A Modern Barn Conversion With Sliding Glass Doors in Belgium
This family home in Belgium was completely redesigned, converting the former barn into an expensive family home that has been cleverly designed to utilise the existing barn space. The barn is located in Lokeren, a part of the countryside in Belgium that is known for its tranquil rural setting.
The complex design for the new home was, in part, predefined by the existing dwelling on the property which included the stables and a residential building. The residential building was demolished but the original barn was preserved, transformed by architects Pascal François. The new residential dwelling was designed to slot under the barn’s existing roof to join the two buildings together, however, planning authorities would not have allowed the buildings to be connected. For this reason, the architectural design gives the appearance of two joined buildings but the two dwellings have been designed to ensure they are not affected by each other structurally.
Timber cladding wraps around the ground floor of the new dwelling, in keeping with the traditional design of the timber barn building and even extends around the sides of the barn. The extensive use of external timber is contrasted by the slim framed sliding glass door systems, adding a modern touch to the Western style design. On the first floor, the building façade uses orange tiles, incorporating ceramic tiles to mimic the roof of the barn and highlighting the bond between old and new elements further.
Natural light played an integral part in the new design of the family home, incorporating a number of bespoke glazing solutions in Belgium to capitalise on the natural light and ensure views of the surrounding environment could be enjoyed from within the home. Sliding glass door solutions were installed to create large elevations of moving glass walls, forging a strong bond between indoor and outdoor areas. As well as bespoke glazing solutions, the interior layout was designed to allow the light to flow through the home. To capture the morning light, the new kitchen is located at the junction where the original barn building meets the new dwelling.
The sliding glass doors in Belgium have exceptionally slim sightlines of just 21mm, allowing natural light to flow freely into the house thanks to the minimally designed systems. The new kitchen, which is located inside the original barn building, uses an opening corner configuration to capture the morning sunlight and allow the space to be fully opened up for an indoor-outdoor style of living. A mix of two and three pane configurations can be seen throughout the new dwelling, depending on the opening size to maximise the glass ratio.
The slim framed sliding door systems are complete with a flush threshold detail, which allows step free travel between indoor and outdoor environments. Frameless picture windows have been paired with the Sliding glass doors in Belgium for a highly glazed design. Where frameless windows have been used, the building finishes have been brought over the aluminium profiles for a completely frameless finish.
The overall design of the barn conversion has completely modernised the family home whilst preserving the original charm of the barn building, keeping original features and taking inspiration from the traditional agricultural design.
To get in touch with the team about sliding glass doors in Belgium, or any other bespoke glazing solutions…