London-based architecture and interiors studio ConForm has transformed an archetypal terraced house in Dulwich, South London into a layered, light-filled family home. Designed for a father and his two teenage children, the project centres on spatial connection, daylight, and material clarity. Its name references the poetic Japanese concept of komorebi, describing sunlight filtering through leaves.

From the street, the house sits within the familiar rhythm of brick and rendered facades. The front elevation retains its original character, while the rear is entirely new. Internally, the house unfolds through a sequence of vertical and horizontal layers, shaped by a series of carefully judged architectural interventions that work with the existing structure rather than replacing it.

Spatial structure and daylight

An existing central rooflight, an uncommon feature in a London terrace, became the starting point for the design. Rather than infilling above and removing it, ConForm extended the void upwards, allowing daylight to penetrate deep into the split-level plan and establishing a central spatial focus.

Connections between levels are formed through open stair treads, perforated steel floorplates, and open voids, filtering light, air, and sound throughout the house. These elements create visual links across floors, maintaining a sense of connection between family members even when occupying different levels. Brickwork finished with a whitewashed slurry lines the central void, giving the surface a raw, luminous quality that reflects and softens incoming light.

Programme and domestic organisation

The brief called for shared spaces that could adapt as the family’s needs change over time. A pod room on the second floor provides the teenagers with a degree of separation, while a vaulted, heavily glazed study occupies a new first-floor infill extension. On the ground floor, kitchen, dining, and living areas are unified by an open counter that runs from front to back, establishing a continuous shared zone.

This arrangement creates a clear domestic rhythm: the teenagers occupy the upper level, the father the middle floor, and shared spaces cascade downwards, balancing independence with proximity.

Material palette and detailing

Materially, the house is unified through a restrained, tactile palette. Oak, whitewashed mortar, chalk-white brick, concrete downstand beams, perforated steel, and ceppo di gre are used consistently throughout, allowing cohesion while introducing subtle variation between spaces. Raw brickwork and concrete are set against more refined stone and timber finishes, tempering the openness of the vertical arrangement.

Custom joinery is integrated across all levels, with timber-framed windows used throughout. Lighting is embedded within architectural elements, reinforcing the clarity of the spatial structure. The staircase and balustrade are expressed as solid, sharply defined elements, guiding movement and sightlines through the house.

Thresholds and external connections

At the lowest level, the living space opens directly onto an outdoor terrace via a pivoting glazed door. External finishes closely mirror those inside, establishing continuity between interior and exterior as daylight moves across the concrete-framed rear extension, timber fencing, and stone flooring.

Externally, the rear extensions include an uncommon first-floor outrigger accommodating the study and a second-floor pod room. Their forms draw from the pitched and angled outriggers and rooflines characteristic of the surrounding street, allowing the additions to sit comfortably within the existing urban fabric.

Ben Edgley, Director at ConForm, said: “The house already had interesting light and level changes — things that felt special rather than awkward — although they weren’t particularly celebrated or experienced. We didn’t want to iron them out. Instead, we leaned into them and used them to guide how the family could live more naturally and feel connected, even while doing different things on different floors. It was never about chasing more square metres; it was about creating spaces that feel generous in use and connected in spirit. This was reinforced through a consistent material palette, blurring thresholds between spaces and strengthening the relationship between inside and out.”