Al and Lily Chen’s renovated and extended Edwardian home is a masterclass in space and light.
TEXT ALEXANDRA PRATT IMAGES WILLIAM TOZER ASSOCIATES
“We were looking for a family home with potential for expansion,” explains Lily Chen, who has two young children with her husband, Al. “We bought this home in 2019 because we loved its Edwardian character and it offered plenty of space for our children to play.”
Set in a conservation area in Wandsworth, this end-terrace home is typical for the area, offering charm, space and that most highly prized home feature; a garden in London.
While the home’s vitals set their hearts racing, the condition of the building did not. “It hadn’t been touched in 30 years,” recalls Lily. “The kitchen was small and the bedrooms were cramped. The loft and the basement were not usable. We also wanted to improve the energy efficiency of the property.”
The couple’s solution was a comprehensive refurbishment of the entire building. Al and Lily also took this opportunity to extend it, so that key areas are a more appropriate size for family life. These additions included making the basement a functional space, adding a small dormer extension to the loft and a more significant ground floor extension, which offers a spacious kitchen and dining room. Most strikingly, this space also incorporates an internal courtyard that adds green space and fresh air all year round.
“Having a full-width extension produced its own challenges, such as how to get natural light and ventilation to other areas. The solution was a new courtyard,” says architect Adoracion Marco Vidal of William Tozer Associates, who admits the concept is somewhat counterintuitive when square footage is at such a premium, but “it brings natural light deep into the plan.”
This injection of light and air meant that further out into the extension, the architects were able to make the extension higher, rather than have a lower roofline along the entire addition without a courtyard.
William Tozer Associates is an award-winning London-based architecture practice that was recommended to Lily and Al by friends. “We chose William Tozer Associates because of their reputation for high-quality minimal design and their experience with similar projects,” explains Lily. “We’ve been extremely happy with their work; they were professional, knowledgeable and always willing to listen to our ideas.”
Those ideas were expressed in the brief the couple gave to the practice. “We wanted a modern, functional family home that retained some of the property’s original character,” says Lily. “The plan evolved through a collaborative process, with both us and the architect contributing ideas. The intriguing use of light and reflection was a joint idea.”
Inspirational use of light is the defining feature of the project and is more than the single internal courtyard; it is consistent throughout the home. All four levels are organised around straight lines and spaces that simultaneously divide and connect, conceal and reveal. For example, sliding pocket doors (fire-rated, as is required in all homes with more than two storeys) can either disappear into a wall or fully enclose rooms, such as in the loft extension.
Here, an open living room can be converted into a private bedroom, closed off from the landing by pocket doors that form a partition. The wall above the doors is clad in a frameless mirror. This creates the illusion there is no wall and the ceiling is continuous, making the space feel open at all times.
Elsewhere, a glass floor between the first and second floors, combined with a large rooflight above, brings natural light and views of the sky down two levels into the building, while the open-riser staircase allows the light to continue onwards, down another storey to the ground floor. In the sitting room, which has the traditional layout of a central fireplace with recesses on either side, each recess is fully mirrored. This creates a visual ‘doubling’ of the living space, which gives the impression that the project is a conversion of not one, but two terraced houses.
“My parents were architects,” explains Lily. “And my inspiration came from visits to various architecturally interesting buildings over the years. I like minimalist architecture with some Asian influences. My favourite part of this house is the courtyard on the ground floor, which reminds me of my childhood home in Asia, where such courtyards are very common for light and air circulation.”
Achieving such ambitious goals in an Edwardian terrace on a London street has proved challenging, however. The first hurdle to overcome was the question of planning permission. The home is in a conservation area, so there were restrictions on the materials Lily and Al could choose and the scale of any additions. Although the ground floor extension is built using thermally efficient cavity masonry walls with reclaimed London stock brick on the exterior, they were able to use more modern materials on the small dormer extension to the loft. This was built using highly insulated timber frame construction techniques and clad in zinc.
The couple also upgraded the huge roof throughout, so it is now fully insulated. With such a comprehensive renovation, it was a natural step to include the replacement of all the glazing in their home. To the front, the Edwardian facade has new, traditional casement windows which were replicated like-for-like in timber. To the rear, however, they chose modern aluminium-framed windows by Velfac. These windows offer a very slim frame and trickle vents that can be concealed internally, giving the appearance of ‘frameless’ windows that almost seem to be voids and flood the home with light.
