The owners of this beautiful home in north London wanted to create a gorgeous extension which could be used as a flexible, multi-use space. The interiors were intended to be natural, using wood and textured plaster in many areas, in order to create a calming, uncluttered atmosphere.

Architects Fraher & Findlay appointed MS Lighting Design to produce the lighting design for the extension. The approach to the lighting design was to integrate and conceal the lighting as much as possible, providing task lighting where needed while highlighting the beautiful architecture.

One of the key architectural features of the space was the sawtooth roof, which maximised the height for the client while allowing an easier planning application. In the main kitchen/dining space, a linear light source in a trough where the ceiling starts to rise provided a beautiful wash across the plastered ceiling, highlighting its finish and also providing a large amount of ambient light into the space.

Over the dining table a stunning, perfectly balanced pendant provides a focal point and practical light without impeding the views out onto the garden. While suspended over the island, a pair of pendants focus light downwards onto the work surface. The lighting scheme had to account for changes in ceiling height, which was overcome with the clever use of multiple fixing points. Under cupboard lighting and mini plaster in spotlights complete the kitchen lighting scheme.

In the snug, a linear uplight was incorporated into the wall structure itself, matching the wash in the main room and providing excellent ambient light. Complementing this is a beautiful floor lamp, plus a wash of light above the window seat. 

It was essential to bring the small courtyard into the home so that it did not just become a black box in the evening. The tree was made the focal point by highlighting it with spike spotlights, while a diffused indirect wall light provides soft, ambient light.

Situated in the desirable area of Clapham, London, a 1960s modernist house on New Park Road has been transformed through cutting-edge design and technology. RDA Architects have sensitively restored the house, which was designed by famed architect Michael Blackstock, and has not been altered in 40 years.

Instead of demolishing the property, which is a piece of British history, the house has been given a new lease of life through the introduction of modern technology.  

A number of key partners collaborated to make the project a huge success and push the boundaries of residential lighting. Alongside RDA Architects, MS Lighting Design were appointed to deliver the lighting scheme for the renovation. These two expert teams worked closely with the client who trained as an architect and has since embraced a new career as a DJ.

While creating the lighting concept, MS Lighting Design had to account for a number of restrictions. These included low ceiling height on some floors, a concrete structure, and the need to make the lighting flexible for the client’s requirements.

The property, which has three-storeys, was designed in the upside-down style that was popular in the 1960s. The ground floor was the parking and the utility area. This has now been converted to a welcoming and peaceful space, with the parking replaced with a large lobby leading to a private study. A bedroom with ensuite, utility and plant room are also on this level. Outside is a tranquil Japanese inspired garden.

One of the key requirements from the client was that this newly created entrance needed to be an adaptable space. Acting as a hallway, it also had to be suitable for a work space and gallery for exhibitions curated by the client. To enable this, MS Lighting Design built in a soft light, washing behind a pelmet. This was due to the solid ceiling, which meant no recessing was possible.

A flexible magnetic track has been used for display lighting, which gives the client the ability to mix pendants, focused spotlights, wall washers and downlights to tailor the lighting to what is being displayed. All of these solutions have been installed using a Casambi smart control, allowing it to be both switched conventionally from the wall, but also customised when it needed to illuminate an exhibition. Simple control is always key, but this flexibility allows the client to use it day-to-day as a hall, while having the potential to do much more when required.

The master bedroom and 2 further bedrooms remain on the first floor, with the living space on the top floor of the property.

The original clad ceiling and pelmet design around the perimeter have been retained, and used as a basis for the lighting. Concealed white and RGB lighting, both uplighting and downlighting within the pelmet, enables the client to change the mood of the space. One key use of the space is entertaining, and, given the client’s current occupation as a DJ, DMX control with sound to light has been integrated into the system. This allows them to bring light and music together.

Adding to this, the white downlighting within the pelmet also forms the task lighting for the kitchen and by the sofa for reading.

