Houzz Tour: A Tiny Scottish Home That’s Big on Style
Affordable, small-space living – this Wee House makes the perfect pad for a young couple
Following the success of a project to make sustainable garden furniture using a young, local workforce, Jennifer Hope was keen to expand the concept. ‘I wanted to build on the idea of combining eco-friendly design with local skills,’ she says. ‘I sat down with my dad, who runs a building company, and said, “What can we do that’s more exciting?"’
The answer, once Jennifer had graduated from university with an entrepreneurship degree, was to set up The Wee House Company. ‘We wanted to work with local teenagers to build energy-efficient modular homes,’ says Jennifer. Importantly, too, the houses would be affordable. ‘When I was looking to buy a home with my boyfriend, there wasn’t much within our small budget,’ she says.
Jennifer designed the Wee House to reflect traditional Scottish architecture, and each one has a smart, timber-cabin look. There’s a standard one- or two-bedroom design, which can be modified to suit the buyers and their building plot. The homes are energy efficient and can be portable if required, and prices start at just £59,000. Ingenious!
After five weeks in the workshop and two weeks installing the house on its site in East Ayrshire, Jennifer’s house was complete and she and her boyfriend moved in in July 2013. Decorated with fresh colours and simple furnishings, their mini home is a mighty marvel, and feels light, bright and – whisper it – spacious!
Houzz at a Glance
Owners Jennifer Hope and her boyfriend
Location Drongan, East Ayrshire, Scotland
Size 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
The answer, once Jennifer had graduated from university with an entrepreneurship degree, was to set up The Wee House Company. ‘We wanted to work with local teenagers to build energy-efficient modular homes,’ says Jennifer. Importantly, too, the houses would be affordable. ‘When I was looking to buy a home with my boyfriend, there wasn’t much within our small budget,’ she says.
Jennifer designed the Wee House to reflect traditional Scottish architecture, and each one has a smart, timber-cabin look. There’s a standard one- or two-bedroom design, which can be modified to suit the buyers and their building plot. The homes are energy efficient and can be portable if required, and prices start at just £59,000. Ingenious!
After five weeks in the workshop and two weeks installing the house on its site in East Ayrshire, Jennifer’s house was complete and she and her boyfriend moved in in July 2013. Decorated with fresh colours and simple furnishings, their mini home is a mighty marvel, and feels light, bright and – whisper it – spacious!
Houzz at a Glance
Owners Jennifer Hope and her boyfriend
Location Drongan, East Ayrshire, Scotland
Size 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
Jennifer built her Wee House on waste land at the end of her parents’ garden. Thick insulation means it’s nice and warm in the winter months. ‘There’s a big field beyond, and we sometimes see deer walking across,’ she says. ‘It’s really lovely!’
The house’s timber frame and walls reflect traditional Scottish architecture. ‘The exterior is clad in larch, which you can paint any colour you like,’ says Jennifer. ‘It’s just one of the changes you can make to the standard design so the house feels like your own.’ Jennifer chose a deep blue-black shade for her home, with crisp white window frames as a contrast.
French doors from the living room lead to a spacious terrace and help light to flood into the interior. ‘There are two sets of French doors in the house, so it does have pretty big windows for the size of the rooms,’ she explains. ‘There are French doors off the bedroom, too, and all this glazing really helps the rooms feel bright.’
A good-sized porch on the side of the house has great built-in storage for outdoor gear, including a bench with with a lift-up lid, hooks and a shelf.
‘I wanted the interior to still have a fairly traditional look, so it would work with the view outside,’ says Jennifer. She pictured a bright, airy feel for the living space and chose soft cream for the walls and a pale sofa. ‘I was decorating in July, so that influenced me, too,’ she says. ‘I was drawn to summery colours.’
Jennifer built shelves across a corner of the living room to provide storage and display space that doesn’t encroach on the room. Simple, pale drapes allow maximum light to flow in through the doors.
Wooden floors, which are everywhere apart from the bedroom, look neat and are easy to maintain. Jennifer painted the boards in the living room cream to keep the space light. ‘We usually sell the houses with just chipboard underfoot, then buyers can lay any floor they like,’ she says.
Tongue and groove panelling gives character to the walls and brings a feeling of cabin cosiness to the house.
There is room in the kitchen for a small table and chairs under the window. ‘It means two people can eat together here,’ says Jennifer. A Roman blind in a jolly, striped fabric adds a dash of seaside style to this space.
More ideas on the best ways to accessorise with blinds
More ideas on the best ways to accessorise with blinds
The wall above the sink has been left clear, with just a run of base units on this side of the room. ‘It’s to stop this area feeling crowded,’ says Jennifer. ‘There’s plenty of storage without putting cupboards up here, too.’ The boiler is concealed in the tall end unit, while below, a clever corner unit, with shelves that fit into the depths of the space, makes the most of all available room.
Jennifer opted for white kitchen units and teamed them with blue painted walls. ‘Once I’d chosen white, I thought it would look prettiest against blue, so I picked a shade called Blue Ribbon from the Dulux Heritage range,’ she says.
Jennifer ran the kitchen’s blue and white theme into the bedroom, but used a stronger shade – Oxford Blue from the Dulux Heritage Range. She designed the clever units by the bed, which combine wardrobe space and a bedside unit. ‘Ikea does something similar,’ she says, ‘but they wouldn’t fit in here, so I just sketched these and had our joiner make them.’
Swedish White from the Dulux Heritage Range with dark blue as an accent makes the bedroom feel fresh. Jennifer can keep the space tidy thanks to ample built-in storage. ‘I have a lot of clothes,’ she says, ‘but there’s enough room for them all.’
The bedroom, while compact, is still big enough for handsome French doors, which give lovely views over the countryside. There’s also space for a chest of drawers: Jennifer chose a tall design from Ikea to make the most of the vertical space and create maximum clothes storage. She also bought matching handles to fit on the bespoke wardrobes on the other side of the room to link the furniture.
The bathroom is light and spacious. ‘This is the room people are always most surprised about,’ says Jennifer. ‘They can’t believe how big it is!’ Blue and white feature here, too. Jennifer chose Light Pool from the Dulux Heritage Range for the walls, while a trolley from Ikea adds a pop of stronger colour and creates additional storage.
Take a look at some wonderful ways with wood panelling
Take a look at some wonderful ways with wood panelling
A large built-in cupboard on the landing provides yet more storage, helping Jennifer to keep her petite home tidy. ‘You definitely have to be strict with how much stuff you own when you live in a small space,’ she says. ‘You have to be prepared to throw out non-essential items and you can’t let yourself accumulate lots of clutter, but that’s a good thing!’
Loved this house? Let us know in the comments below.
Loved this house? Let us know in the comments below.