Friday, November 9, 2012
House in Merida
Updated construction photos showing the new patio roof and the pool excavation. Coming along well at the moment.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
House in Merida
Construction Photos...
The first batch is of the kitchen from the reception. All the floors have to be removed so we can install new pasta tiles (the house was all ceramic, except for the reception). The back wall to the kitchen is also gone to allow flow through to the patio. The opening between the two rooms had some awful fake pilasters, which were removed, and the opening will be enlarged to, well....open it up.
So much more open and bright !
The other two main areas of construction are the bathrooms and the garden. There was only one existing bathroom with an adjacent storage closet. With a little extra room created from removing a hallway, we now have space for two ensuite bathrooms. The roof will be raised to around 12'-0" (4m) and there will be new clerestory lighting above the shower (very cool).
The garden is not large, but there is room for a decent size plunge pool. The only problem in the Yucatan is that the ground is almost solid limestone, so digging down even a small amount can be a problem. We designed the pool to be above ground (mostly), but we have to go down about a foot.
The first batch is of the kitchen from the reception. All the floors have to be removed so we can install new pasta tiles (the house was all ceramic, except for the reception). The back wall to the kitchen is also gone to allow flow through to the patio. The opening between the two rooms had some awful fake pilasters, which were removed, and the opening will be enlarged to, well....open it up.
So much more open and bright !
The other two main areas of construction are the bathrooms and the garden. There was only one existing bathroom with an adjacent storage closet. With a little extra room created from removing a hallway, we now have space for two ensuite bathrooms. The roof will be raised to around 12'-0" (4m) and there will be new clerestory lighting above the shower (very cool).
The garden is not large, but there is room for a decent size plunge pool. The only problem in the Yucatan is that the ground is almost solid limestone, so digging down even a small amount can be a problem. We designed the pool to be above ground (mostly), but we have to go down about a foot.
Monday, November 5, 2012
House in Merida
Existing Photos of the house and surrounding neighbourhood....
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| reception |
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| kitchen |
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| neighbourhood |
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| ours is the green one |
House in Merida
Thought it would be good to post some design drawings,renderings and construction photos of our first home renovation in Mexico.
Merida is the capital of the Yucatan province, and is a beautiful colonial city with a very rich history and interesting culture. The house is approximately 150 years old, and like most homes in the Centro district, has the distinct features of tall ceilings and large rooms, stone walls (mamposteria) and beautiful handmade cement tile (pasta) floors.
Most homes are set right on the sidewalk with usually a big heavy wooden door and a single window as the only connection to the street. The facades are painted in an array of bright colours though, so the streets become an interesting tapestry of colours and textures.
The design is relatively simple, and aims to improve the sequence of spaces common in these colonial era homes. The front reception room is usually the most impressive space - welcoming the guests.and setting the tone for the house. Our reception room is 6.8m x 4.7m (22' x 15') with 4.9m (16') ceilings, and has all the qualities you would want in this space.
The problem with the existing house begins from there. A previous renovation poked an unfortunate door leading into the first bedroom directly off the reception, which is very unusual. The more traditional flow of a house is to move from front to back from the reception down a central corridor or arcade with rooms typically off of this. The problem with this house is that the flow from front to back was blocked by a kitchen island and a huge kitchen wall/corridor to the back garden.
By blowing out the kitchen and the massive wall, the flow from the front through to the back garden has been completely opened up. The existing side patio has been converted into a dining space, but it is all much more indoor/outdoor living. We are adding a pool and another seating area with a pergola - maximizing the small garden space by creating different zones with different qualities of light and shade.
I'll start by showing the final design drawings and some renderings, and some existing photos. The construction process will be documented separately (soon)....it's all meant to be completed by Christmas !
Merida is the capital of the Yucatan province, and is a beautiful colonial city with a very rich history and interesting culture. The house is approximately 150 years old, and like most homes in the Centro district, has the distinct features of tall ceilings and large rooms, stone walls (mamposteria) and beautiful handmade cement tile (pasta) floors.
Most homes are set right on the sidewalk with usually a big heavy wooden door and a single window as the only connection to the street. The facades are painted in an array of bright colours though, so the streets become an interesting tapestry of colours and textures.
The design is relatively simple, and aims to improve the sequence of spaces common in these colonial era homes. The front reception room is usually the most impressive space - welcoming the guests.and setting the tone for the house. Our reception room is 6.8m x 4.7m (22' x 15') with 4.9m (16') ceilings, and has all the qualities you would want in this space.
The problem with the existing house begins from there. A previous renovation poked an unfortunate door leading into the first bedroom directly off the reception, which is very unusual. The more traditional flow of a house is to move from front to back from the reception down a central corridor or arcade with rooms typically off of this. The problem with this house is that the flow from front to back was blocked by a kitchen island and a huge kitchen wall/corridor to the back garden.
By blowing out the kitchen and the massive wall, the flow from the front through to the back garden has been completely opened up. The existing side patio has been converted into a dining space, but it is all much more indoor/outdoor living. We are adding a pool and another seating area with a pergola - maximizing the small garden space by creating different zones with different qualities of light and shade.
I'll start by showing the final design drawings and some renderings, and some existing photos. The construction process will be documented separately (soon)....it's all meant to be completed by Christmas !
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