A key change to the house has been the rebuilding to a Passivhaus standard. This is a pioneering retrofit approach, bringing the housing sector towards zero carbon emissions 2050. To achieve the standard for this project, RDA Architects introduced highly efficient insulation, with new windows and doors to improve air-tightness. This has reduced heat loss and provided a high level of comfort throughout the house.

The need to modernise and improve efficiency had to be balanced with the client’s desire to retain as many of the 50s/60s features and aesthetics. This has been achieved in many ways, with a reinstatement of the best style aspects of the house and the furniture inside.

A new wood ceiling has been fitted, matching the original vision for the house. Architraves, doors and the kitchen have been restored and stained, all staying true to the original design. RDA describes the whole house as having a “retro, but timeless feel.” 

Rollscourt Avenue is a quiet residential street in South East London. The clients wanted to add more space to their home, so they invested in a ground floor extension, which was designed by leading London architects RDA Architects.

MS Lighting Design were appointed to the project team, working in partnership with RDA Architects and the clients. Interior designers Stealth Design were also part of the collaboration. MS Lighting Design worked closely with them to create a clean, complementary lighting design. Concealed linear strips have been used to highlight the feature skylights, while they disappear in the daytime.

One of the largest, and most striking features in the huge kitchen island, which is clad in a unique Tanzania quartz. Only two sheets are available of this stone, and with varying translucency, it creates a majestic focus for the kitchen.

MS Lighting Design worked with Roundhouse Kitchens to illuminate the island, with colour tests and structural design, while ensuring it can be maintained in the future.

The finished result is truly stunning; with the island forming a beautiful centrepiece for the whole room. It provides wonderful warmth and a unique addition to the high-quality and impressive extension.

The client was planning a renovation of the ground floor and garden, with a brief to produce a lighting scheme which would complement his incorporation of both traditional elements and raw architecture, such as exposed brick. Taking this, we aimed to conceal as many of the light fittings as possible, using plaster in fittings or incorporating them into the joinery. Where wall lights and pendants were added we went through an exhaustive review process with the client to find precisely the right items to complement the materials they were to be mounted on or next to.

The space has a beautiful entrance hall with patterned tile, and the lighting was kept simple with decorative fittings and a few discrete plaster in downlights. Then you enter into a formal living room with feature fireplace. This is complemented by two decorative wall lights and matching pendant, to frame the fireplace and highlight the patterned wallpaper. Recessed uplights were used to accent the fireplace, while LED strip was incorporated into the bookcases and fitted with an anti glare baffle, silhouetting the books and picking it out as the feature it is.

You then progress into the open plan space, consisting of TV snug area, dining area and kitchen area. Within the snug a reading light was fitted, and joinery lighting was used to create soft ambient light. The dining and kitchen areas flow into one another and are tied together by the exposed brick walls. The varying height of the ceilings was added by the architect to define the space and ensure that it didn’t turn into a giant, empty box. Suspended lighting was added as a feature over the dining table and kitchen, while also providing task lighting for these areas. Wall lights were added to the brick in the dining area as a visual feature and to frame the clock, while uplights are used again to frame the doorways and tie the space together. Small starlights were added to the skylights to stop them turning into black holes at night and add some soft ambient light.

The project was a complete refurbishment of the house, with a new basement added. The client has lived there for a few years but the interior predated them and was not their own. They wanted to create something with a mix of traditional and contemporary in the existing house, but in the extension and basement, they wanted something more modern, with cleaner lines and iconic style pieces. Luckily we were blessed to have such receptive clients, who embraced our design, along with a contractor, BTL Property, who was on board with making the vision of the project a reality.

We tailored the lighting to the design, enhancing the architectural elements, such as the skylights door openings, and the decorative elements, such as curtains and the fireplace. We aimed to conceal the light fittings as much as possible so as to not detract from the overall design aesthetic. This was done by using, where possible, concealed LED strip, plaster in downlights, low level lights and channel. They were carefully positioned to ensure the right elements were illuminated.

