Jean Elvidge’s new home on the banks of the River Tay is not only a fine example of bespoke design, sensitively tailored to the needs of its retired owner, but is also a contemporary twist on the strong maritime building tradition of the area. For Elvidge, on a personal level, it’s also a fulfilment of a childhood yen to live in this Tayside coastal area.

“I always wanted to live near the water,” she says. “I was brought up in Ayr, and I loved looking over to Arran. When I was about 10, and I had just had my tonsils out, we came to Broughty Ferry and I walked along the beach nearby and thought, ‘That’s where I want to live’. And I’m not far off it now.”

The project to design and build Elvidge a home in Broughty Ferry began three years ago, when she lived across the road — she had bought the site of her new home as a plot and was using it as an extended garden.

She says: “I’d always lived in old houses, but I always wanted to be in a modern house, partly because I like the space and light in contemporary houses, and partly because I like the idea of a maintenance-free house.”

Elvidge’s idea took shape when her son-in-law, a keen yachtsman, spotted a contemporary house on the west coast while out sailing. Inquiries revealed the property had been designed by the Arbroath-based design practice the Voigt Partnership. Elvidge invited Heinz Voigt, the principal, to have a chat about her vision for a new beachside home.

The brief was for a three-bedroom contemporary open-plan house with a flat roof that would not obstruct the sea views of her neighbours on the hill behind. The finished model is little altered from the first sketch Voigt produced — a long, low house with a flat grass-covered roof, and a tower, complete with crow’s nest.

“I designed the house around the main aspect, taking into account the prevailing west wind,” explains Voigt. “The house is designed to take maximum advantage of the seafront; the exterior reflects the beach and stone harbour walls that define Broughty Ferry’s front.

“We played around with different finishes — the white roughcast is traditional in Scotland, and the external timber reflects the boats on the Tay. The stone elements with the portholes, we saw in terms of a traditional buttress wall, the likes of which can be seen at Broughty Castle nearby.

“The tower also has a maritime theme, where the tapered walls are built in the same way as a traditional lighthouse. Its pitch roof is characteristic of the area.”

The timber-framed structure, built over 18 months at a cost of £600,000, provides a sense of seclusion by essentially turning its back to the street. The boundary hedge along the front of the house has been retained, and a new rock garden added to enhance privacy. They also block out the railway line, which runs parallel to the house, without interfering with the views of the sea.

A series of outdoor spaces in the form of a specially constructed terrace and large windows make the most of uninhibited views across the Tay.

“Jean wanted the biggest expanse of glass possible with no openings in it, both from a security point of view and to enjoy the views,” says Voigt. “The glass is the maximum size you can get in one piece. It’s also coated to reflect the heat of the summer outwards and keep the heat in, in the winter.” The timber sunscreen overhang provides a striking decorative element that succeeds in unifying the house frontage.

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