Category: Design

George and Jonathan Avery at 1 Greenland Place 1986.

Just a bit of Greenland Place history

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design

My favourite photo of my Dad George and I taken inside Greenland Place in Camden, London - my photography and graphics studio circa 1986. This was my second premises, having been in a Council incubator unit with Nick and our business The Image Factor, just around the corner in Carol Street Workshops for a year beforehand.

Just behind the Natwest Bank on Camden High Street, 1 Greenland Place was a semi derelict ex-garment factory (or sweat-shop as we used to call them) on three floors. I rented and refurbished the top floor which had a marvelous loft atmosphere, windows around two sides and a pre-health and safety double goods door which opened into thin air with a gantry hoist!

This 1500sq ft space was ideally flexible for studio photography, fashion shoots etc. as well as having space for a darkroom, drawing board etc. - this was just prior to the digital revolution and I think my early adopter’s Mac SE came a year later! It was here over the coming years that I produced logos, brochures and photography for a range of clients from small businesses to a few Blue Chips besides.

And it was here in 1987 where Jo unwittingly met her husband! She had a job cold-calling on business premises with a big bag full of shirts and sweaters for a company called Sleeves in the West End. Now I would never have admitted a sales person via the entry phone, but luckily for us, Maureen Jones on the floor below had already let her in and after visiting there, mentioned that there was a glamorous young designer/photographer on the next floor who may be interested…! Which is why she was able to barge through my door with her holiday tan and short skirt…and we were both smitten! To be honest I put up a fight for a month or two but then Felix, Jacob and thirty years later we are still together and more in Love than ever!

It’s worth mentioning that Jazzie B and the Soul to Soul crew had a shop in the indoor market on the ground floor and their keyboard player Phil worked for Nick and I as a printer when we started the Image Factor!

Social Bite Tiny House Homeless Village - concept - Tiny House Scotland

Tiny House Homeless Village in Edinburgh

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design, Nesthouse, news, Press, Social Architecture

Tiny House Scotland is very proud to be involved with social entrepreneurs Social Bite in a project to build a Tiny House Homeless Village in Edinburgh next summer. The Tiny Houses will be based on the modular “NestHouse” developed by yours truly, Jonathan Avery!

See the full article here.

Social Bite’s co-founder Josh Littlejohn said: “The Social Bite Village plan hopes to create a full-circle solution to the issue of homelessness - from housing to support to employment.

“In doing so we hope to alter the course of some of Scotland’s most vulnerable people for the better - swapping a destiny of poverty and exclusion for one of compassionate support and inclusion.”

All the units being built in the village are transportable and could be moved to another site in the future.

Joan Griffiths, vice convenor of City of Edinburgh Council, said: “Tackling homelessness remains a priority for the council and we work closely with our third sector partners to provide services for people who are homeless.

“Josh and the Social Bite team do so much good work for homeless people across the city already and we look forward to working with them on their plans going forward.”

The NestHouse - handmade by TIny House Scotland
The Nesthouse - Moveable Modular Small Eco-house System.
Visit the NestHouse for a Tiny Consultation!

Private Visit & Consultation at the NestHouse

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design, Nesthouse, Small House, Tiny House

Tiny House Scotland is now offering a more structured Visit & Consultation at the NestHouse.

So if you are contemplating commissioning a build from TIny House Scotland or are preparing to self-build, or perhaps you are just curious about Tiny Houses, why not come and receive a one-on-one guided tour of the NestHouse followed by a two hour consultation to discuss your own project.

You can pick Jonathan’s brains and benefit from the two years worth of research and development that has produced the NestHouse as well as his 30 plus years as a craftsman, designer and builder.

Book your visit here.

In line with his passion for Small Living and its potential place as a solution in the housing crisis, Jonathan is also happy to host tailored visits and talks for non-profit educational and environmental organisations.

Big Issue No.1215 25th July 2016.

The Big Issue - Tiny Houses

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design, Press, sustainability

It is great to see Tiny House architecture being seriously explored as a potential tool in the context of homelessness, NFA (no fixed abode) and the Housing Crisis. I did an interview with the Big Issue last week and the NestHouse and I have been featured in the article.

This all chimes very much with my own view that Tiny and Small Houses whilst they may invariably elicit an “ooh how cute!” response, could have a more weighty purpose for certain housing groups. They are not holiday cabins, sheds or caravans but proper houses, so if we can iron out the Planning and Building Regulations issues (sigh/groan) there is tremendous potential for first time buyers, empty nesters, rural homesteaders as well as social housing applications in the community rental sector.

I for one am committed to fighting this corner and have several proposals simmering away for the NestHouse which would benefit society at large.

Please support the Big Issue - digital download available here.

Online version of article here.

