Room of the Day: Light-Filled Addition Connects Floors
High ceilings, clever storage features and a beautiful walnut staircase make this London project anything but ordinary
This semi-detached property in southwest London was awkwardly arranged. “The building was a series of disjointed, cellular rooms that came off a cramped staircase,” Lizzie Webster of Fraher Architects says. “There was a lot of vertical space, but no real connection between the floors.” The homeowners extended the house down and out, adding a neat addition into an infill site at the rear of the early-20th-century home. But perhaps the most striking addition was the black walnut staircase. “We built a new staircase to link all the levels together,” Webster says. “It also creates double-height spaces throughout, which helps to boost light levels and make the house design feel more generous.” With the lights on at night and the tall windows glowing, it’s easy to see how the addition earned the nickname “the Lantern.”
“We had originally submitted plans for this infill extension to be full-height,” architect Lizzie Webster says. But the planning process was lengthy and the authorities put a limit on the height of the addition. “However, it still works beautifully,” she says. “It was always meant to be lightweight, adding to the house without compromising its period aesthetic.”
At night, the 20-foot-high glass on the addition creates strips of glowing light, giving it a lantern-like appearance.
At night, the 20-foot-high glass on the addition creates strips of glowing light, giving it a lantern-like appearance.
The owners had lived overseas and were influenced by Japanese design, which incorporates a lot of natural materials. “There had also been a huge tree in the back garden, which we had to fell because it was dangerous,” Webster says. “So the idea behind the staircase was to create an internal tree that grows up through the house instead.”
Original windows have been preserved on the upper ground floor and are beautifully framed by the dark wooden staircase, which is made of American black walnut.
Original windows have been preserved on the upper ground floor and are beautifully framed by the dark wooden staircase, which is made of American black walnut.
A second entrance to the house opens directly onto the staircase landing between the upper ground floor and the level above it. “The staircase is in the main body of the house, so you get double-height space by the front door,” Webster says. The front door, seen here, is at the bottom of these stairs.
“This encourages the view right through to the back of the house too,” Webster says. “The staircase has basically created a five-story light well.”
“This encourages the view right through to the back of the house too,” Webster says. “The staircase has basically created a five-story light well.”
The house was renovated using a robust sustainability strategy. The use of glass helps with passive solar gain. The home also contains a heat recovery (MVHR) system, internal thermal insulation and an airtight design, which results in a dramatic lowering of the home’s carbon footprint.
The staircase now runs from the bottom of the house to the top in one logical, vertical rise. This is a huge improvement on what existed originally. “Before, you had to cross the house on certain levels to access the next set of stairs,” Webster says. “By positioning the staircase all on one side, we liberated the floor plan, creating open spaces that weren’t eaten into by staircases.”
Rather than solid wood balustrades, the staircase has glass sections, which give a better view of the stairs as they rise up through the house. “It also allows light to flow through the space,” Webster says.
Key Measurements for a Heavenly Stairway
Rather than solid wood balustrades, the staircase has glass sections, which give a better view of the stairs as they rise up through the house. “It also allows light to flow through the space,” Webster says.
Key Measurements for a Heavenly Stairway
The staircase is compact in size, with a floor space of about 8 by 10 feet. “The staircase is a very complicated design and it was difficult to get it to feel generous on what is quite a tight footprint, while trying to make it user-friendly,” Webster says.
The owners wanted the stairs to be carpeted, so Webster designed the treads with carpet inlaid into each so as not to obscure too much wood. “This also emphasizes each step,” she says, “so you really feel you are climbing up through the house.” The handrail has been smoothly carved and recessed into the framework, which is also lit inside.
Staircase, all woodwork and cabinets: Fraher and Co., a sister company of Fraher Architects
The Upstairs-Downstairs Connection: Picking the Right Stair Treatment
The owners wanted the stairs to be carpeted, so Webster designed the treads with carpet inlaid into each so as not to obscure too much wood. “This also emphasizes each step,” she says, “so you really feel you are climbing up through the house.” The handrail has been smoothly carved and recessed into the framework, which is also lit inside.
Staircase, all woodwork and cabinets: Fraher and Co., a sister company of Fraher Architects
The Upstairs-Downstairs Connection: Picking the Right Stair Treatment
On the lower ground floor, the house was extended to make room for a large kitchen and dining room, with access to the garden.
The kitchen counters are quartz, with a cooktop built into the island. An exhaust fan is fitted neatly against the ceiling, so the view out through the glass doors to the garden isn’t interrupted.
Kitchen cabinets: Fraher and Co.; wide-format oak flooring: Havwoods
The kitchen counters are quartz, with a cooktop built into the island. An exhaust fan is fitted neatly against the ceiling, so the view out through the glass doors to the garden isn’t interrupted.
Kitchen cabinets: Fraher and Co.; wide-format oak flooring: Havwoods
The new kitchen includes cabinetry custom-built for the space. The wood used on the stairs is also found here. The colorful backsplash is glass set over a painted section of wall. A clever pantry unit pulls out from behind the backsplash.
The dead space where the stairs meet the lower-ground floor has been transformed into shoe storage. When it’s closed, it’s almost impossible to tell it’s there.
In the right-hand corner of the kitchen, the family room can be spotted down a short set of steps. Beyond this is a series of rooms that run underneath the garage at basement level.
A large skylight ensures that the rooms in the basement feel light and spacious. Seen here is the guest suite, with built-in desk area. Also on this level are a bathroom, gym and extra storage.
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Browse more Rooms of the Day
Who lives here: A family of four
Location: Southwest London
Size: Five bedrooms, four bathrooms
Designer: Lizzie Webster of Fraher Architects
This family home is arranged over five floors: a basement level, a lower ground floor, an upper ground floor and upper levels. The front door opens onto the upper ground floor, which contains a living and music room. On the lower ground floor, the extended kitchen and dining space lead downstairs to a series of rooms that stretch under the garage, seen here to the left. In this basement level is a family room, a guest suite, a bathroom, storage space and a gym. Bedrooms and a loft are on the upper levels.
In addition to extending the house downward and outward, the architects removed all the floors and walls, stripping the building down to the external walls.