Spacious Interiors And Green Credentials For Perfect Family Home

After securing a place for their eldest child at the esteemed Manor Lodge School in Shenley, Jay and Sherina Mukhey were quick to snap up one of only eight bespoke large family homes at Little Saddles, a private gated development by luxury residential developer Amara Property. 

Jay Mukhey, a 40-year-old ESG Director for a global Fintech company, comments: “What attracted us in the first instance was the development’s incredibly close proximity to our daughter’s new school (Manor Lodge). It is quite a rural location, so she holds the honour of being the first pupil to walk to school.”

“Luckily, the home we were most interested in was already close to completion and when we had the chance to view it and saw the smart use of space and quality of the of finishing we knew it was the right choice for our family. Also, given the nature of our work we were really impressed with Amara’s commitment to sustainability and were delighted that the underfloor heating system was powered by an air source heat pump instead of a traditional gas boiler. I’ll likely be looking into solar panels, a power wall and electric vehicle to further improve our carbon footprint, but this is a great start for us.”

Built to be as energy efficient and sustainable as possible, each home at Little Saddles features Air Source Heat Pumps, Bio Ethanol Fireplace, EcoSlide wood grain windows and underfloor heating throughout.

Jay and Sherina were also impressed with the level of control they had to shape their new home, with a choice of interior palettes. Sherina comments: “The Amara team gave us various options for the interiors and suggestions for how we could use various spaces in line with their vision for the home. This really appealed to us, as we literally just had to move in with our furniture and add soft furnishings. It’s still very much a work in progress but we are enjoying adding the finishing touches slowly as we see things we like, whilst the Amara design team is always on hand to give us their professional opinion as well, which is a big help.”

To provide owners with choice and a level of control over the design of their home, two interior design choices are available at Little Saddles; the Classic and Contemporary palettes.

Jay adds: “We went for the contemporary palette choice even though there were many aspects of the classic palette that we loved, like the flooring for example. However, like everything in life, it was a trade-off but what really made the decision for us was the modern kitchen with the mirrored backsplash along with the tiling in the bathrooms, which just blew us away.”

Discussing their favourite aspect of their new home, Sherina Mukhey, a 37-year-old management accountant for an ESG-focused and B Corp certified investment manager, says: “Our favourite space is what Amara describe as the ‘super room’, which is the largest room in the house that features the open-plan kitchen, lounge and dining area with an adjoining utility room.”

“This is where we will spend most of our time as a family and is so great for having guests over in both large and small groups. It gets so much natural light thanks to the double bi-fold doors and skylight giving it a spacious and airy feel, which is true of all of the house. The garden and communal spaces in the development are also a real bonuses, it’s big enough for all our needs and provides a safe and secluded space for our children to play and explore.”

Located just off Radlett Lane, Little Saddles is on the outskirts of Shenley, a picturesque village in Hertfordshire, just under an hour by train or car from central London. Close to the development are some of the country’s finest primary and secondary schools with the renowned Manor Lodge directly adjacent and Haberdasher’s Aske’s Boys Schools are located just a stone’s throw away.

Commenting on the location, Sherina adds: “We first heard about Amara Property when they developed a boutique development close to our old home in Stanmore, so we knew they had an excellent reputation for creating stunning homes in fabulous locations and Little Saddles is no different. There is also the added benefit of being surrounded by the beautiful Shenley countryside that’s not far from the quaint Radlett High Street and all the amenities of London Colney.”

Offering the perfect work from home setting, both Jay and Sherina will be utilising the home office space they’ve created, with Jay stating: “We both will split our time between working from home and in the office, so have turned one of the upstairs rooms into a private study that will offer the perfect setting to work from as we’re using the intended home office space downstairs as a play room for the children and their friends.”

Just three homes remain available at Little Saddles.

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