Alison Phillips Design

Donald is a great source of knowledge and really passionate about his subject.

Today I’ve been a RICS qualified chartered surveyor for over 35 years.
I’ve lived in Oxford, London and The Chilterns for all of my life and have helped people buying houses and homeowners with issues for the last 30 years adding Party wall work into the mix about 15 years ago.
The property market has undergone some ups and downs in that time as you’d expect but one thing remains constant, good professional straight talking advice you can trust can save you from making costly mistakes not always apparent.
Building work costs have escalated hugely so buying that “project property “ has to be considered carefully in order to be viable.
Most properties I see now have had significant structural alterations some done well and many not so well leaving a homeowner with significant issues. The property programmes on tv rarely show the people who have bought a property without being aware of pitfalls that bring worry stress and financial insecurity. It’s not great entertainment but it’s real and happening and to be avoided.
The introduction of The Party Wall Act etc 1996 has now become a means of enabling building work when living in close quarters with neighbours. Its success does depend on good communication a knowledge of buildings and an ability to talk openly and honestly with homeowners at a stressful time.
Some of the common issues found in homes together with the odd nightmare house can be found on my You Tube channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrnpqjicMsmSIg0BwJArUBQ

Another key issue today is energy efficiency and improving this in older properties has to be carefully considered. If any of these issues are something you’d like to discuss I can be reached on 01494 722006
www.donaldleslie.co.uk

Love this!

The Wendy House was built in the granite cliff face of Porthcurno, Cornwall during the 1920s by Rowena Cade.

This hidden gem was constructed with locally sourced materials and offers breath-taking views of the beach.

This looks like a great idea to get people sketching!

Get your sketchbooks ready! The Sketchbook Club in Chesham starts Tuesday 27th June.

Join me at The Roots for a relaxed evening of sketching. It's a great opportunity to build confidence, create for fun, boost creativity and enjoy being in the company of like minded people.

We can work from a prompt, sketch our surroundings or just draw whatever we feel, it is simply time dedicated to filling a page or two with no expectations.

Details

27.06.23
7pm-8:30pm
@ The Roots, Chesham
£10.50 pp (see website for transparency)

🍵 Drinks are not included but can be purchased in the cafe.

📚 Some sketchbooks will be available to purchase at a very small price should you need one.

✏️ Limited materials will be available but it is best to bring your preferred tools to work with.

💪 All levels and abilities welcome.

To book a seat please visit:

www.hereshelen.co.uk/product-page/the-sketchbook-club-in-june

Look forward to meeting you!

Cherry Blossom Tunnel in Japan. 🇯🇵 💕
Photo by: [IG]

One of the trickiest things to evaluate with thermal imaging is the efficiency of double-glazed windows. So this week we have been doing some research on why some windows have very bright edges within the frame even when they look fairly new and have a good sized gap. This blog post provides an explanation as to why windows with aluminium spacers (the strip of metal or plastic between the panes of glass) often look so bright to our thermal imaging camera when compared to windows with plastic spacers.
https://www.bayviewwindows.ca/blog/understanding-window-spacers/whats-the-difference

💚We are having a Sustainable Chesham social event on the 23rd of November at the Queens head 7.15-onwards 💚
If you’ve wanted to come along to one of our meetings for a while but haven’t had the chance this will be a great relaxed evening to come and say hello! 👋
We would love to hear some fresh ideas and see new faces 🍻

Love this ingenious & beautiful stair design!

✨Staircase ❤️
Designer✏️: Ander Alencar❤️

Great energy efficiency event on 24th September!

The Speakers at the Energy Efficient Homes Fair in Princes Risborough this month have been confirmed - find out who is speaking and about what by clicking here:
https://buckscommunityenergy.org/energyefficient

This will be the best place this winter to get your questions answered by specialists in retrofitting for energy efficient homes about how you can effectively counteract the effect of spiralling energy costs - so don't miss out!

Book tickets online in advance as space is limited - and hurry because they are going fast.

Love this small space and need to look at Japandi more too!

