Sayang House

This new pavilion property features in the 21st series of Grand Designs, as the ‘Ely Episode’. Designed by Carlos Gris Studio for Gretta Funnell as she returns from 20 years living in Malaysia, after Ray her husband sadly passed away. She purchased an isolated piece of land in the fenlands with the hope of starting a new life living nearer her family.

This simple rectangular pavilion is both classical and modernist in style, and absorbs the linear and minimal tastes Gretta adopted from interiors in Kuala Lumpur.

Whilst the property would appear very clean lined it also tries to blend into the vernacular of the fenland. It is single storey and flattened like the local marshland terrain. The strong geometric roof parapet is a reflection of the long and flat horizons seen in the area. The full property is covered in brown-brushed Shou Sugi Ban to nod to Asia and also to the muddy backdrop of the fenlands. The proportions of the cladding and its structured layout is designed to reflect the wooden sleepers of a rail track that runs through a nearby field.

The front door is centered on an existing weeping willow that sits in the rear garden. When you enter every space within the property, the opposing wall is floor-to-ceiling glass to offer an immediate framing of the exterior garden. Despite having two curtain walls on the north and south facing elevations, the property is extremely economical with a SAP reading not far from becoming a PassiveHaus.