McCallum
“When we first saw the cover of the Deckhouse blurb, we immediately thought “Wow – can we really have a house like that?”, and now here it is.”
Jennifer and Ian McCallum’s 5300sq ft Deck House in Mere, Wiltshire.
Having lived in a “Georgian pile” for nearly three decades, Ian and Jennifer McCallum were fed up with never ending problems such as damp and wet rot, not to mention the drafts that whistled through their 18th century house in Winter. “After 25 years we were ready for a fresh start, but we needed a house that would fit our unusual circumstances,” says Ian, 63.
In 2001, they visited a completed Deck House in West Sussex but they had already fallen for the photograph on the front of the Deck House brochure – an image that shows a house with a soaring double-height interior. This contemporary Deck House Homestead was to become the model on which their own 5300sq ft Deck House is based.
After a two year search for land, the couple bought a one-acre green field site with planning permission for £250K in 2003. The plot backs on to a 15th century manor house and its garden of mature trees.
“We were immediately drawn to the vast open space with lovely windows, soaring ceilings and wood all over the place,” explains Ian. “Our large open-plan living area features 6.5 metres of double-height space. Visually, this offers so much freedom.”
Construction began in the spring of 2004 and at the end of May, five containers arrived containing the house’s superstructure and internal joinery. “We had a totally smooth UK import all handled effortlessly by email and phone,” says Ian. “The company has been immensely supportive.”
“It is truly the most amazing house, and we are so pleased with it. We’ve two big chairs set up in the huge window so we can watch The world go by in the sun – wonderful! When we first saw the cover of the Deckhouse blurb, we immediately thought “Wow – can we really have a house like that?”, and now here it is.”