CASE STUDY


MARRYING OLD & NEW, SUSTAINABLY


Lucy and arc udsons sustainable renovation of a west London ictorian terrace successfully blends period style with modern tetures and materials


TEXT ALEXANDRA PRATT IMAGES PIERCE SCOURFIELD/MITCHELL + CORTI


a larger home. t was  and prices were skyrocketing, recalls Lucy. o, we were looking for somewhere to gut. he solution was an end ofterrace, ictorian property in west London. t was a former rental property, and, on paper, the house seemed very promising.


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t had tall ceilings, and we liked the light and height in the rooms, eplains Lucy. et, when she saw inside, Lucys reaction was disappointment.


 thought this is awful, says Lucy. he kitchen was an afterthought tiny and cold. here was a s fitted banuette in pine, which was hideous. e had wanted to move in and live with it while we saved up to do the work, so initially,  said no. he project was saved by Lucys mum, who intervened and helped Lucy see that she and arc could do something amaing with the house. aturally, um was right. fter four years and two phases of renovation work, the couple now have an elegant and sophisticated home that successfully marries the original details of the ictorian house with modern sustainable and tetural finishes.


he first of these two phases of renovation took place as soon as Lucy and arc completed the purchase. s that was only one week before their son was born, they didnt move in until he was five months old. he couples original plan was to be in before he was born, but the purchase dragged on for many months. nsurprisingly, one of the first things to go was the banuette. Lucy and arc then turned the cold downstairs bathroom into a utility room. pstairs, the four bedrooms shared one shower room located off a corridor that was so poky, we had to walk sideways to get into the room, recalls Lucy. hey turned it into an ensuite off the master, and made the tiny fourth bedroom into an ensuite for the second bedroom.


18 www.sbhonline.co.uk


ith their first child on the way, Lucy, a doctor by profession and her husband arc, a film editor, knew they needed


ith everyday life more tolerable, Lucy and


arc began to look for an architect to take the house into phase two.


udget considerations and a sustainable


approach were key, so Lucy and arc approached  for a recommendation of ecominded architects in their area. ndrew itchell and Ester orti of itchell  orti were a great fit. hey have energy and understood us, our design goals and were open to our suggestions, says Lucy. he couples brief to ndrew and Ester was to etend without losing too much outdoor space. he solution was a loft conversion granted under permitted development rules to incorporate a new bedroom, which doubles as a work fromhome space, plus an ensuite bathroom. Downstairs, planning permission was reuired to etend the kitchen by widening it to incorporate the side return with a small projection into the garden. Ester and ndrew designed the scheme and layout in detail, managed the planning application process, put the building contract out to tender and project managed the build, although Lucy was onsite regularly. he family moved out during the second phase of building work but were lucky to save on rent by moving in with Lucys parents, who live close by. he new kitchen and dining room is connected to the garden by large, glaed doors, a picture window, and a long skylight. he black framed rittallstyle glaing to the rear in this new space is aluminium, although the replacement windows in the older part of the house are all timber sashes. ew radiators were installed throughout, ecept for the new kitchen and dining room, which has underfloor heating.


he new skylight runs the length of the kitchen to one side and underneath the architects designed a geometric lattice of slender oak beams, or fins. his intriguing design feature casts an everchanging pattern of shadow and light across the space. hat part is southfacing and it adds a level of intricacy you dont often


sep/oct 2024 HIGH POINT


eeing their favourite space in the home  the kitchen  come together.


LOW POINT


he mould, rotten wood work and electrics that had to be replaced.


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