This country house is one of our favourites.

The scale is carefully modelled to give maximum floor area for the minimum bulk. The building is broken down into elements to give the impression of a developing language, with subsidiary elements further reducing the perceived size of the building.

Why did we do this? To deliver the space our clients needed, but in a way respectful to the picturesque setting on the edge of a beautiful village. The results speak for themselves.

We’ve recently revisited a housing development we designed in Wiltshire, which included a courtyard of new build houses and a bungalow, but also two historic buildings dating back to the 1800s which were outbuildings to a long ago demolished mansion house.

These new homes are restored to the latest standards of insulation and services, but with the character of a bygone age that only an historic building can give.

The inherent beauty of correct proportions can be seen throughout nature, the human body and in classical architecture.

This is well illustrated by the beauty of the Golden Section proportions of this new build country house in Berkshire, balanced with the elegant landscape as part of the driveway approach, centred on a metal sculpture of two dancers.

Classical architecture has an inherent richness to it.

Choosing to build new buildings in this style is something that should not be taken lightly. Without the depth of design and detail, the resulting building can end up looking unconvincing. However, when clients commit to the language of classicism, the results, as at this stunning Wiltshire home, speak for themselves.

We work in a variety of architecture languages from the modern to the classical, but also the vernacular.

This triple gable fronted family home is located in the countryside on the Berkshire/Hampshire border and replaced a unpromising cottage. The vernacular language we employed here responded to the architectural qualities of the original cottage but replaced it with a property befitting its location.

Even in the most unpromising places, beauty can be created.

This derelict poultry farm in the Test Valley was a visual detractor from the surrounding landscape of this part of Hampshire. Our design for this stunning Classical country house gained consent as a replacement offering considerable visual improvement. The result is a comfortable family home set in beautiful landscaped grounds.

Our conservation work sees us cross many thresholds, from the humble to the not so humble.

But the great thing about our projects is we get to look round some really interesting listed buildings, from a chocolate box thatched cottage to a castle. These two projects are examples of where we’ve provided strategic early stage advice to potential owners, helping them shape their future plans.

We do love a hand drawing here and we’ve been looking back through the archives recently to find our favourites.

This is one of Alex’s favourites. This elegant pair of gate lodges we designed for a country estate in Hampshire are, at the same time, both subservient to the main house, but still give the impression of what it will be like. The Georgians used gate lodges to signify the gravitas of their country houses, but still always remembered the fact that they were service buildings. A tricky balance, but one we are delighted to have struck here.

We like a wide range of architectural languages and which language we use for a project can be decided by a number of factors.

Chiefly though, when working with an existing building, the building itself will give us the correct direction. This country house dates back to the 1890s but the original design felt incomplete and unresolved. The language of the existing home suggested that a Gothic language would be the most appropriate direction and here is the finished article.

We here at AOA love dogs and we love Classical architecture.

What could be better then a picture of our clients Golden Retriever and their beautiful classical country house we’ve recently completed for them in the background. The best of both.

Architects are always thinking about the spaces they are creating within the buildings they design. It is important to always consider the third dimension.

Generosity is not always a two dimensional construct, extra height to a space, increases the volume and makes an ordinary space feel for generous and dramatic. This stair hall in a country house we designed in Wiltshire shows exactly the result of this sort of consideration.

First impressions count. And nothing makes a good first impression like an well designed entrance hall.

For this project in Wiltshire we restored the entrance hall of this Grade II listed 19th century home, retaining, repairing and cleaning Victorian encaustic floor tiles and providing plenty of space for coats. The spaciousness of the room gives a generosity of feeling to the house from the very first room.

Much of the elements of Georgian architecture are evolved from the Classical principles first seen in the traditions of ancient Greek and Roman architecture.

The evolutions are continual but often reference back to earlier times. The first floor window on this Georgian townhouse includes what is known as a Venetian or Serlian (after Sebastiano Serlio) window. A Venetian window is a three part window with the central part being arched topped and the two symmetrical sidelights being shorter. All three are broken up by pilasters and are topped by an entablature.

It is very important to us to be, wherever possible, genuine in the materials we use. Natural materials have an inherent beauty that is second to none.

We were very lucky to have a ‘resident’ stonemason on a country house project we worked on in Wiltshire. Here are some of the carved pieces which made their way onto the final building including cornices, architraves and capitals.

You never know what you will discover when working on historic buildings. The rich tapestry of the past can sometimes throw up some unexpected discoveries.

Sometimes however the discoveries can merely be the result of a simple clean. This building in Wiltshire which we designed an apartment conversion scheme for sits right on the main road. Years of dirt and road grime has built up, obscuring to all but the most eagle eyed the phrase over the door. All it took was a bucket of warm soapy water!

Houses don’t exist on their own, they have a setting and this can be as important as the building when trying to get things ‘just so’.

For this project in the North Downs we were lucky enough to not just design the building but also the landscaping to ensure that both house and garden worked in harmony. Here you can see a parterre, the herringbone brick terrace and in the background the circular lawn.

The important thing when converting a barn is to use the fabric of the building to lead the design. That way the resulting property still looks and feels like a barn.

This can throw up some issues with low head heights, strange window positions and unusual corners, but this Grade II listed barn in Hampshire is a good example of the beauty that can be created by being led by what is there. As you can see from the before and after photos it has clearly been converted with softwood shiplap cladding being replaced by a return to traditional feather edged boarding, but is definitely still the same building and still a barn.

Responding to the unique challenges of a site is something we really enjoy.

The site of this house is spectacular, a secluded hillside with breath-taking views. Our client wanted to create a homes that would add to this scene, would occupy the hillside and lie, rather romantically, against a background of dense woodland, overlooking the valley below.

It is always very rewarding to see one of our designs starting to settle into it’s landscape.

Here is a photo of our recently completed North Downs project in Surrey. The careful choice of materials and detailing makes the finished home look grounded already. We’re really looking forward to see how the landscaping scheme we designed, at the same time as designing the house, develops over the next few years.

We’re delighted to have gained planning permission to extend this country house in Berkshire. We designed this house originally and are delighted to have, once again, been invited back to work on the next stage of the evolution of this family home.

We’re currently working on the technical drawings and are looking forward to seeing it start on site soon!