Thoughts that keep every self-builder up at night

Charlie Luxton, sustainable architectural designer from More4’s ‘Building the Dream’ and guest expert at The London Homebuilding & Renovating Show (21-23 September, ExCeL, London), shares his challenges around self building and offers tips on how to overcome them from his experience of... View Article

FAKRO loses smear campaign against VELUX

FAKRO, Polish roof window competitor to VELUX, loses a complaint to the EU Commission, which since 2012 has been used as the basis for a smear campaign across most of Europe against The VELUX Group.  The European Commission rejected the... View Article

Back with a bang!

Selfbuilder + Homemaker is following first-time self-builders Andy and Sarah Ball from the start of their project to completion. The last time we heard from them, they had just lost their builder. Now, a year on, the project is firmly... View Article

Eco performers

Michelle Alcock of Teknos offers an insight into environmentally-friendly paints and how their performance has come on leaps and bounds. Paints and finishes are far more than a design device that brings colour and cohesion to your home. They are... View Article

Untangling the issue

Long delays and landfill costs from dealing with Japanese knotweed could be a thing of the past thanks to new methods available to self- builders, explains Nic Seal of Environet. Discovering the presence of Japanese knotweed on a site where... View Article

The view from the showroom

Howarth Timber researcher and blogger Kat Jacklin outlines key kitchen trends identified for 2018 and beyond. Providing a dedicated kitchen design service to both trade customers and homeowners offers a unique insight into kitchen design trends: not only those which... View Article

The hot topic

With awareness of smoke and fire protection needs at an all time high, Steve Bright of A Perry & Co explains how safety goes beyond alarms. The tragic events at Grenfell Tower in the summer of 2017 placed the spotlight... View Article

A green partnership

Heat pumps are often paired with underfloor heating, but a system featuring low-H2O radiators could provide greater comfort, control and efficiency. Jaga UK’s Claire Owen discusses why implementing renewable heating needs a ‘whole system approach’ to work best. Many people... View Article

Scandi balance

Embrace the Swedish trend of achieving a more balanced lifestyle using the concept of ‘lagom’, with tips from Catharina Bjorkman – of Swedish wood burning stove company Contura. The Swedish term ‘lagom’ (pronounced lar-gom) means ‘just the right amount’; ‘not... View Article

Warning for homeowners over builders’ insurance

Homeowners improving their properties have been warned to check credentials after it was revealed up to half of the UK’s building contractors may be underinsured. Experts at Construction Insure claim that around half of all UK contracting firms, including builders,... View Article