A Glass-Walled Rear Extension Revives a Cramped London Victorian

November 15, 2022

A Glass-Walled Rear Extension Revives a Cramped London Victorian

Oliver Leech Architects transforms a West London townhouse using reeded glass that suffuses the family home with natural light while maintaining privacy.

Houses We Love: Every day we feature a remarkable space submitted by our community of architects, designers, builders, and homeowners.

Project Details:

Location: London, United Kingdom

Architect: Oliver Leech Architects / @oliverleecharchitects

Contractor: Sutton Construction Ltd

Structural Engineer: Constant Structural Design

Photographers: Jim Stephenson / @clickclickjim & Nick Dearden / @nick.dearden

From the Architect: "Located in a conservation area in West London, Reeded House occupies a shallow site overshadowed by a six-story commercial building to the rear. This proximity challenged the architects to introduce light into the property and provide smoother access to the small garden, without compromising the clients’ privacy.

"The four-story Victorian house was in poor condition and had been arranged into three small, disconnected flats. The success of the project is underpinned by one small yet mighty design decision—the addition of a two-meter deep, double-height rear extension. This vertical design solution allowed the architects to redesign the entry sequence, adjust circulation spaces, bring an abundance of light in, maintain privacy, and reconnect the many levels of the home.

"To add visual impact to the much-improved plan, Oliver Leech Architects worked vertically, adding reeded Linit glass panels to the double-height extension. The panels feature a reeded texture on the internal face to create soft, translucent light and distorted views, which maintains privacy. The light cast by the glass panels glows, infused with the soft color reflected from nearby trees and the brickwork on adjacent buildings. At night the extension shimmers with the welcoming warm tones of the pendants and rich oak joinery."