When restoring a 19th-century Victorian terrace house in south London, the designers first started with the layout. Founder and Director Uwe Schmidt Hess said: "When our clients bought the house, it was in a state of fatigue. ”
Because of the need for major structural problems, it is necessary to fundamentally rearrange the layout. The presence of stairs made the upstairs bedroom unusable, and the design team rearranged the stairs to create a new focal point in the home. An innovative three-storey stairwell connects the first floor to the roof, and a skylight above directs light into the center of the house. At the same time, moving stairwells enabled the team to create an open floor plan that gave the entire building a bright perspective. The design approach is to introduce spatial practicality and meet the needs of contemporary life without losing its connection to the history of the building.
The kitchen, with its light green storage cupboards and white wooden cupboards, is a main passage that connects the interior to the outdoor garden through spacious glass doors. The garden is designed as a small yoga studio with a winding path where herbs, vegetables and fruit trees intersect. All of this helps to create a sense of space in the house, making it look bigger than it really is, allowing the compact cottage to maintain its charm while providing modern comforts.
The design team redesigned the staircase to create a three-story silo
Victorian fireplace preserved
The prototype of the house was an ordinary worker's bungalow
The kitchen features contrasting colours and textures
The garden is just outside the house and there is a small yoga room
The upper and lower floors of recessed furniture make clever use of space and complement the open plan layout