Appreciation sure is sweet…

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design, Furniture

I received some lovely appreciative comments in a blog post the other day. It is very gratifying as a designer/maker to create objects that people relate to and treasure; I suppose it gives meaning to my instinct for fine detailing…putting love and care into creating a tangible, object-based language. Furthermore such things create relationships…Ruth and Young were Jonathan Avery clients who we have come to consider dear friends and whose exploits we love to follow still, even though they are now in Tasmania - read Ruth’s excellent writing at DorkyMum.

Isn’t it funny the objects that stay with you in all your homes? The ones you choose to take with you… When we lived in Edinburgh we were lucky enough to do a kitchen renovation with Jonathan Avery and it remains the best kitchen I’ve ever had. When we left there we obviously had to leave the beautiful worktops & cupboards & gas stove behind (we also had to repaint the walls because DorkySon had splattered so much puréed blueberry across the paintwork…). But the one piece of kitchen we could take with us was this little set of steps. In Hertfordshire it was where I sat to feed DorkySon spoons of mush in his high chair, and the secret wee drawer in the back is where I kept his bibs. Now it’s what he pushes over to the worktop in our kitchen in Tassie when he wants to help me cook pancakes or soup or curry. On Saturday mornings while DorkyDad makes breakfast it’s where I sit down, and DorkySon comes to sit on my lap for a cuddle. It is our little piece of Edinburgh in Hobart and is already a family heirloom. Jonathan Avery is now building entire houses for people - tiny beautiful perfect ones @tinyhousescotland - and it fills my heart to think about how those wee wooden creations will stay with people the way my steps have. Just need to find something interesting to hide in the drawer now the bib stage is over…

A photo posted by Ruth Dawkins (@dorkymumblog) on

The NestHouse from Tiny House Scotland looking towards the bathroom and sleeping loft.

NestHouse - the other end…

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Cabins, Design, Houses, Nesthouse, Tiny House

Thanks for the amazing feedback on the last post - I am humbled and amazed!! It’s hard work being self-motivated on such a comprehensive project for so long, so it’s great to find that maybe I haven’t gone mad and lost the plot! PS. there’s a full size shot in the gallery.

So here’s a view in the opposite direction towards the bathroom and sleeping loft. I am still working on the sleeping loft although it’s not far off, but the bathroom is still a bomb site having been finished once and then redesigned and ripped apart again (twice!) - oh well, that’s what prototypes are for!

#tinyhouse #TinyHouseScotland #affordablehousing #sustainability

Jonathan's hand crafted interior of the NestHouse prototype from Tiny House Scotland.

Sneak peek at the NestHouse interior!

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design, Small House, Tiny House

I have been working on the interior photography of the main space in the NestHouse this week - so here’s an early release to whet your appetite!

Now you could just have your NestHouse completed to shell finish - so it is ready for you to furnish, or, I could design and custom build every furniture item in the house - as demonstrated in the prototype; total Jonathan Avery style from inside to outside! More photos to follow soon - checkout the gallery.

Lloyd Kahn Talks Shelter in Kirkcaldy

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Cabins, Design, eco-friendly, Small House, sustainability, wood

I have been looking forward to this for a while and it was not a disappointment! Lloyd Kahn is in the back of many self-builders’ cerebral toolboxes for his seminal works as Editor in Chief of Shelter Publications, California. His 1973 book ‘Shelter‘ is an incredibly detailed catalogue of building techniques through the ages, illustrated with the personal stories and evocative photos of small houses and cabins collected on his travels throughout the USA and Canada as well as Ireland and the UK. It sits alongside my copy of Christopher Alexander’s ‘Pattern Language’ at the core of my own inspirational library, so it was a real thrill to hear Himself speak of his life publishing, building, surfing and skateboarding. Yes skateboarding! - in fact he only stopped skateboarding this year when he broke his arm…and let me just point out he is 81 - what a cool dude!!!

We started the evening with at a reception at the Kirkcaldy Galleries to see the exhibition ‘Shelters’ curated by Bobby Niven from the Bothy Project and instigated by Fife Contemporary Art & Craft. This fascinating touring exhibition features what turns out to be small selection of the vast body of work collected by Lloyd over the decades.

We then moved on to the Adam Smith Theatre for the main event of the night - Lloyd’s talk. It started with a thought-provoking introduction from Bernard Planterose about Lloyd, Self-Building, small Houses and the recent excellent progress of Reforesting Scotland’s Thousand Huts campaign. Bobby Niven then spoke in glowing terms about Lloyds impact on his own work before introducing Lloyd who spoke for over an hour with a superb selection of slides, anecdotes and pithy truisms.

It’s no wonder Lloyd is a legend…from his involvement in the Whole Earth Catalog - the American counter-culture’s magazine and eco-product catalogue published by Stewart Brand, Lloyd started building timber frame structures then turned to geodesic domes when these were the coolest thing in California and beyond! He subsequently wrote 2 bestselling books about domes but then when he realised that they really didn’t work, characteristically withdrew them from publication and went back to timber framing! As he said “admitting I was wrong was a major step forward in my life”.

