If home sweet home isn't fulfilling your family's needs anymore, there's no need to up sticks. By extending out or reconfiguring your living spaces, you can create the perfect property that ticks all of your boxes, minus the inconvenience of moving. Get inspired by these amazing projects that take the humble renovation into the realm of artistry, showing how high-quality design can make a big impact in even the tightest of spaces. Prepare for huge house envy – you have been warned...

The aim for Bradley Van Der Straeten was to achieve an extensive list of practical requirements while creating a stronger connection between the house and garden. Creating a ground floor full-width sunken terrace, working with an existing double floor extension the new scheme creates a music studio with a lounge area and workshop. Externally, a palette of Shou-Sugi-Ban charred timber contrasts with the oak finish, while a bespoke steel balcony contributes bronze details to the external kitchen.

Reconfiguring the internal ground floor layout of this North London home has allowed for a full-width rear kitchen and dining room extension with rooflights. Designed by Catriona Burns Architects the addition of the colourful timber-framed space enhances the connection between house and garden; the large glazed screen allows daylight in and provides connecting views. A small terrace at first floor, over the new room, allows extra family space, as well as a loft extension with picture windows.

Providing the opportunity to connect two buildings, Powell Tuck Architects has created a new playroom, improved the side entrance and utility areas and increased internal floor space by over 40 sqm, simply by closing the gap between house and garage. The low profile of the new structure accommodates the difficult junction of the pitched garage roof with the new angled roof and the existing property. A top-lit glazed element brings in much needed light, and leads to the garden at the back.

This four-storey semi-detached house benefits from a generous south facing garden and, at the top floors, views of central London. The design, by Pardon Chambers Architects, makes simple adjustments to the lower ground and ground floor levels, better connecting the home to the garden, which can now be seen from both levels. The lower ground-floor extension has been pushed forward to allow more light.

A traditional London Victorian home is given an open-plan and modern urban update with the addition of this new black charred larch-clad side and rear extension. The large single-storey build, designed by SAM Architects & Lunar Architects creates a collection of new spaces for modern living, with an emphasis on fluid circulation. The pitched volume, is not only a familiar language from the local architecture, but also minimises impact towards neighbouring properties, whilst maximising height.

Remodelling this Victorian terrace house has turned it into a bright, light and airy home, pushing daylight deep into the house. The existing house had a very long footprint with a series of introverted rooms that acted as barriers to the garden. A modest side extension has been inserted to infill what was a narrow courtyard and provide extra width. R2 Studio Architects has beautifully remodelled the entire house to connect living areas, visually shortening the distances between them.

A new garden pavilion with anodised aluminium slimline glazing has transformed the internal relationship of this ground floor flat with the large rear garden. The build, designed by Proctor & Shaw, is sunken into the garden to gain ceiling height and the roof promotes views out, whilst keeping the eaves low at the back. The exposed concrete gives the look a seamless finish and frames the design. It truly provides the perfect connection between inside and out.

Extending a one-bedroom flat in an 1900s dairy cottage, the design stems from the aesthetic of branches in the mature rear garden. Studio MESH has created a new primary living space with an exposed timber truss roof that is impeccably striking. The small budget necessitated an imaginative use of standard materials. Glazing of the end gable is carefully detailed to appear frameless and provides a beautiful connection with the garden.

Russell Hunt Architects has introduced a wedge-shaped extension to this 1970s townhouse to create a tall, light-filled, semi underground space with a folded roof, expressed internally in exposed timber. The house has been reorganised in addition to the extension to maximise light and space for family life. The varying roof pitches allow the space to be maximised at the rear, creating a full-width kitchen, dining and living space, whilst appearing modestly scaled to the front and side.

This remodelled home was designed by the architect himself - Neil Dusheiko Architects - for himself and his family. Its double-volume interconnected spaces between floors, celebrates natural light and materials, and features an outdoor shower open to the sky. Light and circulation problems were improved through the build, by moving the staircase to the opposite wall, connecting the living room directly with the kitchen. A new large, sloped double-story skylight brings in floods of light.

Replacing a poorly built 1980s extension with split-level flooring between the dining and kitchen area, this incredible design by Uvarchitects has totally transformed the space. The stacked roof comprises two overlapping shelves separated from the imposing brick structure of the original house, and each other by strips of glass. Clad in glowing copper, the build complements its Victorian backdrop. Sliding glass panels allow the space to merge inside and out, as well as flooding it with light.

Instead of the usually expected glass structure, this addition reimagines the conventional terraced-house extension, celebrating the humble brick. The brick's inherent potential as a stackable module is maximised here to create a sculptural expression. Using bricks reclaimed from the fabric of the house, the extension, designed by Bureau de Change Architects, exploits the rights of light diagram to create a staggered, extruded form that appears to melt away from the existing structure.

