This top lit oak staircase twists through a void created between the existing gatehouse and new extension at Grange Loan.

The double curved handrail was handmade by a Fife based joiner whom Helen Lucas Architects regularly collaborate with. A blacksmith fitted the mild steel rods and welded a steel ribbon to the the top of them. The oak handrail which curves in two directions was made to match and forms a sweeping curve between the levels. The oak treads have scored nosings for slip resistance and the whole staircase was finished with a hardwax oil to enhance the natural beauty of the wood.

View more images of the completed project to the Grange Loan Gatehouse >

It is fifty times bigger but even we were surprised by how similar the completed kitchen at Stoer is to the cardboard model made almost two years earlier to help the clients get a sense of the space beneath the oak scissor trusses.

You can see from the finished photograph that the clients decided to add some additional top light during the design process but little else has changed during the later stages of detailed design amp construction. The double height space is the heart of this rural home beautifully sited on a Sutherland croft.

Photos of this croft house in its unique setting can be seen here >.

Architects from Helen Lucas Architects were on hand at Edinburgh's Ingleby Gallery to give behind the scenes tours of areas of the gallery that are usually closed to the general public.

Helen Lucas Architects created the gallery in the building that formerly housed The Venue, an infamous nightclub on Calton Road. A dramatic new staircase has been introduced between the floors giving a discreet, hidden and beautiful route between the three floors of the building.

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Before and after pictures of the staircase at Dunbeg House, near Fort William.

The existing servants staircase to the basement was cramped and dark. The client wanted to make the lower ground floor of the property feel like part of the house.

The link between the floors has been greatly improved by the removal of a partition wall to enhance visibilty and sense of space on the staircase. The details of the stair have been merticulously matched to those elsewhere in the property. The client used skilled craftsmen to match the wood panneling, spindles and plasterwork incuding the newel post at the bottom of the staircase which was hand carved from Oak.

Helen Lucas Architects oversaw the extensive redevelopment of this Listed Property situated on the banks of Loch Leven.

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