We finished up with an enthusiastic Q and A and then after hearty applause wandered away into the gloaming of Kirkcaldy War Memorial Gardens with twinkling fairy lights in the blossom heavy cherry trees and more than just a sense that we had witnessed something truly special - an ongoing celebration of Lloyd Kahn’s fifty years being inspired by building with wood and natural materials and the complex art of creating simple shelter whilst inspiring generations of self builders to be creative themselves.

Lloyd Kahn talk
Lloyd Kahn talk

Tiny Home Sweet Home

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design, eco-friendly, Houses, Small House, sustainability, Tiny House

The UN predicts that by 2060 66% of the world’s population will live in urban environments. One of the biggest challenges ahead of us is meeting housing requirements for this tribe of city dwellers. Space is limited and expensive so some home developers are thinking small. How does this help as we also consider the needs of those currently without a home?

Last night saw an audience of over 80 people at an Edinburgh International Science Festival discussion hosted by architecture author Jane Field-Lewis, to discuss the hot topic of Tiny Home Living.

Tiny House Scotland’s NestHouse prototype was featured in a presentation by Susan Carleton, a proponent of affordable small housing solutions, as the only moveable modular small eco-house currently being developed in Scotland!

Dr Mike Page from the University of Hertfordshire discussed the Cube Project - now on its second outing to the Science Festival, while Dr Caroline Brown of Heriot Watt University discussed the planning and social implications of small space living. The benefits of a small form factor for disaster relief housing was outlined by Julia Glenn of Extremis Technology. It was great to see the potential of serious small housing getting some attention in the UK!

Edinburgh International Science Festival
Edinburgh International Science Festival

Legend Lloyd Kahn to talk in Fife

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Design, eco-friendly, Small House, sustainability

First UK presentation by Lloyd Kahn, Editor in Chief of Shelter Publications, California.
Championing the self-build approach since 1970, Kahn has inspired and empowered first-time housebuilders around the world.
Presented by Fife Contemporary Art & Craft with The Bothy Project & with participation of Reforesting Scotland’s A Thousand Huts Campaign.

The event will take place on Tuesday 10 May 2016 at 7.15pm in the Beveridge Suite, Adam Smith Theatre (Bennochy Road, Kirkcaldy, KY1 1ET). The venue is fully accessible with ramped access to the building and a lift to the Beveridge Suite itself. Tickets cost £10 (full price) and a limited number will be offered free for students & school pupils.

Further details here.

Lloyd Kahn talk
Lloyd Kahn talk

Scottish Parliament Thousand Huts Meeting

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Architecture, Cabins, Design, eco-friendly, Huts, sustainability, Timber Frame, Tiny House, wood
A seminal moment in the Thousand Huts Campaign at the Scottish Parliament.
A seminal moment in the Thousand Huts Campaign at the Scottish Parliament.

Last night I attended the launch of the new huts planning guide at the Scottish Parliament with 80 planning professionals, architects and hut builders at an event hosted by Angus Macdonald MSP. Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Richard Lochhead has welcomed the guide, saying:

“Huts and hutting are a great way for people to enjoy Scotland’s outstanding natural environment, with all the benefits to health and wellbeing this can bring. I very much welcome the publication of this guidance, which I hope will provide an important opportunity for many more people in Scotland to enjoy the recreational benefits associated with huts and hutting.”

The Thousand Huts campaign team and Planning Advisory Group have spent 2 years working with planning and building professionals to produce this guide to help planners, architects and hut builders alike achieve good practice in new hut developments. This work was supported by The Planning Exchange Foundation, and has been reviewed by planning, legal and tenancy professionals in the public and private sectors and at a local and national level. It is designed to help support the rolling out of Scottish Planning Policy (SPP) on huts.

It was a very inspiring evening which is set to change the future of planning laws for small buildings in Scotland.

The NestHouse from Tiny House Scotland
The NestHouse from Tiny House Scotland

#hutting #thousandhuts

 

NestHouse Stairs

Posted on Jonathan AveryPosted in Cabins, Design, Nesthouse, Small House, Tiny House

As I get closer to revealing the interior of the NestHouse - here’s a little sneak peek at the stairs in their finished state! The NestHouse was always going to have a cosy sleeping loft but it HAD to be accessed by stairs - I just don’t get the ladder thing at all - far too exposed! Of course this is easier in the NestHouse than a Tiny House because there is nearly 3m clear internal width.

I have designed a compact stairway with marine grab handles at strategic points to ensure safe passage and they form a really nice feature of the living space whilst also providing a highly adaptable storage cupboard underneath…I have a few cunning ideas in the pipeline for that one!

The Stairs in the NestHouse by Tiny House Scotland.
The Stairs in the NestHouse by Tiny House Scotland.