The small basement beneath the house did not connect to the property and nor did it align with the ground floor due to substantial piled party wall foundations. It was used to house a large unit to mechanically ventilate an underground car park. Our brief was to obtain the necessary planning consents, extend the basement and convert into a habitable space. This required us to remove the old unit and relocate a new ventilation unit.
Though awkward, this conversion dramatically changed the use and flow of the house, enabling us to relocate the kitchen, dining area, sitting room, study and the family room. The third floor became the family snug; the second floor became the family bedrooms, terrace and another study; the first floor became the master bedroom and bathroom and sitting room which straddled the depth of the building; the ground floor became the kitchen-dining room and study; and the basement became the 5th en suite bedroom, media room and gym.
Great emphasis was placed on pushing the light from the generous windows into the core of the house and accentuating the sight connection from one space to another using pocket doors and internal slot windows.
The decorative brief was to mix different period furniture and accessories within an open, clean-lined space. The floor plan was tapered in form and this encouraged us to design bespoke asymmetrical joinery. In terms of materiality we used beautiful raw silk and grass wallpapers that shimmered in the light, an iron oxidized and waxed dining room table, crisp corian kitchen surfaces, leather and stone wrapped consoles, hi lacquer sprayed joinery and limed oak timber floors.