A contemporary new-build above Canford Cliffs

Completed this year on an elevated plot set back from the village, this house was designed around the long view to the sea between the pines. The form is low and horizontal, faced in handmade clay brick and western red cedar that has been left to silver, with a green roof to the single-storey wing that softens it into the slope.

Inside, the plan is calm and legible. An entrance hall opens to a double-height void, and the living space runs the length of the rear elevation behind a wall of glass that frames the cliffs and the water beyond. The kitchen is the quiet centre of the house — pale microcement, oak joinery and a single island in honed granite — giving onto a sheltered terrace and a level lawn.

The principal bedroom occupies the upper floor with its own terrace and a bathroom finished in tadelakt. Three further bedrooms, each en-suite, are arranged for guests and family without crowding. The detailing is consistent throughout: recessed skirtings, flush doors, concealed lighting, and an air-source system that keeps running costs low.

The garden has been planted for the coast — grasses, pine and maritime shrubs that need little and ask for less. Chine paths to the beach are a short walk down, and the village is closer still.