Set in the heart of The Cotswolds, this 17th-century limestone cottage is located within both a conservation area and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The homeowners sought to create a contemporary yet sensitive extension that would better connect their historic home with the surrounding gardens and unlock uninterrupted views over the valley.
Designed by George King Architects, The Reading Room features three sets of IDSystems’ Grand Slider II sliding doors, including open-corner and pocket sliding door configurations. The outcome is a garden room with a refined blend of pioneering glazing, material craftsmanship and respectful heritage restoration.
The design brief was clear: create a space that feels completely immersed in the landscape, while remaining usable throughout the year. The solution is a compact, timber-clad extension whose glass elevations can disappear entirely, transforming the room into a surreal outdoor living space.
A key feature is the trio of structural timber bookcases that not only form the vertical support for the cantilevered green roof but also conceal the pocket sliding doors. When fully open, the walls vanish into these pockets, dissolving the boundaries between the interior and the terraced garden.
Architect George King explains:
“The original house looks out across a valley, but many of the windows are small, and the clients weren’t able to make the most of their view. The large glass doors allow them to enjoy views from the garden year-round. I wanted the design to be distinctive yet sympathetic to the traditional materials of the house.”
The Reading Room features three separate Grand Slider II sliding doors, each designed to enhance the connection between inside and out:
A three-panel set opens into a hidden pocket, paired with a frameless glass balustrade that transforms the opening into a balcony projecting towards the valley.
A single-panel pocket door opens away from the main house façade, providing simple daily access to the garden while maintaining clean, unobstructed wall lines.
The statement feature is a moveable corner post system comprising three sliding panels on each side. When opened, the panels disappear into pockets on the inside of the external wall, creating an unsupported floating corner beneath the cantilevered roof. When the glazing disappears, the garden flows seamlessly into the Reading Room, enhanced further by ceramic tiles that continue from indoors onto the patio, removing any sense of threshold.
Blending the new structure with the historic cottage was crucial. The extension is finished in charred timber cladding, echoing the original black-stained beams and window frames typical of regional architecture. Inside, light birch plywood linings offer a warm contemporary contrast to the restored Cotswold stone.
The cottage’s existing stone walls, previously painted and in poor condition, were carefully stripped, repaired and repointed, revealing their natural texture and reconnecting the home with its architectural roots.
Landscape Transformation
Originally, the sloping garden offered very little usable space. The design team transformed it into a series of landscaped terraces, creating seating, planting areas, and level outdoor surfaces that extend the Reading Room into the site. These terraces, combined with the open-corner glazing and floating roofline, deliver uninterrupted sightlines across the valley.
“In order to better integrate the garden with the house, the slope was turned into terraces and the Reading Room was built level with the lawn.”
The completed Reading Room is a masterclass in sensitive conservation and contemporary engineering. Its disappearing doors, cantilevered roof, charred timber cladding and panoramic views create a serene retreat that feels both completely new and deeply connected to the cottage’s 17th-century character.
With the help of Grand Slider II open-corner and pocket systems, the extension transforms with the seasons – offering an intimate reading space in winter, and an open-air garden pavilion in summer.
