The ECR Weekend House

This was meant to be a low-maintenance second home, which on this stretch of ECR is a harder brief than it sounds. A neighbouring property's steel window frames had rusted through in two seasons, and the client had seen enough of that to rule metal out almost entirely before we'd even walked the site.

We built the frame in laterite and weathered teak instead, materials the coast has always dealt with better than steel, and pulled the roof overhangs out deep enough that the worst of the afternoon glare off the water never reaches the glass. Three years on, the only thing that needs regular attention is the garden.