Light-Filled Tiny Apartment Is Inspired by Japanese and Scandinavian Minimalism See how this small apartment spotlights the growing trend toward simplicity and smart functionality.

Love this!

Sou Fujimoto’s House of Music opens in Budapest - ICON Magazine The new cultural venue, set in the Hungarian capital's City Park, is dedicated to the experience of music – and has a striking punctured roof

Really interesting development

Building study: Greenwich Design District Mole's Victorian warehouse-inspired timber buildings really stand out among the low-cost rental studio spaces designed for creative industries

This year's programme of events centres around the theme Act, which aims to examine how we can act for ourselves, each other, our cities and the environment

London Festival of Architecture 2022 | Dezeen Events Guide London Festival of Architecture is a month-long celebration of architectural practice and experimentation. It takes place from 1 to 30 June 2022.

Just love this especially the wonderful use of colour!

Sanjay Puri Architects complete multi-faceted residential building in India - ICON Magazine The façade of this housing block in Kodla, Karnataka, features a play of geometric shapes, cubic forms and bold primary colours.

Interesting & diverse projects in this top 10!

Dezeen's top 10 house extensions of 2021 We're continuing our review of the year with the house extensions that turned heads in 2021, including a polycarbonate-clad tower and a mirrored gallery.

Following a week of challenging building work at https://www.facebook.com/theoldcrofthouseaird on the Isle of Skye I have renewed respect for all my builder colleagues. It's sometimes good to take a step across to another aspect of your profession & put a different hat on (hope you all like my hard hat disguised as a woolly hat!) to appreciate the hard work involved in all areas of the construction industry!

Christmas Chiltern Creative event!

Ho ho networking! It's the Chiltern Creative Christmas Caper! Well, Christmas Do.

Not only with this Chiltern Creative event will have a Christmas flavour, it will feature our first creative showcase with the wonderful, local jazz duo Akimbo performing live, starring Nell Greco and Pedro Velasco – excitement!

Join us for music, mulled wine, mince pies and a mellow evening of meeting sparkly like-minded creative professionals.

Whether it’s film, theatre, music, art, or any of the other creative industries you are guaranteed to connect with creative people just like you.

At Roots in Chesham.
Thursday 2nd December, from 7.30pm

£10 gets you into the event with a drink and nibbles to boot!
https://elgiva.com/chiltern-creatives-networking-christmas/

Great article with many useful links to European examples of how we can do things better going forward (both in the US as the article mentions or elsewhere).

26 Climate Actions Cities Should Adopt at COP26 for Climate Change Resilience Michael Eliason compiles a list of 26 actions he wishes cities would adopt to build back better and improve livability while adapting to the realities of a rapidly destabilizing climate.

COP26

"COP26 marks a critical juncture for humanity" say architects Ten architects and designers heading to the COP26 summit in Glasgow told Dezeen about their hopes and fears for the conference.

I need something fun this week!

Ten playful interiors with slides at their centres For our latest lookbook, we've gathered ten projects, from family homes to toy company offices, that feature slides at the heart of their interiors.

More clever use of copper - loving this!

Amelia Tavella Architectes adds perforated copper extension to a Corsican convent French studio Amelia Tavella Architectes renovated and extended a 15th-century convent on the island of Corsica, adding a perforated copper volume.

Looks really interesting

Paris plans first ‘zero-carbon’ neighbourhood - ICON Magazine The development at Porte de Montreuil – with designs from Tatiana Bilbao and Serie Architects – embraces the use of terracotta, h**p, raw earth and CLT

Nature wins

Thought-Provoking Photos Show Ruins Reclaimed by Nature A photographer documents derelict sites around the world that are slowly being consumed by the natural world.

Creativity is essential!

‘Creativity is essential’: artist-designed supermarket to open in London Product packaging created by artists for UK’s Design Museum aims to showcase importance of creativity

Much food for thought here

Ending the destruction of our planet is a design challenge | ICON Magazine We need to leave behind toxic materials, systems and products whose damage we can’t justify any longer, argues Parley's Cyrill Gutsch