We wanted to be able to choose between a more general setting and a lower, more atmospheric level, with the feel of a private members club. Part of this was to ensure that we had both high and low level lighting positioned in the room, with the low level used alongside dramatic contrast lighting, such as the uplights, to create that club look. Luckily the AV supplier incorporated a Rako lighting control system which enabled us to set scenes and ensure the client always experiences the best lighting possible.

No1 Lounges are a collection of premium, independent airport lounges across the UK’s busiest airports. The lounges offer travellers a convenient and comfortable service while waiting to board flights.

As part of a redesign for the brand, a series of new ‘Clubrooms’ were developed in 2017 to offer the ultimate departure experience, adding a top tier to the existing two levels of lounges offered.

The Clubrooms have been designed in the style of a modern members’ club, with the service to match. However, there were some elements of the lounges which the company was not content with. A redesign began in 2018, starting with the Birmingham Clubroom. 

To help create the desired atmosphere and ambience, a soft, moody lighting was required. The brief provided to MS Lighting Design was to reduce the number of downlights in order to achieve the right lighting levels, which were too high before. Elegance and luxury were both cited as important results for the project.

MS Lighting Design were appointed by Inside Out, the architects and interior designers, to create a scheme which would highlight the features in the space. There were many technical constraints facing MS Lighting Design, for example, a suspended, perforated ceiling which needed to be kept accessible, with air flowing to comply with fire regulations.

The Birmingham lounge also had very limited height.

To overcome these challenges, a a custom fixing was created for the egg crate spotlight, which was designed to reduce visibility and allow positioning in any location. The custom solution also allowed the light to be adjusted within the space.

MS Lighting Design integrated and hid as much as the lighting as possible, allowing it to subtly wash light onto surfaces, while also being controlled to maintain the atmosphere. Custom-designed joinery houses the lighting.

A scene setting system has been used to automate the whole space, ensuring that the lighting correctly illuminates the lounge at any time of day, as well as adjusting for the time of year.

Adding an additional element to the lighting design, electric blinds have been fitted to automate the daylight control and ensure the space is not overwhelmed by any direct sunlight.

In response to the brief, the result is certainly elegant, luxurious, and delivers a relaxing, classy respite for travellers and the lighting has no doubt played a fundamental role in this. 

This small one bedroom flat was a challenging site to work with. the ceilings were low and solid, and we had to make it feel light and airy. The client requested a boutique hotel feel and really wanted to do something different with the space, much to our delight.

Due to the solid ceiling, throughout most of the flat we had to work with surface mounted lighting, while minimizing any drops due to the low height. We decided to include linear LED strip concealed by pelmets, providing soft washes of light into the space when dimmed, but can be turned up to give bright light when required. Integrated lighting into the furniture and specific decorative table and floor lamps helped provide the task lighting for the space. 

The bathroom was the one area with a suspended ceiling, so we created a wash of light along one wall, while keeping all light fittings as discrete as possible to provide a sense of serenity and peace for a home in the bustling city.

The client for this project was building a home for their family of 4, and the goal was to have something which was different from the usual extension. They employed three|eleven design who produced a stunning extension, and we went to work on designing a lighting scheme to match. The client was heavily involved and it was a fantastic, collaborative project, really producing an amazing design at the end.

Key elements were to avoid a "sea" of spotlights on the ceiling, so we used them sparingly and where they were needed, plaster in downlights were used, to minimize the visual impact. linear lighting was incorporated to highlight the architectural features and provide general light, with recessed uplights to emphasize structural columns. 

The glasshouse is a home in a minimalist, modern style, with clean lines and angular shapes. The key was to have the lighting highlight these forms and pick out the features, while concealing as much as possible. Concealed LED strip and use of blue helped add light and character while not detracting from the architectural highlights.

Marham was a rework of a ground floor with extension to the rear. The brief was to keep it clean and uncluttered, while adding some drama for the homeowners and their guests to enjoy. The outdoor lighting was also very important to tie it in with the internal space.

This project has an extremely challenging brief: why do I need a switch? In addition to creating a home without the need to turn the lights on and off, it also needed to delight when a room was entered.