Room of the Week: A kitchen Light Extension Transforms a flat Victorian - A large garden is a great asset in a London hotel, but when the architect Paulius Zakevicius spying 28m long garden the rear of the apartment, he knew it offered more chance to plant a vegetable patch. Borrowing a part of this space generous garden license him to extend out of the rear wall of the late Victorian terraced property of about 4.5m to create a large open kitchen, dining and living space - with lots of light, despite facing north.
When my wife Lina and I bought the property there two years ago, there was a very bad shape in the back kitchen, he said. "We demolished it and an old bathroom, then made a full width opening in the wall and extended backwards." This new space allowed Zakevicius to rethink the rest of the apartment, too, the creation of two bedrooms and a bathroom in the Victorian part of the original property. "We moved all the living space at the back to be near the garden, he said. "We have a good connection with the outside now and it is very quiet. Life is good in the back!
When my wife Lina and I bought the property there two years ago, there was a very bad shape in the back kitchen, he said. "We demolished it and an old bathroom, then made a full width opening in the wall and extended backwards." This new space allowed Zakevicius to rethink the rest of the apartment, too, the creation of two bedrooms and a bathroom in the Victorian part of the original property. "We moved all the living space at the back to be near the garden, he said. "We have a good connection with the outside now and it is very quiet. Life is good in the back!
Flik Design Ltd
House at a glance
Who lives here Architect Paulius Zakevicius and his wife, Lina
property an apartment in a Victorian terrace ground floor
Location North London
renovation Year 2015
Architect Paulius Zakevicius design Flik
Size 6.8mx 5.4m; part of a dish with 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom
The new extension to the rear of the apartment offers privacy and space. "We have neighbors above the rooms, but not here in the back, said Paulius Zakevicius. "It is more private and quiet here.
brass hanging lamps hanging on the central workspace. "We wanted to add an additional material here, be it concrete, copper or brass, Zakevicius said. The lights are suspended from the wall above the units, rather than the ceiling. If they were suspended from the ceiling, he would light falls far enough in the kitchen, "he said. "Here they are most useful. They are just above head height and not too big, so they do not block the view through the garden.
Flori brass hanging lamps, Rowen & Wren.
Who lives here Architect Paulius Zakevicius and his wife, Lina
property an apartment in a Victorian terrace ground floor
Location North London
renovation Year 2015
Architect Paulius Zakevicius design Flik
Size 6.8mx 5.4m; part of a dish with 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom
The new extension to the rear of the apartment offers privacy and space. "We have neighbors above the rooms, but not here in the back, said Paulius Zakevicius. "It is more private and quiet here.
brass hanging lamps hanging on the central workspace. "We wanted to add an additional material here, be it concrete, copper or brass, Zakevicius said. The lights are suspended from the wall above the units, rather than the ceiling. If they were suspended from the ceiling, he would light falls far enough in the kitchen, "he said. "Here they are most useful. They are just above head height and not too big, so they do not block the view through the garden.
Flori brass hanging lamps, Rowen & Wren.
Flik Design Ltd
the extension extends across the entire width of the apartment. 'You fall down about 1m to this part of the house, "said Zakevicius . "We built the extension at ground level to increase the connection between the garden and the house.
Read expert advice on what to consider when planning a rear extension
Read expert advice on what to consider when planning a rear extension
Flik design Ltd
the couple chose a very clean minimalist look for kitchen room. "There is a feeling monochrome cabinets, with just a darker element," Zakevicius said. "We went to the units quite a reasonable price, then spent more on work plans. There is a stainless steel work surface on the side of the hob in the kitchen and a white Hi-Macs on a peninsula. The antique stools were originally used in a lab school science.
Kitchen cabinets, Ikea.
Kitchen cabinets, Ikea.
Flik Design Ltd
"We wanted a certain statement lighting on the dining table," says Zakevicius. 'On this side of the extension feels like a big space altogether, but the table will always be there, so it made sense to hang the lights above.'
Zakevicius designed the wall itself on. "I thought if you just stuck two bulbs in the wall?" He said. I asked the electrician to fit outlets, and we added mirrored bulbs give a soft and shaded light.
Suspensions, Nordlux to divine illumination.
Zakevicius designed the wall itself on. "I thought if you just stuck two bulbs in the wall?" He said. I asked the electrician to fit outlets, and we added mirrored bulbs give a soft and shaded light.
Suspensions, Nordlux to divine illumination.
Flik Design Ltd
The kitchen opens onto a small courtyard. "There is a simple reason for this, says Zakevicius. "If we had the whole house, we expanded across the street, but we only own the ground floor of the property and there are two rooms in the original part of the house. The back bedroom window was locked so I had not conceived in this court. "
Flik Design Ltd
court not only light in the back room, but the kitchen and living space, too. The flooring is throughout a pale engineering oak, which keeps the light of gaze.
Browse sensational sliding doors and beautiful windows
Browse sensational sliding doors and beautiful windows
Flik Design Ltd
Zakevicius chose sliding doors, rather than folding. "Folding doors look brilliant once they are completely open, but when they are closed, they have many sections, he said. "There would have been about six sections in an opening this big, that carve up the view.
The sliding doors have only three sections, with the sliding center piece for a garden access. "They are fun to use and which opens onto the garden more than enough, said Zakevicius. "The idea of seamless transition still works, and it is less draughty than fully open folding doors can be."
Zakevicius battens used simple, pre-treated to coat roof garden wall. 'It was a cost effective solution, he said.
The sliding doors have only three sections, with the sliding center piece for a garden access. "They are fun to use and which opens onto the garden more than enough, said Zakevicius. "The idea of seamless transition still works, and it is less draughty than fully open folding doors can be."
Zakevicius battens used simple, pre-treated to coat roof garden wall. 'It was a cost effective solution, he said.
Flik Design Ltd
Zakevicius designed a skylight above the door, across the width of the space. "the whole point here is that we are north face death, so the extension needed to catch a lot of light, he said. "it really worked. We think we live on the north side. it feels really brilliant!
the Danish chairs midcentury sit around an original oak table on eBay.
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the Danish chairs midcentury sit around an original oak table on eBay.
TELL US ...
what do you think of this extension? Share your thoughts in the comments below.