Ulla Gala Architect's striking black-zinc clad extension of this 1970s ex-council house provides ample living space. The reconfiguration of the property has converted it into a spacious home with open-plan interior that gives visibility through the central stairway to the upper floor and a wide, expansive vista onto the garden. A new skylight runs the width of the extension brings light to otherwise dark areas, too. The exterior contrasts beautifully with the existing London stock bricks.

Working with a tight budget within a two-storey 1980s end-of-terrace house, Arboreal Architecture designed a space within the fabric of the existing building rather than create a new loft structure or extension. Utilising the awkward spaces within the single pitch, trussed rafter roof, the design replaces the diagonal truss members with plywood arches to form the Loft Library, providing stair access, four new windows and a library space formed entirely of 18mm plywood, all precisely cut to size.

What an incredible re-interpretation of typical domestic spaces of the Edwardian townhouse by Merrett Houmoller Architects. Creating a dramatic sequence of connected volumes and views with internal and external cuts in the build. The kitchen, living and dining spaces have been relocated to the basement by carefully carving away the structure. The new layout is a mix of open and broken-plan design with double-height ceilings, expansive windows and a mezzanine. 

Gundy + Ducker has updated a standard maisonette with carefully considered materials for this part-two storey rear extension. Replacing a set of dilapidated extensions, the new structure has created a bright new living space and upstairs studio room with L-shaped corner window. The extension has a rich but simple feel, built in the form of an exposed concrete table with different sized ‘legs’ placed at the rear.

Inspired by the owners' passion for the decorative arts, this Edwardian family home has been reorganised around a central kitchen and extended with a new rear room covered in glazed blue tiles. Excavation of the existing basement provides a new bedroom and ensuite to the front, and a utility to the rear, connecting to the kitchen. The kitchen pivots between basement and raised ground floor, with large glazed openings. Externally, the rear extension features a lightweight sloping glass roof.

Rethinking unused apartment rooms in a former synagogue, responding creatively to significant site constraints while celebrating and enhancing a distinctive piece of local architecture was the brief for IF_DO. The project has created a much needed second bedroom-study and enhances the eccentricities of the existing building. Large triangular roof lights bring light into the space, transforming a dark and unused courtyard into new living areas, celebrating the connection to the garden and sky.

Magri Williams Architects has provided extra family space by in the introduction of this brick rear extension, zinc loft conversion and a whole house refurbishment with a controlled material palette, consisting of brick, tile, clay, concrete and plywood. A new bedroom and bathroom has been introduced on the top floor. At ground floor, a level change and half-height plywood wall divides the space, whilst maintaining a visual connection. A large skylight above draws light through the house.

Due to an awkwardly positioned Victorian toilet and utility room, the house didn’t feel as though it was part of the garden and there were little views outside. Ar’Chic designed an extension to jet out the kitchen-breakfast room with a glass pod into the outside space. The loo and laundry was relocated and the kitchen space was doubled. The sheer glazing with a curved corner invites wonderful external views.

This re-imagined Georgian glasshouse, reconnects the Grade II-listed Georgian townhouse to its garden. CAN architects were dictated by the footprint of the 12 sqm existing extension but have done a marvellous job. Made with the smallest "off-the-shelf" beams, the external steel frame also serves as an ornamental feature. The glazed enclosure is hung from this frame, removing the need for any internal structure an maximising internal space. The glazed chamfered door slides away to be concealed.

Conibere Phillips Architects underwent a whole house transformation, creating a modern family home with a two-storey extension. It is a boldly modern, yet contextual, addition to the conservation area. References to the Victorian era are combined with contemporary materials and detailing. The new space contains a large kitchen-dining area, with a concealed pantry, that opens to the garden.

An asymmetric black zinc-clad rear build gives this double-fronted Victorian family home a new lease of life. Meme Architects has created a contemporary ground floor extension with an accompanying loft conversion to house a new kitchen, dining and family space, a reconfigured utility area, WC and a boot room. Carefully designs to avoid obstructing original windows, the form is asymmetric with a pitched roof, hipped back to the existing building.

Japanese inspired design is behind this renovation of a London canal side apartment. Designed by Con I Form Architects the awkward layout and compromised head heights have been overcome with a new design that transforms the two disparate levels, which are now one connected whole. Influenced by the ornate timber detailing and craft found in traditional narrowboats and Japanese shoji, the design has created a unique space.

