Thurlow Road

Set in Hampstead among a row of stucco villas, Thurlow Road is a 300 m2 three-storey family home by Square Feet Architects. The new build replaces an unremarkable single-storey house and answers Camden's tight planning and height constraints with a quietly modernist response that picks up cues from neighbouring twentieth-century buildings.

A warm material palette ties the project together. Charred larch cladding, anodised bronze-framed windows, polished plaster render, a timber-lined ceiling and stained oak floors create a tactile sequence of spaces. Throughout the house, louvred timber strips made of stained plywood quietly conceal lighting, smoke detectors and the kitchen extractor, keeping the eye on materials rather than fittings.

The lower ground floor is the real test piece. To meet Camden's strict criteria for basement development, Square Feet worked alongside MH Costa Contractors to build the ground floor first before excavating beneath, with continuous monitoring of groundwater and ground stability. The resulting basement carries two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a gym, a cinema and a utility room, lit through a large lightwell and tall glazing that pulls daylight into spaces usually starved of it.

The ground floor opens to a generous kitchen with adjoining living and dining areas and a double-height study. A timber suspended stair rises through the house to the spare bedroom and master suite, with views back over Hampstead and toward the Heath. A green roof of wildflowers and grasses, mature planting and climbers over the existing brick wall connect the property to the landscape character of the area. High insulation levels, an airtight envelope and an air source heat pump bring the energy use down.

Project size 300 m2, three building levels, completed 2019.

Architect: Square Feet Architects (Daniel Leon, Lead). Photographer: Paul Smoothy. <post_excerpt">A 300 m2 modernist family home in Hampstead by Square Feet Architects, with a daylight-rich basement, a warm material palette and an air source heat pump. <meta_input">{"_case27_listing_type": "projects", "_featured": "1", "_claimed": "0", "_job_tagline": "Square Feet Architects", "_project-size": "300 m2", "_completion-date": "2019", "_building-levels": "3", "_photographer": "Paul Smoothy", "_job_location": "Hampstead, London, United Kingdom", "rank_math_title": "Thurlow Road by Square Feet Architects | Hampstead House", "rank_math_description": "A 300 m2 modernist family home in Hampstead with a daylight-rich basement, charred larch cladding and an air source heat pump.", "rank_math_focus_keyword": "Thurlow Road Square Feet Architects"}