To gain permission for these changes, Tozer Associates found they had to engage the local council’s planning department with an outstanding design strategy. In addition to taking account of the conservation area restrictions, they were able to overcome potential concerns about height at the boundary and light to neighbouring properties by proposing a joint application with the neighbouring home (also clients of Tozer Associates). This means that both properties now have a single-storey, full-width extension on the ground level, each of which is clad in continuous London-stock brick. This ingenious solution makes the additions look original and works well for both households.
Yet this solution was only possible because of Lily’s research and willingness to work with their neighbour. During the buying process, Lily noticed that a previous owner had objected to their neighbour’s planning application for an extension. So, with their own proposed plans in mind, Lily knocked on her neighbour’s door and introduced herself as a potential buyer.
After a few conversations over coffee, Lily found a solution that worked for both of them.
“I explained my plan to extend the ground floor, and said I’d be happy for us both to have flat roof extensions,” says Lily. “Luckily, my neighbour was thinking the same and we reached a common understanding before we even closed the deal on the house.” It was an agreement that worked out favourably for all concerned.
“It was a unifying design for both properties,” explains architect Adoracion. “The adjoining apartment had a living room and bedroom with windows towards their existing side return. The design solution was a mirrored new courtyard to both properties, enabling not only natural light but the opportunity to maximise the height of the extension.” As the courtyard and extensions mostly mirror the neighbouring property, neither home was adversely impacted. “Ultimately, planning permission was granted thanks to their application showing the proposals were “carefully considered, sensitive in scale and maintained a sense of amenity for both properties.”
“Some of our biggest challenges were getting party wall agreements and planning permission,” recalls Lily. “We also had to manage delays in the work due to Brexit and Covid. We all managed to find the solutions, but we needed to be patient and budget-in those delays, as well as some extra costs.”
Lily and Al were unable to install solar panels or an air source heat pump due to their location in a conservation area. However, they did install a new, efficient boiler, with ‘wet’ underfloor heating throughout their home. Additional insulation also helps to reduce the energy used, making it efficient and cost-effective.
With no radiators cluttering up the walls, the couple were able to achieve the flawless, lightness of touch that characterises this renovation. Inside, the minimalist approach never feels stark, thanks to the variety of angles from which light falls into spaces. The quality of the finish throughout is a key element in making this approach a success. Mirrors fit spaces exactly and doors slide soundlessly out of sight into walls. Indeed, having so few walls – or the perception of walls – creates the sense of an airy, multi-dimensional space, grounded in the tactile warmth of natural timber floors from Chaunceys.
“We love the way natural light floods the home,” says Lily. “But one of our highlights is the open-plan kitchen and living area, which creates a spacious and welcoming space for entertaining.”
Here, Lily and Al have played with contrast, choosing dark kitchen cabinetry from Espresso Kitchens in a sleek, minimalist style. The kitchen island and countertops are Silestone from Cosentino, in ‘Desert Silver Suede.’
Lily was keen to work with Espresso Kitchens, as she had loved their kitchen in a previous property. The initial discussions about the design and layout included both Ardoracion at William Tozer Associates, and Espresso Kitchens, who reviewed these plans to further develop the kitchen plan. Onsite, Espresso collaborated with the couple’s main contractor, Zuz Construction, so that the
kitchen could be installed by Espresso within the construction programme.
Across this ground floor area, Lily selected concrete-effect tiles by Reed Harris, which continue outside across a flush threshold onto the terrace for a seamless in-out experience when the sliding glass doors are pulled wide. Lighting after dark is also important in this part of the home, with signature ‘Melt’ pendants by Tom Dixon above the kitchen island and a statement arrangement by Flos in the sitting room above the piano.
Now the family has moved in (they lived nearby during the works, as the building was stripped back), they have had time to settle in and experience everyday life in this uniquely restful home. “We love the sense of space, the abundance of natural light and the beautiful garden. We have a modern and functional layout and a home that we’re proud to call our own,” says Lily. “It’s a perfect place for our family to relax and enjoy life.”
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