Structure studio Polysmiths used cork panels to clad inside and exterior surfaces at Cork Home in east London, which was constructed utilizing supplies obtainable through the Covid-19 lockdown.

Polysmiths director Charles Wu adopted the roles of architect, shopper and developer for the Cork Home mission, which he designed as a house for himself and his accomplice.

Wu bought an oblong brownfield plot in Forest Gate in 2020 and set about producing plans for a three-bedroom home that was to be constructed utilizing typical blockwork and timber body development.

Lockdowns through the coronavirus pandemic led to a scarcity of supplies resembling concrete, plasterboard and plywood, which turned too costly to make use of within the mission. This prompted Wu to search for extra reasonably priced and fewer generally used alternate options.

“We determined to analysis and go for supplies that did not have provide chain points and will really improve the constructing’s sustainability credentials,” Wu informed Dezeen.

The home is constructed utilizing domestically sourced timber and lime plaster, with cork panelling utilized to the inner and exterior partitions. This materials palette provides the inside an earthy and cocooning really feel.

The cork was sourced from Portuguese agency Amorim by way of a Welsh provider referred to as Mike Wye. Harvested from the bark of the cork oak tree, the fabric is extremely insulating and was handled to fulfill fire-proofing laws.

“I had used cork beforehand as cavity insulation however I hadn’t actually used it as a wall end earlier than,” mentioned Wu, including that the fabric has a multi-sensory high quality that introduced an extra dimension to the mission.

“It smells superb – like barely charred wooden,” he instructed, “and it has this wealthy color and texture that comes alive when mild hits the floor.”

The brownfield web site was hidden from the primary road and surrounded by the everyday walled gardens of the neighbouring terraced homes. This prompted the architect to hunt out revolutionary methods of introducing daylight to the inside.

“The very first thing I attempted to do was to deliver extra mild in utilizing courtyards,” Wu defined. “These internally dealing with courtyards additionally allowed us to create cross air flow all through the areas.”

Constructing laws restricted the general top of the constructing, so a part of the positioning was excavated to drop the ground stage by half a storey, leading to a split-level inside.

Cork Home’s entrance leads right into a hallway that connects with the open-plan kitchen, eating space and lounge. A centrally positioned lightwell and staircase separates this area from two bedrooms and a bathe room to the rear of the property.

“The 2 wings assist distinguish between the private and non-private elements of the bottom flooring,” Wu identified. “The eating room and dwelling space is someplace we are able to have events after which the opposite extra intimate wing accommodates the bedrooms.”

The principle courtyard is lined with totally openable folding glass doorways, creating an indoor-outdoor dwelling area that’s impressed by the point Wu spent dwelling in Australia throughout his childhood.

Alongside the central lightwell, skylights, high-level home windows and a smaller void within the again nook of the home guarantee pure mild penetrates deep into the inner areas.

Cork Home’s decrease floor flooring accommodates the primary bed room, which appears to be like onto a courtyard on the base of the bigger lightwell. The en-suite toilet additionally receives daylight from the nook lightwell.

Wu described the mission for instance of “lovely sustainability” that showcases an experimental strategy to self-building utilizing uncommon supplies and strategies pushed by troublesome circumstances.

“I’d encourage different architects to tackle this type of mission if they’ve the chance,” he added. “Alongside working for purchasers, architects ought to look to steer constructing tasks and use them as prototypes for testing new supplies and new methods of dwelling.”

Cork is a pure and renewable materials that has turn out to be more and more standard with architects in recent times, as demonstrated in our roundup of ten interiors with cork-covered partitions.

Portuguese studio Inês Brandão Arquitectura used cork to clad the higher storey of a home close to Lisbon, creating textured surfaces that complement the pure setting.

Nate Dalesio additionally lined the outside of his own residence within the State of New York with corkboard panels chosen to enhance the constructing’s insulation.

The images is by Lorenzo Zandri.