WALLS: top

The walls at the kitchen end were finished with a flat curb along the top. This was achieved with a cut breeze block laid horizontally across the cavity. The curb had been specified by the company that were fitting the glass roof. I had got to the top of the breeze blocks by the end of the first summer and (as planned) the project was put to sleep for the winter of 2008. We wanted to get the roof on during my summer break in 2009 so I would need to make some steps at the weekends in May and June to prepare the way. Work would begin again in the spring.

May 2009: The walls would be finished with two courses of bricks to achieve the correct height for the soffit at the front.

The key consideration at the top of the walls was setting the height of the soffit in relation to the new window. We wanted to copy the way the windows and shutters related to the existing soffit at the front of the house. The roof structure would need to sit on the wall at quite a precise height with the soffit being created by the end of rafters. In order to reach this specific height, the walls would need to be finished with two courses of bricks. There would then be the wooden roof plate to which the structure would be fixed.

May 2009: The soffit will be created by the ends of rafters which sit on the wall plate. The final height of the wall plate is crucial for the look of the window and shutter under the soffit.