Interior design, build & renovation of severn ancestral properties in the Indus Valley of Ladakh. — DESIGNERDiDi

H o m e
A b o u t
D e s i g n S p a c e s

Shakti Himalaya is a travel company whose vision and ethos is to preserve and restore existing ancestral farmhouses for tourism, rather than build new buildings. This makes for a unique partnership with communities that allows generations to benefit from the circular economy of tourism.

I worked with them to create severn houses in the Valley of Ladakh, 3,500 meters up on a high plateau of Northern India. Each project begins by searching for homes in remote corners of the areas or pockets of small villages that have been left untouched by the well-beaten tracks of tourism.

We search for ancestral homes in need of renovation so we can breathe new life into them. Together with my colleagues, we hunt in remote destinations to find the perfect houses. Many of the ancestral properties have been left to the elements as more and more local families opt out of using traditional building methods in favor of the convenience of building concrete dwellings. We rescue these forgotten houses and patiently and respectfully rebuild mindful of the lives lived in them and the stories hidden within them.

The traditional local methods used to build houses in Ladakh have evolved from the harsh climate. Houses are created using a local technique known as rammed earth on which centuries-old Monasteries were built. The foundations of these dwellings are created using stone whitewashed with lime, then the upper levels are created using sun-dried bricks know as ‘adobe', molding plastered with fine clay creates ‘Markala’ roofs, and then the floors are constructed from ‘Poplar' Poplars (Populus deltoids) with beams created using willow branches, or Yagdaz, which is similar to heather.

The ‘Lompo’ house at Egoo is my absolute favorite renovation story. It was an enormously challenging build, but we carefully gave it a new life. While this 300-year-old grand dame of a dwelling sat proudly in place, the roof had collapsed and the walls have badly deteriorated. We slowly and patiently rebuilt it, mud-brick by mud brick.

Working from sketches and mock-ups, we used traditional carpentry and building techniques to create a new space that is based on the traditional dwellings of the area, but with a hint of luxury but without.

Restored from near ruin, the River House in the village Nimoo on the banks of the Indus maintains is another favorite renovation. It has been created in the rustic style of other Shakti village houses but featuring beautiful furnishings and Buddhist iconography it has a luxurious, sophisticated edge,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bAEPtB2NcQ

EGOO 2011, finding the Lompo House.

EGOO 2011, finding the Lompo House.

INDUS RIVER FARM HOUSE. NIMOO VILLAGE. RE BUILT ROOM TO BECOME BATHROOM.

INDUS RIVER FARM HOUSE. NIMOO VILLAGE. RE BUILT ROOM TO BECOME BATHROOM.

PRAYER ROOM. EGOO HOUSE. 2011

PRAYER ROOM. EGOO HOUSE. 2011

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM GLASS FRAMES 2015

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM GLASS FRAMES 2015

STAKNA HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM & BALCONY

STAKNA HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM & BALCONY

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE. CATTLE STORAGE ROOM BEFORE RENOVATION

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE. CATTLE STORAGE ROOM BEFORE RENOVATION

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. 2015

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. 2015

INDUS RIVER HOUSE KITCHEN

INDUS RIVER HOUSE KITCHEN

EGOO LOMPO HOUSE STABLE

EGOO LOMPO HOUSE STABLE

EGOO HOUSE 'HONEYMOON ROOM '

EGOO HOUSE 'HONEYMOON ROOM '

EGOO KITCHEN

STAKNA NEW BUILD BEDROOM

STAKNA NEW BUILD BEDROOM

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE

LIKHIR STAIRWELL

LIKHIR STAIRWELL

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

STAKNA BEDROOM

EGOO KITCHEN

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

STAKNA BATHROOM

STAKNA BATHROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BEDROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BEDROOM

