Two Storey Self Build, West Kilbride

About this project

This detached stone cottage sits in open countryside above West Kilbride. The plan was a substantial two storey self build that sits alongside the original building and connects straight into it, giving the house far more space.

Downstairs, the new build adds two new bedrooms, a bathroom and a hallway with a new staircase. Upstairs is a full master suite: bedroom, dressing area, en-suite and a snug, opening out onto a covered balcony. The existing cottage is being altered around the entrance, utility, kitchen and hallway so the old and new work as one house.

The build started in May 2026. We cleared the site, lowered the access road to meet the building regulations, then dug and poured the foundations, built the substructure and laid the slab. A short pause while the updated structural drawings came through for the steel was used to get ahead with the groundworks and drainage. The timber frame went up over the summer, followed by the first floor, the roof, windows, doors and solar panels.

Joining a new two storey building onto an old stone cottage takes care. The cottage had to stay structurally secure and weathertight at every stage, and the opening through into the existing house was made once the new building was closed in.

As of October 2026 the outside is nearly complete, the scaffold is down, the plasterboard is on and first fix is almost done. Next comes plastering, second fix and the finishes. You can follow it on our YouTube channel too, as the West Kilbride self build, and we will keep adding to this page until handover.