Minimalist backyard addition is an ode to neutrals

Some people use their backyards for storing stuff in a shed—others use it to design pristinely minimalist reading nooks. The architects at London studio Thomas-McBrien studio designed an addition for a London home that’s all about negative space and neutral tones.

Spanning the length of the backyard plot, the addition opens onto a patio with a series of wide steps forming a sleek terrace. The structure is swathed in pale oak and bookended by walls of white-washed brick, giving the interior a meditative effect.

The compact space holds a kitchen and dining room, as well as a built-in reading nook. Lest you be fooled by the strict adherence to minimalism, the place has a trick up its sleeve: Behind the clean wood veneer of the nook, a sliding door leads to a storage and utility room where we’re telling ourselves things look a little messier.

Ståle Eriksen

Ståle Eriksen

Ståle Eriksen