STAKNA SHELF

THE BEGINNING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

THE BEGINNING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

LIKHIR LIVINGROOM

LIKHIR LIVINGROOM

EGOO PRAYER ROOM BEDROOM

EGOO PRAYER ROOM BEDROOM

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE TERRACE

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE TERRACE

NIMOO BEDROOM

EGOO FINISHED EXTERIOR

EGOO FINISHED EXTERIOR

LIKHIR BEDROOM BEGININGS

LIKHIR BEDROOM BEGININGS

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM BEGINNINGS

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM BEGINNINGS

STOK BEDROOM EN SUITE

STOK BEDROOM EN SUITE

SHEY PRAYER ROOM

SHEY PRAYER ROOM

SHEY KITCHEN

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

THE ROOF BUILDING INDUS RIVER HOUSE

THE ROOF BUILDING INDUS RIVER HOUSE

LIKHIR BEDROOM

THE MAKING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

THE MAKING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

NIMOO BEDROOM

INDUS BEGINNING

INDUS BEGINNING

INDUS SIT OUT ALONG THE RIVER

INDUS SIT OUT ALONG THE RIVER

THE BUILDING OF SHEY

THE BUILDING OF SHEY

EGOO 2011, finding the Lompo House.

EGOO 2011, finding the Lompo House.

INDUS RIVER FARM HOUSE. NIMOO VILLAGE. RE BUILT ROOM TO BECOME BATHROOM.

INDUS RIVER FARM HOUSE. NIMOO VILLAGE. RE BUILT ROOM TO BECOME BATHROOM.

PRAYER ROOM. EGOO HOUSE. 2011

PRAYER ROOM. EGOO HOUSE. 2011

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM GLASS FRAMES 2015

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM GLASS FRAMES 2015Are you alt tag?

STAKNA HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM & BALCONY

STAKNA HOUSE. NEW BEDROOM & BALCONY

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE. CATTLE STORAGE ROOM BEFORE RENOVATION

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE. CATTLE STORAGE ROOM BEFORE RENOVATION

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. 2015

INDUS RIVER HOUSE. 2015

INDUS RIVER HOUSE KITCHEN

INDUS RIVER HOUSE KITCHEN

EGOO LOMPO HOUSE STABLE

EGOO LOMPO HOUSE STABLE

EGOO HOUSE 'HONEYMOON ROOM '

EGOO HOUSE 'HONEYMOON ROOM '

EGOO KITCHEN

EGOO KITCHEN

STAKNA NEW BUILD BEDROOM

STAKNA NEW BUILD BEDROOM

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE

LIKHIR STAIRWELL

LIKHIR STAIRWELL

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

STAKNA BEDROOM

STAKNA BEDROOM

EGOO KITCHEN

EGOO KITCHEN

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

STAKNA BATHROOM

STAKNA BATHROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BEDROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BEDROOM

STAKNA SHELF

STAKNA SHELF

THE BEGINNING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

THE BEGINNING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM

LIKHIR LIVINGROOM

LIKHIR LIVINGROOM

EGOO PRAYER ROOM BEDROOM

EGOO PRAYER ROOM BEDROOM

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE TERRACE

NIMOO VILLAGE HOUSE TERRACE

NIMOO BEDROOM

NIMOO BEDROOM

EGOO FINISHED EXTERIOR

EGOO FINISHED EXTERIOR

LIKHIR BEDROOM BEGININGS

LIKHIR BEDROOM BEGININGS

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM BEGINNINGS

INDUS RIVER HOUSE BATHROOM BEGINNINGS

STOK BEDROOM EN SUITE

STOK BEDROOM EN SUITE

SHEY PRAYER ROOM

SHEY PRAYER ROOM

SHEY KITCHEN

SHEY KITCHEN

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

SHEY MASTER BEDROOM

THE ROOF BUILDING INDUS RIVER HOUSE

THE ROOF BUILDING INDUS RIVER HOUSE

LIKHIR BEDROOM

LIKHIR BEDROOM

THE MAKING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

THE MAKING OF INDUS RIVER HOUSE

NIMOO BEDROOM

NIMOO BEDROOM

INDUS BEGINNING

INDUS BEGINNING

INDUS SIT OUT ALONG THE RIVER

INDUS SIT OUT ALONG THE RIVER

THE BUILDING OF SHEY

THE BUILDING OF SHEY

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