Location: Pimlico, London

Client: Private

Stage: Planning Consent Received 

​

The design approach to this residential conversion of a Georgian terrace basement is centred around two critical concepts: openness and flow.

​

The existing basement level of this Georgian terrace house currently contains a kitchen/dining room, a study, a bedroom and a bathroom. Whilst there is clearly ample space, the complexity of the layout means that the kitchen dining space is rather constricted. The existing bathroom has to serve both as a guest bathroom and an 'en-suite' to the bedroom. Different phases of past refurbishment has pursued different material palettes, further breaking down the overall identity of the spaces which form the heart of the home. 

​

In addressing these issues, the small study is demolished and its area subsumed into an enlarged open plan kitchen dining space. New kitchen counter and island will be pushed to the back of the open plan space, to allow for a more generous dining area bathed in light. All internal common area doors will be removed to  improve flow from one space to the next. The staircase from the ground floor will be rebuilt to create a greater sense of openness and connection between floors. 

 

To create a sense of flow and a cohesive identity to the basement as a whole, a simple pairing of concrete and oak were chosen as the only material to be used throughout the basement. Oak veneer ply panels are used to form the staircase, storage, and kitchen units and lighting units, whilst microcement finish is applied in-situ to form floors, column cladding, countertops, wall panels, and seating bench. The bathroom will also be refurbished in microcement. The continuous inter-play of the two materials creates a clear identity to the space, allowing the viewer's gaze to following the materiality and flow from one space to the next. 

​

Images by Studio JZ