Accoya flush
casements —
Bramham cottage.

The brief

DNB Builders & Stone had a stone cottage extension near completion in Bramham and needed timber windows and a set of French doors to finish the job. The original spec — sent through by the architect — was fake top-hung sash windows: a mock-sash design where the upper light is fixed and the lower opens like a top-hung casement. Fine on paper, but once we surveyed the openings it was clear they wouldn't have suited the proportions. Head heights were short and the sight lines would have looked wrong against the pantile roof and stone reveals.

Why flush casements were the right call

Flush casements sit tight into the frame — no lipped detail sitting proud — so they read as clean and traditional on stone properties without pretending to be something they're not. On a shallow head like this one, that's what makes the difference between "correct" and "not quite right". We showed the builder and the owner a couple of examples we'd fitted on similar stone cottages around Wetherby and Boston Spa, and they went with it on the day. The French doors follow the same detail, with Georgian bar glazing to tie into the rest of the elevation.

Timber, glazing and finish

Full Accoya frames and sashes throughout — Class 1 durability, dimensionally stable, and paint holds on Accoya roughly three times longer than on unmodified softwood. Argon-filled double glazed sealed units for thermal performance. Every window and door sprayed in-house to a factory finish in Farrow & Ball All White (No. 2005) — a clean, bright white that suits a new extension without looking cold against warm Yorkshire stone.

Ironmongery & security

Espagnolette handles in chrome — a matched set across every casement and the French doors. Multi-point locking throughout, PAS 24-compliant configuration available on request for insurance and Part Q where required. Discreet ironmongery keeps the elevation clean and lets the stonework and the timber do the talking.

"The architect had drawn fake top-hung sashes, but the openings just weren't right for them. Bailey Hague suggested flush casements instead — the owner loves them."

Working with builders and stone masons in Bramham & Wetherby

DNB Builders & Stone is one of a number of builders we work with regularly on new-build extensions, barn conversions and full renovations across the Bramham, Wetherby, Boston Spa, Collingham and Tadcaster area. If you're a builder, stone mason or architect on a project that needs timber joinery — sash, casement, French, bifold, entrance doors — we survey free and quote on a fixed price, on a supply-only or supply-and-fit basis. We can also come out during the design stage if you want a second opinion on what will actually suit an opening.