This beautifully crafted two-bedroom house, designed by award-winning architecture studio Dallas-Pierce-Quintero, is set back from MacDonald Road in Forest Gate. Situated in a secluded position within an island of Victorian terrace houses and gardens, it has received numerous accolades from the architectural community, including RIBA London Regional Award Winner 2015, RIBA London Best Small Project 2015, and New London Architecture Best Home 2015. It was also shortlisted for Grand Designs: House of the Year in 2015.

The Architect

Dallas-Pierce-Quintero is an award-winning London-based practice founded in 2009. The interdisciplinary team work at the intersection of the public realm, architecture and culture. The practice design, commission, and deliver permanent and temporary projects, producing site-specific designs, strategies and artworks.

The Building

The house lies behind grey folding wooden gates that give little indication of the wonderful and spacious garden sanctuary beyond. Once part of a neighbouring garden, the site was later sectioned off as part of a builder’s yard. Constructed with a frame of kiln-dried, treated structural-graded softwood, corrugated fibre-cement board and vertical sawtooth bricks define the façade. There are solar panels on the first-floor roof. The house is, as the name suggests, set around four courtyards, meaning it is brilliantly light. Internally, the honest material palette comprises a mix of Douglas fir, brick, exposed joists and poured resin, all of which blend harmoniously to create a warm and tactile environment.

The Tour

Entry to the house is through a functional courtyard, with hidden storage and bike store, past a separate study, and through a second verdant courtyard to the front door. This door opens into the kitchen and wider ground floor, which is entirely open plan, save for the bathroom. The  sawtooth brickwork continues on the internal walls uniting the indoor and outdoor spaces. Poured resin flooring with underfloor heating runs throughout this level. Exposed wooden beams complement the exposed brick and white walls.

The kitchen is demarcated from the living areas beyond by a two-step change in level. A stainless-steel sink sits underneath a large  picture window, and an island made from stained-black oak has an overhang for stools. Laminated ply worktops on white cabinetry complete the simple, functional and spacious kitchen.

In the living areas, low cabinetry flows along one wall with an open shelf above. The ceiling height rises as it heads towards a set of black-framed floor-to-ceiling sliding doors; the climbing Japanese hydrangea on the exposed brick wall in the fourth courtyard acts as a backdrop. Currently, the dining area is in front of a space used as a bedroom. A curtain set on a curved rail sections off this area from the living space, creating a temporary ground-floor bedroom for guests. The house has planning permission for this to be a permanent walled bedroom if preferred, details of which can be found here.

A set of solid Douglas fir stairs ascend to the first floor, which is given over entirely to the principal suite. In the bedroom, a high, sloping ceiling adds volume; further Doulas fir runs underfoot with a matching integrated headboard adding a clever sense of cohesion. Bespoke cupboards add storage, and a large window overlooks the courtyard. An en suite bathroom is split between a separate WC and walk-in shower.

A stand alone study is at the front of the plot, with a rendered exterior and a cement-fibre roof, which oversails to create a small south-facing veranda overlooking the courtyard. Internally, a set of black-framed windows allow light to pour in; a built-in desk is nestled underneath. Cabinetry lines the bottom half of one wall creating storage space and a shelf.

Outdoor Space

The central courtyard garden sits between the study and the main house, bound by a rendered wall covered in climbers. A raised planter in front of the office is planted with seasonal vegetables, and there is also heuchera, rosemary, ferns and two apple trees.

There is a further, paved courtyard off the living room, where one wall to the side has the same signature sawtooth blue brick, which flows out from the interior. On the rear wall, Japanese hydrangeas climb and combine with plants from the neighbouring garden to create a verdant backdrop.

An olive tree is set in a lightwell at the corner of the ground floor, creating views through the space and introducing year-round greenery. The space is laid with slate and is visible through two windows; one in the dining room, the other into the kitchen.

The Area

Macdonald Road is a seven-minute walk from Wanstead Flats, an expansive area of open fields that form the southernmost part of Epping Forest. Hollow Pond lies just north of the Flats. Here, the water is surrounded by woodland and paths, and there is the opportunity to hire a rowing boat and observe the various water birds that visit and the resident terrapins. Epping Forest lies just north of Hollow Pond. Here, there are many trails perfect for walking and cycling through 8,000 acres of well-preserved ancient woodland. Designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest, there are inland water bodies, dry grassland and deciduous woodland, which allows one to feel entirely detached from the city in a forest that stretches all the way to the M25 motorway.

The railway arches of Winchelsea Road are a just over a five-minute walk north and offer a range of thriving independent businesses, including the microbrewery Pretty Decent Beer, wine bar Burgess & Hall and craft beer and arts venue The Wanstead Tap. There is a Scandinavian café, yoga and pilates space, local bakery, and a restaurant around five minutes walk from MacDonald Road, and also close by are The Holly Tree, a lively family pub, and the Wild Goose bakery bakery for excellent sourdough bread.

The house is situated just over five minutes’ walk from Forest Gate station, which lies on the newly opened Elizabeth line, with high frequency services to  Liverpool Street, Farringdon, Tottenham Court Road and Paddington stations (and soon Bond Street) before the line forks at Hayes and Harlington, one branch heading to Reading and the other to Heathrow Airport. London Overground services are available at Wanstead Park station, which is an eight-minute walk.

Council Tax Band: C

Please note that all areas, measurements and distances given in these particulars are approximate and rounded. The text, photographs and floor plans are for general guidance only. The Modern House has not tested any services, appliances or specific fittings — prospective purchasers are advised to inspect the property themselves. All fixtures, fittings and furniture not specifically itemised within these particulars are deemed removable by the vendor.