Read the Full Article on Plain Magazine Here.
The Oxfordshire Pond House is a bespoke pool house set in the garden of a family home in Oxfordshire. Created by Okopod, the addition embraces the philosophy of showcasing “modern living, designed with care and where less is always more.”
With an exterior featuring Yakisugi cladding (charred timber) and a living sedum roof and insulation and rainwater runoff system, the structure puts sustainability at the forefront of its design. Inside, a multi-functional layout maximises every available square foot, comprising a living area, a home office, a bathroom, and clever storage solutions. The warm birch plywood used in the interiors gives the pool house its Scandinavian-inspired aesthetic. Overhead, an infrared heating system warms the volume, freeing the eye of visual clutter.
The structure sits on a zero-concrete raft foundation system, which minimises its environmental impact on the site. “Okopod’s construction process also applies the principles of lean manufacturing, drawing inspiration from the Toyota Production System (TPS) to eliminate inefficiencies and deliver exceptional build precision,” says the studio. The result is a structure that seamlessly blends contemporary luxury with environmental stewardship, redefining what modern garden architecture can achieve.
When James Home founded Okopod in 2019, he had a refreshingly straightforward mission: build gorgeous, sustainable garden rooms without all the headaches of traditional construction. By crafting these contemporary structures in a controlled workshop rather than dealing with unpredictable building sites, Okopod delivers superior quality while dramatically cutting down on the waste that plagues the construction industry. Discover more projects by Okopod.
