The open-plan kitchen and living space at Skylark, where a chestnut-timber beamed ceiling meets pale brick and polished concrete floors. A dark veined marble island with tan leather stools anchors the room, while floor-to-ceiling glazing and a tan leather armchair draw the wooded garden into the warm, mid-century-inflected interior.

Skylark by House Of EM: A Confident Architectural Debut Rooted in Materiality and Landscape

Words by Yatzer

Shropshire, UK

For an architecture practice, a debut project carries the weight of a manifesto. It has to introduce a point of view, demonstrate technical control, and suggest where the studio might go next. With Skylark, a new-build family home in Shropshire, England, House Of EM makes a quietly assured entrance. Founded by former Michaelis Boyd directors Emma Bodie and Matthew Sanders, the London-based practice has delivered a house that feels both confident and carefully grounded in its verdant surroundings, combining mid-century-inspired architecture with a nuanced approach to materiality, spatial flow and connection to nature.

A close study of Skylark's craftsmanship: elongated Danish brick laid in fine horizontal courses meets the strict vertical rhythm of castellated detailing wrapping the window heads. Golden light warms the pale tonality, while reflections of surrounding foliage animate the dark-framed glazing, underscoring the house's dialogue between mass, texture and landscape.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

Warm light rakes across the elongated grey-beige brickwork, catching the vertical cadence of the castellated bands above deep-set, dark-framed windows. A pale faceted sculpture rests on a raw timber plinth among feathery grasses and verbena, the naturalistic planting blurring the threshold between architecture and garden at Skylark.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

Seen from the sloping lawn, Skylark rises as a composition of pale brick volumes anchored by a tall chimney stack, its articulated F-shaped footprint legible against an overcast sky. Weathering-steel steps cut into the grassed bank lead towards the house, set among trees on its plateau above the River Teme.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

Set on a previously overgrown plateau overlooking the River Teme, the two-storey house is configured as an F-shaped plan, a move that balances openness with privacy while anchoring the building within its leafy site. By choosing an articulated footprint rather than a compact, monolithic volume, Bodie and Sanders have reduced the building’s perceived mass, an effect further softened by the stepped upper floor. The plan also allows a series of courtyards and terraces to be carved out around the house, creating a sequence of framed views that draw the eye across and beyond the architecture.

The exterior is defined by linear light grey Danish brick. Set against the surrounding greenery, the brickwork’s pale tonality gives the house a distinctive yet restrained character. Castellated brick detailing wraps around the volumes like a frieze, introducing rhythm across the façades, its strict vertical cadence subtly animating the brickwork’s elongated horizontal pattern. The treatment of the windows further enriches the building’s character, adding visual interest and depth to its composition: on the road-facing elevations, simple glazed openings preserve a sense of seclusion, while to the rear and sides, expansive floor-to-ceiling glazing opens the house to the surrounding terraces, garden and trees.

Skylark by House Of EM presents a pale, linear Danish brick volume softened by castellated detailing that runs like a frieze beneath the stepped upper floor. A sliding glass door opens the interior to a gravel terrace, where ornamental grasses, verbena and a dark faceted sculpture meet the building's restrained, sunlit geometry.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A tall, slender window slices through Skylark's pale brickwork, offering a glimpse of a sheepskin-upholstered lounge chair within. Castellated detailing runs above, while a clipped pine and dried seedheads cluster at the base, the framed view layering interior, threshold and garden in a single composition.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A wide sliding door dissolves the boundary between inside and out, revealing a sienna-toned interior and bouclé stool beyond the pale brick pier. Two faceted sculptures, one charcoal and one cream, sit on timber plinths amid grasses and verbena, anchoring the gravel garden against Skylark's quietly luminous façade.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A corner window wraps the volume at Skylark, its dark-framed glazing framed by the castellated brick frieze and tonal Danish brickwork. In the foreground a layered perennial garden of echinacea, verbena and grasses spills across gravel, the prairie-style planting lending movement and seasonality to the architecture's calm, rectilinear restraint.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • Glimpsed through mature trees, the rear elevation of Skylark reveals its two-storey massing, the stepped upper floor reducing the building's perceived mass. Double-height glazing draws the leafy garden into the living spaces, while the pale brickwork settles softly into a verdant setting of dappled light, lawn and dense summer foliage.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A stepping-stone path of pale concrete pavers threads through gravel and ornamental grasses towards Skylark, where the pale Danish brick meets dark-framed glazing. Castellated brick detailing crowns a single-storey wing beyond, while verbena, daisies and feathery grasses soften the threshold between the garden and the building's restrained geometry.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A close study of Skylark's material craft: linear pale brick laid in fine courses meets a band of castellated detailing beneath the eaves, framing an oak-framed window. A small fluted ceramic vessel rests on the sill, while the sculpted pine softens the corner where two brick planes meet.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

