Cherry House is a creative reimagining of a traditional Kent Peg tile hung facade, but blended with Tuile Vernissée de Bourgogne (glazed and patterned Burgundy roof tiles) inspired by family holidays to France. A fresh take on a traditional building material to create something unexpectedly new, completely modern and expressive but rooted in local heritage and craft. The bespoke facade was developed through close collaboration with local manufacturer Spicer Tiles to create a new glazed clay tile specifically for the project. Each tile is handmade and is completely unique, from the texture of the clay tile to the reflective glazed finish. Many tiles still show the handprint of the individual maker from when the clay was pressed into its mould. The tiles create a facade that is super textural, highly expressive and celebrates the deliberately imperfect qualities of a hand-crafted product.

The form of the extension is kept simple to emphasise the textural façade with a bullnose tile shape used to create a repetitive pattern which complements the colourful and reflective tile surface. Hung in a traditional vertical tile arrangement, the façade surface creates a layered, shifting texture that reads differently in varying light conditions. The colour palette of pinks and greens uses 6 hand mixed glazes and evokes the colours of the cherry orchards that once surrounded the site.

Produced in Kent, the tiles promote traditional local craftmanship and provide an extremely durable finish which promises excellent weathering with minimal maintenance. As well as the new extension, Cherry House also underwent a comprehensive whole-house upgrade future proofing the 1920s structure. This included wall, floor, and roof insulation, airtightness improvements, replacement of the original single-glazed steel windows, and installation of an air-source heat pump.

Photography - Chris Snook