The York Handmade Brick Company, the leading independent brickmaker in the north of England, has provided 40,000 specially-made bricks and arches for a pair of award-winning houses in the heart of York.
York Handmade, based at Forest Lane, Alne, near Easingwold, manufactured bespoke Old Clamp Blend bricks for 33 and 34 St Mary’s to fit in with the historic surroundings.
The contract was worth £30,000 and the bricks helped the elegant town houses to win the New Residential category of the York Design Awards 2011. The houses are owned by Mr and Mrs Edward Waterson and Mr and Mrs Daniel Rose.
David Armitage, the chairman of York Handmade, commented: “This was a hugely challenging and satisfying project. St Mary’s, which runs from Bootham down to the River Ouse, is steeped in history and is one of York’s most fascinating streets.
“The original house on the site had been demolished, so we were starting from scratch. The aim was to ensure the two new houses fitted in seamlessly with the neighbouring houses in St Mary’s and we believe we have achieved that. They certainly don’t look out of place.
“As a company, we love working in York. This project came hard on the heels of our award winning work on the new building for York St John on the corner of Gillygate and Lord
Mayor’s Walk, in the shadow of the Bar Walls,” he added.
The architects who worked on the project were Francis Johnson of Bridlington. Digby Harris of Francis Johnson commented: “The bricks that York Handmade supplied were first class. They matched the weathered bricks of the surrounding houses in St Mary’s perfectly and contributed to a very successful overall project”.
Edward Waterson said: “We are absolutely delighted with the result. I was adamant that only York Handmade bricks would do for our house and I was right. No other brick company could have made our house look so effortlessly elegant. They knew exactly what we wanted –
and they delivered.”