Modernisation of Edwardian House in South London

Modernising an older property with open-plan living space

Emma and Alan bought their family home five years ago. It was a beautiful Edwardian house, but the kitchen area had been installed over a decade before they bought the property, and it needed an update. They felt that revamping their kitchen would be a good moment to give the entire ground floor a new lease of life.

Emma is an experienced architect, so she naturally had a clear vision for her home’s new look. She sought to give the illusion of space on the ground floor by opening the living room to the kitchen and building an extension, adding 20m² to the original floor plan.

“Martin was so hands-on. As an architect, I see firm owners more commonly turn up on the first day and periodically throughout but otherwise letting their teams get on with it. Martin was very much involved and coming up with solutions day-to-day. It was fun coming to the site and seeing it develop.” – Emma

Before we knocked down the wall between the kitchen and living area, we needed to know how much load that wall was bearing. Previous contractors had advised Emma that removing the wall would require revamping the upstairs bathroom due to the loss of structural posts on the ground floor. On hearing this, we took care to check the actual load of the wall and if we would need to add supporting beams after its removal.

We spotted that the tiles in the bathroom directly upstairs were in danger of cracking, and there was also a large, heavy-hanging mirror that could have done some damage without a supporting wall below. We took these issues into account before constructing temporary structural work that helped our team remove the wall safely and without leaving a single crack in the ground-floor ceiling or first-floor tiles.

Raising our game with bespoke roof construction

Emma and Alan’s ground floor reconstruction comprised many complex parts, and the most demanding element was the extension’s roof. Here again, attention to detail was vital to ensure we maintained the house’s structural integrity. 

“It's really nice to work with somebody who understood what we were trying to achieve and tried to help us find a solution to achieving it.” – Alan 

Emma had designed a saw-tooth zinc roof with a skylight, with the intention that this roof would be the extension’s main feature. The saw-tooth look meant that a great deal of complex joinery would be necessary to ensure that every element lined up correctly and secured the couple’s home from weather damage. Once we had ensured the falls of the gutters were precise and ready for the next stage, we collaborated with metal roofing specialists to add the zinc and finish the job.

Attending to detail throughout the home

The couple also tasked us with constructing a door for the ground-floor toilet beneath the staircase. They wanted this door to the toilet to be hidden, but as it was close to the front door, they also needed it to be functional and strong enough so that the kids could hang their coats on the inside. We constructed a solid door that would put up with this wear and tear, and ensured that the door matched the look and texture of the staircase. Only those who already knew the toilet was there would notice it.

With the major tasks of the wall and roof behind us, we were free to continue with the smaller, but no less interesting, jobs. These included tiling the first-floor bathroom with handmade concrete tiles in a pattern that Emma selected herself. As these tiles were handmade, we had to dedicate ourselves to the task of getting them flush. On the ground floor, we built an island for the kitchen, added extractor fans, removed the chimney, and added sliding doors between the kitchen and living room spaces. Repainting the couple’s loft room brought us right to the tip of our four-month project.

The foundations of a working relationship

Emma and Alan found us through a recommendation. We understand how important it is for talented architects like Emma to find construction companies they can trust, and we also love finding and working with dedicated architects. We look forward to working with Emma again on her architectural ventures  – personal and professional!