Houzz Tour: Innovative Small Space Living on Scottish Farmland
It may fit the definition of a static caravan but, in terms of design and efficiency, this creative, compact home couldn’t be more different
The Brockloch Bothy, a beautiful off-grid, small-scale home perched in a corner of a field in Dumfries & Galloway, was almost a caravan. ‘Julie, the owner of the sheep farm, approached me about putting a static caravan on the land,’ explains designer Sam Booth of Echo Living. Julie and her husband, George, hoped to rent it out as a holiday home to boost the farm’s income, but Sam had other ideas. ‘The site is very beautiful,’ he says, ‘and it would have been too horrible to put a static there. So I offered to build a building instead, for roughly the same price as a caravan.’
It was Sam’s chance to develop his idea for a small-scale home, and Brockloch became the prototype for the one-off bespoke buildings that he and his team now make, each manufactured with fine joinery and sustainable materials and costing around £60,000.
The bothy fits within the legal definition of a static caravan, which includes size restrictions, and required a different level of planning permission to a conventional home. ‘It needs to be technically possible to remove it,’ says Sam, ‘and we had to be able to lift it onto the site in no more than two pieces.’ But that is where the similarities between a static and Brockloch end.
The bothy is a shining example of ecofriendly, self-sufficient design. Operating entirely off-grid, with solar panels and huge amounts of insulation its secret weapons, it is a light, warm space, beautifully designed to make the most of its minimal square footage.
The house was constructed off-site and dropped into place. ‘It arrived on-site 99% complete,’ says Sam, ‘and then took about two days to put up.’ Now this bright, inviting space is a successful holiday let, and Sam is working on a tree house, also on the land, aided by his team of local craftsmen.
Houzz At A Glance
Owners George and Julie Nicolson, who own a sheep farm
Location Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland
Year built 2012
Designer Sam Booth of Echo Living
Size 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
That’s interesting Brockloch Bothy featured on George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces on Channel 4
It was Sam’s chance to develop his idea for a small-scale home, and Brockloch became the prototype for the one-off bespoke buildings that he and his team now make, each manufactured with fine joinery and sustainable materials and costing around £60,000.
The bothy fits within the legal definition of a static caravan, which includes size restrictions, and required a different level of planning permission to a conventional home. ‘It needs to be technically possible to remove it,’ says Sam, ‘and we had to be able to lift it onto the site in no more than two pieces.’ But that is where the similarities between a static and Brockloch end.
The bothy is a shining example of ecofriendly, self-sufficient design. Operating entirely off-grid, with solar panels and huge amounts of insulation its secret weapons, it is a light, warm space, beautifully designed to make the most of its minimal square footage.
The house was constructed off-site and dropped into place. ‘It arrived on-site 99% complete,’ says Sam, ‘and then took about two days to put up.’ Now this bright, inviting space is a successful holiday let, and Sam is working on a tree house, also on the land, aided by his team of local craftsmen.
Houzz At A Glance
Owners George and Julie Nicolson, who own a sheep farm
Location Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland
Year built 2012
Designer Sam Booth of Echo Living
Size 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
That’s interesting Brockloch Bothy featured on George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces on Channel 4
The site has views to the south, which also allows the solar panels to pick up maximum sunlight. ‘The panels are connected to a battery that can store enough power for about five days,’ says Sam. ‘So that’s useful for when the sun is not shining, which does occasionally happen in Scotland!’
Situated on a sheep farm, the bothy is a discreet addition to the landscape. ‘Sheep come up to the house and jump about on the decking,’ says Sam. ‘In the spring, you get incredibly cute lambs right outside the windows, too.’
The original model of Brockloch Bothy, created by Sam. ‘It is super insulated with sheep’s wool, and the spruce ply internal walls hold heat, too,’ he says. ‘The building feels warm as well as being warm!’
The roof was in part inspired by the skylights in static caravans, but brings many advantages to the property. ‘It means we can fit solar panels to it, pointing in the right direction to get the most sun,’ says Sam. It also gives the small interior a sense of height and space. ‘A flat roof would have felt oppressive,’ says Sam.
Positioned over all the key spaces, the skylights also help boost light levels. ‘They work like big lampshades,’ says Sam, ‘focusing light in on the space below.’
A strip of storage sits in the centre of the building, with the pegs visible on the white wall here stretching right through into the bedroom on the other side.
Sam created a freestanding design for the kitchen. ‘In a static caravan, the design was all about building in storage and hiding things away, but that’s the wrong approach,’ he says. ‘In a small space, freestanding pieces, which have air around them and floor visible beneath, help the space feel bigger.’
The fridge, oven and worktop are included in the single unit. ‘It feels more like a nice piece of furniture than a fitted kitchen,’ says Sam.
Sam created a freestanding design for the kitchen. ‘In a static caravan, the design was all about building in storage and hiding things away, but that’s the wrong approach,’ he says. ‘In a small space, freestanding pieces, which have air around them and floor visible beneath, help the space feel bigger.’
The fridge, oven and worktop are included in the single unit. ‘It feels more like a nice piece of furniture than a fitted kitchen,’ says Sam.
The internal walls are made with spruce ply, but to prevent the space feeling too ‘woody’, Sam has painted sections of it. ‘We used Earthborn paints, which are breathable,’ says Sam. ‘You can use the paint as a wash, to produce a light colour with a lot of the wood grain showing through, or layer it up for a denser effect.’ The rubber flooring is from Dalsouple.
Rubber flooring, Dalsouple.
Rubber flooring, Dalsouple.
Open shelving also helps keep the kitchen space feeling airy. ‘Rather than hide everything away, the idea was to buy a few really nice things and store them on shelves,’ says Sam. ‘They become part of the decoration.’ The worktop is made from oak strip with an oiled finish, cut to completely encase the unit.
Owner Julie chose the furniture for the bothy, picking simple, classic designs that complement the light, open space. This circular Docksta table from Ikea makes efficient use of space, too, seating four without taking up too much floor area and with just a single, central leg.
Table, Docksta by Ikea.
Table, Docksta by Ikea.
‘It’s tiny, but it works,’ says Sam of the bathroom. There is a shower in here and a window, too, to help the space feel bigger. ‘The back-to-wall toilet takes up less space,’ says Sam, ‘and then we used the old trick of sticking a big mirror in here, too!’
A panel of white paint behind the bed creates a soft, headboard effect and a skinny shelf runs right around the room. ‘It’s a wonderful detail,’ says Sam. ‘It adds something sculptural to the space.’
The skylight allows for horizontal star gazing. ‘In the original brief, owner Julie said she wanted to be able to lie in bed and look at the stars,’ says Sam. Dumfries & Galloway experiences very little light pollution and is an official Dark Sky Park. Sam has made it easy for anyone in the house to enjoy the spectacular night sky.
TELL US…
What do you like about this little ecofriendly house? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
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The skylight allows for horizontal star gazing. ‘In the original brief, owner Julie said she wanted to be able to lie in bed and look at the stars,’ says Sam. Dumfries & Galloway experiences very little light pollution and is an official Dark Sky Park. Sam has made it easy for anyone in the house to enjoy the spectacular night sky.
TELL US…
What do you like about this little ecofriendly house? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
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Sam describes the house as ‘like a piece of furniture you can live in, rather than a traditional home’. He adds that its timber construction and neat scale made building it feel ‘more akin to cabinet-making than building. I think of it as a nice wardrobe you can live in!’