Swiss Cottage House
Studio Carver
Camden, 2024
Longlisted
Swiss Cottage House is a major refurbishment and reconfiguration of a mid-century terraced property in north London. Works include a full basement with sunken patio and an additional second floor level.
The brief was to create a fun, bright and light filled home for our client and their three teenage daughters. The house needed to be flexible in providing intimate spaces for everyone but also be open for regular entertaining.
Even after adding two levels the house is flooded with natural light. It cascades through the large openings and voids in the floorplate all the way down to the basement. Architectural elements such as the folded metal stair and the playful climbing wall accentuate these voids. All this comes together to create an open, bright and welcoming home.
“Our family home is unrecognisable from its ‘before’ state. We didn’t have enough space and it was dark and cluttered. Getting permission to extend both up and down means the usable space has been doubled and the whole house feels calmer. The highlight is the staircase and the way it makes the whole house feel generous and bright throughout. We love the sliding skylight above, giving us our personal patch of sky in the middle of London. Open or closed it brings light all the way down to the kitchen and living rooms. My office is in the basement and amazingly its brighter down there than any part of our original house! It doesn't feel like a basement at all. It’s hard to imagine how we lived here before!”