RISE Design Studio Blog: Modern Architecture & Design Insights (4)

Quiet Power: Designing with the Japandi Spirit

by Sean Hill on Aug 5, 2025

Japandi interior design by RISE Design Studio featuring natural timber, soft neutral tones, and organic textures that reflect sustainable, low-energy living.

At RISE, we believe that good design doesn’t shout. It whispers. It slows your heartbeat. It invites you to breathe, to feel the texture of a timber handle, the warmth of filtered light.

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Topics: Japanese Archiecture Japandi

Backland Development: How to Build a Sustainable Home in Your Garden

by Sean Hill on Aug 5, 2025

Sustainable backland homes by RISE Design Studio featuring natural materials, soft landscaping, and abundant daylight - a modern example of low-energy design that enhances biodiversity and makes efficient use of garden plots in suburban London.

Across London and the UK, homeowners are beginning to look inward – to the quiet corners of their gardens and underused plots – for new possibilities.

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Topics: Backland Development

Breathing New Life Into Old Walls: Extending Georgian Homes With Purpose

by Sean Hill on Aug 1, 2025

Rear view of a Georgian house with a contemporary copper-clad extension featuring large sliding glass doors, opening onto a minimalist garden terrace designed for low-energy living.

Georgian homes have a quiet kind of confidence. They don’t shout. They simply endure—with their symmetry, tall sash windows, and understated grace. Built during a time of enlightenment and elegance, these homes are more than just bricks and mortar—they are part of our cultural memory.

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Topics: Sustainable architecture Georgian Extension

Tennis in an English Garden

by Imran Jahn on Jul 31, 2025

Aerial view of RISE Design Studio’s proposed new clubhouse at Elmwood Lawn Tennis Club in Kensal Rise, featuring a pitched roof, rooflights, outdoor seating, and landscaped gardens beside the tennis courts, designed for community use and low-energy performance.

Reimagining the Elmwood Lawn Tennis Club Pavilion

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Topics: Sustainable architecture Tennis Pavilion Sustainable Tennis Pavilion

How to Choose the Right Building Standards for a Low-Carbon Future

by Sean Hill on Jul 30, 2025

Rear view of a sustainable London home extension featuring timber cladding, large triple-glazed openings, and meticulous detailing, designed to meet EnerPHit principles for energy efficiency, airtightness, and occupant comfort.

Every build is a decision. Every decision shapes the future.

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Topics: Passivhaus enerphit BREEAM AECB

How to Retrofit a London Home to the EnerPHit Standard

by Imran Jahn on Jul 30, 2025

Rear view of a Victorian London home featuring a contemporary timber-clad extension with triple-glazed sliding doors, designed to EnerPHit standard for low energy use, airtightness, and sustainable performance while respecting the original architecture.

How EnerPHit retrofit principles are shaping London's low-carbon future

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Topics: Building energy Sustainable architecture enerphit

Building on Brownfield in 2025

by Imran Jahn on Jul 26, 2025

Row of contemporary brick houses with pitched roofs and timber detailing, designed by RISE Design Studio on a redeveloped brownfield site, showcasing sustainable urban housing with landscaped frontages and integrated solar shading.

Why the Future of Housing Might Be Hiding in Plain Sight

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Topics: Sustainable architecture Sustainable Affordable Homes Brownfield Development

Breathing New Life into Homes: Why MVHR Matters in a Low-Energy Future

by Sean Hill on Jul 26, 2025

Interior of a low-energy deep retrofit home by RISE Design Studio featuring natural timber finishes, large skylight, MVHR-integrated design, and garden connection through full-height glazing.

At RISE, we believe homes should do more than shelter. They should nurture. Heal. Breathe. And in our journey to design spaces that tread lightly and live deeply, Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) has become a quiet revolution — quite literally.

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Topics: enerphit mvhr Sustainable Interiors Sustainable Architect Sustainable Extensions