Where the English Channel and The North Sea meet lies the town of Deal, a crucial staging point for shipping into and out of the London Docks in the age of sail.

The Marina is a stretch of the Deal seafront with a patchwork of closely spaced buildings, nearly all for living in, representing styles and influences from the 18th C onwards, including some dullards and some real gems.

In 2016 the clients acquired the site of The North Star, a very flimsy, former 19th C public house and very boldly decided to build a new house. To do so involved a significant relocation culturally and physically from Miami FLA to Deal KEN.

Architect and Client had first worked together in the 90’s on commercial projects in London and Miami. They re-united in 2017 to see if there was a transferable synergy and a way to bring their ideas of light, space and exuberant chic to the English seaside.

The architects were fortunate in more ways than one. An enlightened client with vision and trust and a planning officer with ambition for the town, insisting on a new building that balanced the needs of the owners in the private domain – with the needs of the passer by in the public arena.

The new house sits between two classic Marina architectural specimens. To the right a real gem, the home of the 1919 Deal Angling Club and to the left a 60’s box - a genuine dullard. The site is separated from the pebbly beach by a narrow road and a low sea defensive wall. The 180-degree views of the channel are stunning from the main living spaces at 1st floor level and the yoga studio and terrace at 2nd floor. Ground storey cladding of gabion cages neatly filled with large beach pebbles - make a witty visual link between beach and building.

The ground floor plan includes two double bedrooms, a studio and utility room / shower room, for dogs and sandy people.

A birch ply and oak stair leads to the first floor, all open plan, the main bedroom and guest ‘powder’ room complete with snakeskin (faux of course) vanity and exotic floral wall paper - hints at a Miami cultural mix.

The ply and oak stair exemplifies simple, almost Shaker like qualities. The glossy orange and polished stainless steel companionway is a model of complex engineering and made-to-measure bespoke design.

The architect’s ambition was to create contrasts from the unique seaside reflected up light. Even on a cloudy day the effects are visible. As night falls the sea becomes a sparkling black mirror.

Sustainability is high on the agenda - super insulated Durisol blocks, the ubiquitous Velfac double and triple glazed windows, high levels of roof insulation, all electric, zero carbon tech, underfloor heating, air source heat pump and MVHR - all the energy conserving elements as you would expect.

The materials list includes high specification exterior finishes to resist the aggressive salt environment of the coast helping to ensure longevity and low maintenance, and salvaged timber linings from Hastings Pier.