London Woodland, William Smalley

William Smalley's London Woodland project features a complete reordering of a large Edwardian detached house in south west London, including replanting its half-acre gardens and the selection of furniture and art with the client.

The ground floor was opened up to provide a series of generous connected spaces for reading, sitting and eating. Through the house, oak joinery provides places to sit – generous window seats in the living rooms, benches in the kitchen and cloakroom, and an upstairs reading area. The main fireplace hearth was extended the length of the room in flamed Purbeck stone.

On the upper floors, bedrooms are carpeted in soft grey wool, bathrooms are in polished plaster with unlacquered brass fittings, and the dressing room clad in untreated cedar. One shade of paint was used throughout the whole house.

Outside, the front garden was enclosed to provide an entrance forecourt. A side garden was walled to provide a quiet gravelled orchard, overlooked by a new loggia lime washed in red oxide and a cantilevered extension in brass and glass.

Viaduct assisted Smalley with the supply and delivery of furniture for the project, his carefully curated selection includes pieces by Muller Van Severen, Carl Hansen and e15.

William Smalley is a London based architect who established his practice in 2010. An architect of rare sensibility, he shares a deep understanding for old buildings and their contexts with an excitement for new spaces. His work seeks to create memorable spaces of strong materiality. Current work includes private residential projects in the UK, New York and the French Alps.

Design: William Smalley Architect

Photography: Alexander James

At the rear, the original wisteria-clad Edwardian loggia was retained, but the formal walled garden was replanted as if an extension of the nearby common, with two lawn clearings and a table of solid Forest of Dean sandstone amid the woodland.

In the kitchen a 10m-long stainless steel worktop made in one piece runs the length of the space, linking service areas at the front to dining at the rear. A private study at the front has bespoke bookshelves in solid oak.

The materials palette for the building is carried through every detail including the furniture selection.

Generous open spaces are punctuated with small details such as the Marble Box by Muller Van Severen.

A restrained palette of earth tone and concrete greys is given depth through careful choice of textures and forms.

Oak joinery is carried throughout the building, with areas for quiet contemplation and reading designed into the space.