior, while glazed double doors connect it to the paved terrace. Muted green kitchen cabinetry and pale finishes form a quiet backdrop to the wood-burning stove. The highly insulated structure uses the same aluminium-clad timber windows and doors as the main house. Externally, vertical Thermopine cladding has a translucent coating that leaves the grain visible, giving the building a restrained finish with the texture of natural timber.
With the final work approaching completion, the relationship between the renovated house, outdoor seating area and garden room is now clear: a series of connected spaces offering more choice in how the home and garden are used.
