skip to main content

North facing extension

7 years ago

We're planning a north facing extension comprising a split level dining area and sitting area. There are lots of tall trees in and around our long garden. Extension will be made of glass and some stone. Any suggestions as to a warm colour scheme (please not neutral!) will be gratefully received.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (3)

PRO
Dale Loth Architects
7 years ago
Anyone trying to help should be asking you these questions:

What colour will the stone be?

Will there be any exposed wood, and if so what type?

Do you know what the floor finish will be?
Susie Smith thanked Dale Loth Architects
PRO
The Lighting Company
7 years ago
North facing rooms have one common problem, they are normally dark. I'd suggest making sure you have great lighting and fit LED bulbs in everyone of them as you'll have lights on often. From experience in a previous home my north facing kitchen had the lights switched on all day every day. Partly because of a tiny window, I know you'll have a lot of glass (which will help) but Autumn, Winter and early evenings will see you reaching for the light switch.

Whilst not my area of expertise we do get to know lots about the latest trends from our great blog and colours trending at the moment are greys, dark blues, greens that vibrant emerald colour, hot tropical pinks. For a calmer take go lighter colours one that will help reflect light are palest pink, taupes and of course the colour you are avoiding white!. Whites are good at reflecting light and an obvious choice but that doesn't mean you have to do with personality in the space. You can still have bold statement colours with whites as a background colour.

Here's a link to our latest blog you may want to check this out. In this article theres a nice colour combo shown here in bedding, but would looks equally good in living/dinning rooms. Pay attention to the lovely glass lighting (see below) which could be a good addition to your room, after paying for all that glazing to see your garden you don't want to block it all up with heavy solid looking light fittings. Tinted glass lights are a really nice choice, this one is called 'lute'.

If lighting is on the list of things to do? Register as a VIP and get our magazine and there are often some nice discounts to be had too!

Let me know what you think-we love to share and hearing comments is great for us.

I do hope this helps you a little. Good luck! & Enjoy!

The Lighting Company

Lighting Companies Inspirational Blog
Susie Smith thanked The Lighting Company
Related Discussions
Ideas for downstairs revamp
Q
Comments (5)
looks like my house - dogs take over everything! =D if you could draw us and photo a floor plan, so we can get a sense of how everything fits together - i'm sure people can give you some ideas =D re laundry - get a victorian laundry rack - it works great in our house because we have huge ceilings - but it would still work for you guys and it stops an airer getting in the way - also takes advantage of all the heat up at the ceiling
...See More
Roof covering for a flat roof kitchen extension?
Q
Comments (3)
Hi Nicola - we used both types and if correctly applied, and the flashings are done properly,. you'll be fine with both. Having said that, its easier to apply a felt roof wrongly than it is to apply a rubber roof. Ask your builder for a cost comparison and check the guarantees for both - I should have stressed that more - do get the roof installed by someone who can give you a guarantee, please! ;-)
...See More
side return - north or west facing?!
Q
Comments (8)
Thanks for your comment. THat looks wonderful. I think he smaller house is winning. Even tho it does not have a south aspect I think west/north is better than plain north! Even if we do loose space.Out of interest do you find the kitchen can get too hot?! That was my other issue (nice issue to have I know!) but I was thinking if the sun is shining for hours would it be awfully hot? We would plan bifold doors/sliding and velux windows.
...See More
Lighting for north facing kitchen
Q
Comments (2)
Hi ! Just looking at your plans briefly - it’s clear that due to cabinetry on all four walls - you won’t get a very big table in there ! You mentioned no wall units due to having enough storage elsewhere - but - if you had wall cabinets storage and storage to the patio doors on the top wall - you could take off some perimeter cabinets to give room for a table that’s larger than ‘just’ a four seater one ? There’s a lot more that could be done with this space in my professional opinion. Re colours - in a north facing room if you chose ‘winter’ colours you will need to warm it up a tad with woods and other tricks like tactile accessories. Scandi style for example uses whites and pale greys warmed up with pale woods and real or faux animal fur on benches or seats to add warmth ... Alternatively brilliant white cabinetry on pale Egyptian Cotton walls can look great too and is warmer than most grey toned paint . re lighting - if this drawings is true and it’s a flat extension then lighting could be LEDs in ceiling throughout - but if the new part is a vaulted ceiling then cable lighting might work or stronger LEDs higher up could also work but there will be a shadow line where the change in height happens. ... To summarise, this is ok - could be better and if worked on by someone with more of a ‘design driven’ background - time could be spent trying different colours for you and looking at lighting options and the table would be included in the drawings to show you what space you actually end up with ... you could see what it could look like in a more real image. If you click on my name or icon it will take to to my pro page with some past projects that might give you an idea of the difference a design done purposely for you, with no other agenda, could make. ( then send it to all the online retailers and builders merchants etc to compare like for like on their prices )
...See More
PRO
The Lighting Company
7 years ago
You're welcome. Please put an after pic when you're done, it'd be lovely to see the result. Thank you too for taking the time to read my random thoughts- good luck again with the project.

Sponsored

More Discussions

Large sliding door or keep small French door and window

36

HB Engineered Wood Floor: V4 or Furlong

5

Too much blue. what other color is right here?

33

How can I fit an induction hob in place of a range cooker?

1

(verifiedielts770@yahoo.com)btain Registered Ielts, Toefl, Gre, nebosh

0

United Kingdom

Tailor my experience with cookies

Houzz uses cookies and similar technologies to personalise my experience, serve me relevant content, and improve Houzz products and services. By clicking ‘Accept’ I agree to this, as further described in the Houzz Cookie Policy. I can reject non-essential cookies by clicking ‘Manage Preferences’.