This small one-bedroomed flat, in the Crouch End Conservation Area, became too small on the arrival of the owners' first child. Its small rear and side garden areas, with skewed boundary fences, offered the only space for expansion. Knott Architects has executed two extensions that jut out from the existing bedroom, responding to, and limited by, the angles of the garden fences. In a potentially dark corner the roof breaks out, by being prized open and folded back, bringing lots of daylight in.

Aiming for zero waste in construction through an innovative reuse of materials was the goal for Arboreal Architecture. Renovating the kitchen, dining and living areas of this ground floor flat, the project adds a new interior lining - comprising wall panelling and cabinetry made from reclaimed wood. Broken bricks, concrete and wood collected were used in a gabion garden wall. Internally, the old wood floor was reused as the new wall lining and old windows became an internal glazed partition. 

Reconfiguring a previously poorly laid-out and compromised Victorian home, including the addition of a distinctive ivory-coloured blockwork rear extension was the project for Al-Jawad Pike. The budget for a two-storey rear extension was restricted so a limited palette of economical and robust materials were selected. The fresh concrete block offset by stainless steel is beautiful. Overall, a more open-plan space, including a new staircase, WC and utility room were all achieved.

This is a complete reorganisation of a terraced mews house, adding a new roof level and a connected garden room encouraging living, working and socialising to overlap and interact. Designed specifically for renting, Teatum + Teatum and Noiascape have connected the living and shared spaces. Bedrooms are located at ground floor with living spaces on the top levels, and are double-height. Built-in furniture allows residents to just move straight in and start living.

Two main concepts accentuated the strong relationship between the extension and the garden; the rear glazing is composed of sliding panels with minimal frames offering seamless long views through the house to the garden beyond, and the pair of chimes are materially melded by a continuous concrete ribbon. Designed by Gruff Limited, the extension beautifully draws the outdoors in and the indoors out.

Eliminating half landings and rationalising floor levels throughout, the design by Tigg + Coll Architects creates singluar floors at each level, with seamless spaces running uninterrupted from the back of the house to the front. To achieve this, a fundamental reworking of the vertical circulation created a slim folded metal winding staircase, pulled back from the elevation internally to form a triple-height void with a roof light above, allowing natural light deep into the home.

Rethinking a redundant space within a converted water tower to create accommodation and rooftop views was the project for FORMstudio. Colonising the underutilised space, located above a fourth-floor warehouse loft apartment, has created additional living space. two tightly-configured flights of stairs now link two intermediate mezzanine floors, with a third stair rising to the roof. Frameless skylights and glass landings draw natural light down into the accommodation below.

An angular, aluminium-clad rear extension and refurbishment with triangulated steelwork and dramatic roof is the result of Proctor & Shaw’s work here. The roof is formed from three ‘folds’ framed in steelwork and in-filled with exposed timber, framing with an angled, custom roof light. Externally, the aluminium cladding features an oriel window which frames the garden from the kitchen.

Originally built in 1935, Chapel is a home carved from a derelict religious building. There are rooms within rooms, working simultaneously under an embodied roof. Craftworks were given challenging constraints - in needing to restore the existing form whilst ensuring privacy of adjacent neighbours. What resulted was the construction of a lower ground level for bedrooms, a large ground floor living space with vaulted ceiling, and a mezzanine level. Finished with a most wonderful windowed roof.

Completely disconnected from the owner’s one-bedroomed flat, with access only by re-entering the flatted building’s communal staircase, this project has brought an existing outhouse extension into proper use. Con I Form Architects design utilities a new wall as a connecting device between the spaces, creating apertures that allow light deep inside. The bathroom is moved from the centre to the rear, enlarging the bedroom and providing better connection to the living room.

Appleton Weiner's transformation of this Grade II-listed end-of-terrace house is incredible. Its stealthy, low-profile addition includes new and reworked subterranean spaces. Working within the constraints of the Victorian house, the extension creates a discrete side addition, barely rising above ground level. Adding 12 sqm of living space and storage the addition extends under the driveway. A sliding roof light, glazed to both horizontal and vertical planes, invites copious amounts of light.

This 1980s end-of-terrace has been spectacularly transformed by architects Archmongers. The single garage at the end of the garden has been converted into a bedroom and is now connected to the main house via a single-storey courtyard extension, containing a terrazzo-lined kitchen and dining room. A series of clesrestory windows introduce light throughout the ground floor, whilst maintaining privacy in this tight urban site.

Contemporary and sensitive to a Grade II-listed building, inspired by the towers constructed in the Italian hill town of San Gimignano, this build, by Dominic McKenzie Architects, has added a new two-and-a-half storey rear extension. The upper part has formed a new bathroom, and beneath there is a new dining room. Large glazed elements produce a playful, unexpected shift in scale on entry to the lower ground floor and garden.