It's Easy to Imagine Yourself on the Terrace of This Overhauled London Property

A couple with a six-year-old daughter fell in love with a Victorian terrace house in London's highly-coveted Primrose Hill neighborhood, but behind its charming 1860s façade was a mishmash of fragmented spaces created by past renovations. The two decided that it was time for a complete overhaul of the property, and made their main two priorities a seamless layout and an abundance of light. Architects Chris Romer-Lee and James Lowe, the founders and directors of Studio Octopi, were more than up to the challenge, but they were determined to preserve any remnants of the original architecture in the process. They removed the internal walls of the lower two floors and then installed a double-height kitchen, which is illuminated by the rear's new double-hung windows. When the panes are raised, the garden becomes a natural extension of the lower level, which is perfect for everything from morning coffees to cocktail parties. Upstairs, the team continued their mission with airy bedrooms and bathrooms defined by calm, inviting features. "There is now a flow between the floors, and visual links across these key spaces," said Romer-Lee. The finished address ticks all the right boxes for the couple: a bright, open, and spacious design that helps preserve a 19th-century home for generations to come.