College Gardens

12 Sept

Written By Web Admin

NAME

College Gardens

PROJECT TYPE

Renovation

SIZE

Sq/ft 2500

Location

Dulwich SE21

Duration

10 months

A Dulwich Revival: Breathing New Life into a 1960s Family Townhouse

When Charles Barclay Architects asked us to join them in the reimagining of the clients’ 1960s town house, we jumped at the opportunity.. The family loved their end-of-terrace, four-storey house, but they had begun to feel constrained by its layout. Rather than moving, they decided to invest in a full renovation to future-proof the family home for years to come.

The home already had great bones – it just needed a thoughtful reconfiguration and refresh to meet the demands of modern family life. The brief was clear: create a new home that felt both spacious and functional, while also offering an elegant backdrop for entertaining family and friends.

“We have worked with Muchmore Design over the last 12 months on the refurbishment of our house in Dulwich. We highly recommend Muchmore as interior designers of choice. They designed the complete interior of the house in a mid century modern style. We love it as do all our friends who see it!

Muchmore were always attentive and responsive and passed on all of their trade discounts to us! They are still helping me to source items months after they are supposed to have stopped working with us! We will definitely used them again in the future.”

— Client Review

Brief

Originally designed by Austin Vernon and Partners, the College Gardens Estate in Dulwich Village is a quintessential example of 1960s modernist housing. With their split-level layouts, open-plan living spaces and broad windows, these townhouses were designed to capture natural light and create a sense of openness.

Working in close collaboration with Charles Barclay Architects, our aim was to evolve the original spirit of openness, typical of mid-century modern architecture, while respecting the building's modernist heritage. Celebrating the clean lines, geometric forms and strong connection to the outdoors, the architects proposed a new internal configuration to which Muchmore Design added revised furniture layouts and contemporary materiality to enhance fluidity, brightness and connection between spaces.

The brief focused on reimagining the kitchen, dining and living areas, including an extended bay window, while also upgrading the downstairs WC, teen den, bedrooms and office. This included new hard finishes, heating, lighting, decoration, fitted joinery and free-standing furniture throughout, as well as a new raised decking area.

The result is a home that feels coherent and generous yet intimate, balancing modernist design with the everyday needs of a growing family. With its new configuration, the family has rediscovered love for their house – now a place where belongings are easily organised and daily life flows with ease.

Room by Room

Living Area

At the heart of the home lies the former kitchen, reimagined as a new living area. This room opens directly onto the raised deck through an enlarged bay window extension and new sliding doors. A beautifully sculpted S-curving wall with a concealed pocket door separates the space from the entrance hall. Meanwhile, a sliding screen allows the kitchen and dining area to be closed off when needed. These architectural changes remove the constraints of the original layout, creating a natural flow between the living, dining and kitchen areas, making the home feel considerably more spacious, despite only a modest increase in floor area.

Floor-to-ceiling glazing introduces the soft exterior natural tones that complement the earthy colour palette specified for the room. Here, warm, modern minimalism meets Scandinavian and mid-century influences to create a space that feels both calm and inviting.

A bespoke window bench and TV unit were designed and commissioned to bring a sense of purpose and cohesion. Low-profile white cabinetry offers discreet, convenient storage, while floating wooden shelves provide space for display and personal items.

A rich olive-green velvet corner sofa anchors the space, adding a sophisticated pop of colour. Styled with rust and cream cushions, a soft throw, a textured rug, and full-length neutral curtains, the room has become an open and welcoming retreat at the end of a long day.

Lighting has been kept deliberately soft. For example, a sculptural pendant forms a contemporary focal point, while a glowing orb lamp and patterned table lamp create pools of warmth in the evening. This layered approach ensures the room feels just as inviting after dark as it does in daylight.

The living space has been transformed into a light-filled, open-plan hub, flowing seamlessly into the adjacent dining area and showcasing the success of the reconfiguration. The result is a timeless room, calm enough for quiet moments, yet flexible enough for gatherings, a careful balance of function, comfort and understated elegance.

Room by Room

Dining Room

The dining area features a bespoke table with a striking, folded-metal base that introduces a sense of sculptural artistry. The smoked-glass tabletop subtly reveals glimpses of the base beneath, adding depth and visual intrigue. Paired with sleek modern chairs upholstered in beige leather and black legs, this statement piece embodies modern minimalism design.

To finish the space, we specified a unique horizontal pendant by Heathfield & Co. Characterised by its uniquely speckled glass shades that are asymmetrically positioned around the black metal frame, this statement piece provides a touch of elegance and a delicate glow above the table.

Room by Room

Kitchen

One of the most impactful design moves was relocating the kitchen to the upper level, positioning it conveniently alongside the dining area with views over the terrace and communal gardens.

A key part of the brief was to celebrate our clients’ love of cooking. Designed as a performative space, the new kitchen allows them to indulge a passion for Italian cuisine, with generous room to gather and share meals. Careful planning ensured that beloved appliances, including the pizza oven and meat slicer, were seamlessly integrated into the design. The central island forms the focal point of the space, combining cooking and casual seating, while being oriented to maximise views of the outdoors.

Supplied by PAD Kitchens, the cabinetry pairs matte lacquered porcelain doors from the Belgravia Collection with rich wood-grain finishes from the Camden Collection, striking a balance between crisp modernity and natural warmth. A dramatic, dark quartz worktop with soft, warm veining anchors the design, while premium appliances from Miele, BORA, and Quooker enhance both performance and practicality.