readers’ homes
Comfortable living
It was on her own land that Fiona Henderson carved out perfect plot to build a comfortable, modern forever home
WORDS CAROLINE EDNIE
PHOTOS DAVID BARBOUR
In 2019, Fiona Henderson was looking at retirement and decided she wanted a new home where she could live more comfortably than her current property.
Her existing home of 30 years, a traditional schoolhouse in Aberdeenshire, was old and required a lot of maintenance. As lovely as it was, she wanted somewhere that would be easier to manage in the long term. “There was also a huge garden that required work.
In winter, I was wearing even Icelandic jumpers indoors, so I began to think of not only downsizing, but having a cosier and warmer house,” says Fiona.
Ruling out a move to a different area, Fiona decided to go down the route of self building a new home that would meet all of her needs. “I thought I should try it now while I’ve still got the energy. It was a brave decision, but I don’t regret it one bit,” she says.
Fiona already owned a five-acre plot of land, located up the hill from her previous home. It was here, surrounded by open areas of woodland, that she envisaged the site for her new home.
The home’s single-storey, H-shaped plan is designed to sit harmoniously within its rural landscape
Incorporating a small element of granite stonework echoed the traditional local steadings, while allowing Fiona to stick to budget
Designing the ideal home
After taking advice from a builder friend, Fiona then approached local architect Eoghain Fiddes, of Fiddes Architects, with a brief to design a new home. “Following an initial chat with Eoghain, he came out to my house and took the time to find out how I lived in it and how I used it,” she says. “He also gave me a very detailed questionnaire asking what I liked and disliked about the house, which I spent a lot of time on. This process helped a lot with the design of my new home.”