London-based O’Sullivan Skoufoglou Architects has completed the refurbishment of a terraced house in Canonbury, London, adapting a 1930s property into a family home that also accommodates their architecture studio. Rather than extending the footprint, the project approached the house as a process of careful editing, revealing its potential while retaining its patina, scale, and character.

Existing house

Built in the 1930s, the house had remained largely untouched for nearly a century. The previous owner was born in the property and lived there his entire life, preserving much of its original condition.

When Amalia Skoufoglou and Jody O’Sullivan of O’Sullivan Skoufoglou Architects purchased the house in 2023, it had no central heating and only rudimentary cooking and bathing facilities. Original doors, fireplaces, cornices, picture rails, and joinery remained intact, alongside traces of everyday life accumulated over decades. The architects repaired and reused existing elements wherever possible rather than replacing them.

Reworking the lower floors

The design retains the original layout and proportions of the lower floors, with the main rooms remaining largely intact. Openings between the kitchen and dining room improve light and movement through the house while allowing conversation to pass more easily between spaces.

Joinery in the kitchen and bathrooms is designed as freestanding furniture rather than fixed units, referencing Arts and Crafts principles of movable pieces. Storage and appliances are proportioned to align with the scale of the existing doors and joinery, reinforcing continuity between old and new.

Attic studio and bedroom

The project’s most substantial intervention takes place at the top of the house, where a previously inaccessible attic has been transformed into a combined principal bedroom and workspace for the architects. A large window introduces natural light and views to the garden, supporting drawing, model-making, and daily working life.

A timber stair connects the first floor to the attic, establishing a clear relationship between the existing house and the new intervention. The architects used a dual-layer construction system to expose the roof structure while meeting contemporary thermal requirements. Existing rafters were extended and paired with wood-wool insulation, allowing the original construction to remain visible.

Okoume plywood wall linings and Douglas fir plywood floors create a durable, tactile environment suited to both work and family life.

Reuse and landscape

Material reuse forms a central part of the project. Bricks from a removed chimney breast were repurposed as garden paving, original floorboards were reworked into fencing, and terracotta roof tiles were laid on edge to form the front patio. These interventions extend the life of existing materials while creating continuity between the interior and exterior spaces.

The rear garden was retained and reworked as a productive landscape. Mature trees were complemented with additional planting focused on ecologically valuable species. Raised beds support the cultivation of seasonal vegetables and fruit, while reclaimed York stone paths connect different parts of the garden.

Retention and environmental upgrades

Environmental considerations informed much of the refurbishment. The original brick walls, pebble-dash render, timber joisted floors, and roof structure were found to be largely structurally sound and were retained. By avoiding demolition, steel, and the use of concrete ground slabs, the project reduced embodied carbon while improving comfort and environmental performance.

The house was selectively stripped back to allow for internal insulation, structural repairs, and a vapour-permeable airtight roof build-up. Double-glazed timber windows were installed throughout, while natural light and cross-ventilation support the environmental performance of the interior spaces.

The architects also incorporated provision for future adaptations, including infrastructure for a Sunamp thermal energy store, roof cabling for solar panels, and systems designed to accommodate evolving technologies. Interventions, including the attic dormer, stair, and structural reinforcements, were executed almost entirely in timber, further reducing embodied carbon. Wood-fibre insulation, timber linings, British-made products, and locally sourced materials were prioritised throughout the project.

Repair and continuity

Through repair, insertion, and reuse, O’Sullivan Skoufoglou Architects extend the life of a ninety-year-old house while retaining traces of its history. Their combined home and studio demonstrates how contemporary family and working life can be accommodated within an existing structure without removing its character.

‘Rather than imposing a new identity, we were interested in repair, in revealing what was already there, and in making just enough adjustment for our family life,” said Amalia Skoufoglou. “The attic became the natural place for invention — an opportunity to bring light and space into a part of the house that had been dormant for decades.’

‘There’s a quiet sustainability in not extending. This project is about longevity, by using timber and reusing materials to extend the life of a modest house for another fifty or even a hundred years. It’s an architecture of continuity, where old and new sit alongside each other without hierarchy,’ added Jody O'Sullivan.