A contemplative courtyard at Skylark, where a sculpted cloud-pruned pine and weathered boulders sit amid raked gravel, evoking a Japanese garden. Concrete steps lead to a timber-framed glazed door set into pale Danish brick, while agapanthus and daisies edge the composition in a quietly meditative register.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

The entrance to Skylark, sheltered beneath a slender steel canopy, where a timber-framed glazed door reveals the oak staircase within. Pale brickwork frames the composition, flanked by sculptural strawberry trees and a weathered terracotta planter, the double-height hall drawing daylight deep into the home's arrival sequence.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A study in oak joinery at Skylark, where a built-in bench and slatted timber screen run alongside a glazed door opening to the pine courtyard. Warm grain and careful proportion define the circulation space, while a pale stoneware urn and small fluted vessel punctuate the bench with quiet, considered placement.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A timber-framed window seat at Skylark frames the gravel courtyard and its sculpted cloud-pruned pine, with a boulder set into the raked stones. Rich oak joinery and a built-in bench meet polished concrete underfoot, while a pale ceramic vessel on the sill draws the eye towards the meditative garden beyond.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

Interior view of House Of EM’s Skylark, where a long, light-filled hallway frames views through the house to the garden beyond. Lime-plastered walls, polished concrete floors, timber beams and warm wood joinery create a serene, mid-century-inspired composition, animated by abstract artwork, built-in shelving and carefully placed furniture.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

This same concern with movement and transition continues inside. The entrance sequence is designed as a moment of arrival, with a double-height hall illuminated by a rooflight and oriented towards the landscape beyond. From there, the main living area unfolds into a series of connected yet subtly differentiated spaces: a kitchen, dining area and sitting room. Joinery and an integrated fireplace help define these zones without interrupting the overall sense of flow, allowing the house to feel generous but not sprawling.

A formal sitting room projects from the building’s spine, enjoying views on three sides, while a private wing on the other side of the entrance hall accommodates more intimate and functional spaces including a study, playroom, gym and guest bedroom. Upstairs, the principal suite, complete with bathroom and dressing room, is joined by two children’s bedrooms, keeping the family quarters close while preserving a sense of privacy.

  • A framed view through House Of EM’s Skylark reveals a layered interior of warm lime plaster, dark timber joinery and soft mid-century cues. Built-in shelving creates an intimate threshold, opening onto a serene living room where pale brick, timber ceiling boards and a compact fireplace reinforce the home’s tactile material language.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A framed view through a dark timber doorway at Skylark, where the pale brick fireplace and wood-burning stove anchor the sitting room beyond. In the foreground, oak shelving and a cabinet hold books, a marble lamp and ceramics, the warm ochre plaster and layered objects creating a sense of intimate, lived-in depth.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • The formal sitting room at Skylark, where a full-height pale brick chimney and wood-burning stove rise between corner glazing framing the wooded garden. A bouclé sofa and round walnut table rest on a woven rug, while a carved stone vessel on the sill draws the eye towards the layered planting beyond.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A tall window at Skylark frames a sculpted cloud-pruned pine in the gravel courtyard, drawing the meditative garden indoors. Oak shelving holds ceramics and books beside the opening, while a turned dark vessel and a striped throw on the sofa lend the pale, beam-ceilinged room a calm, collected stillness.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

The formal sitting room at Skylark enjoys views on three sides through corner glazing, anchored by a full-height pale brick chimney and wood-burning stove. A bouclé sofa, sheepskin lounge chair and round walnut table rest on a pale rug, the garden's greenery pressing close on every side.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A quiet corner of Skylark, where built-in oak shelving displays ceramics and books beside a framed work and an expressive yellow-and-red figurative print. Warm plaster walls and a deep olive-green recess meet a stepped oak platform, while concrete steps lead through a dark timber door towards the kitchen beyond.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

The open-plan kitchen and living space at Skylark, where a chestnut-timber beamed ceiling meets pale brick and polished concrete floors. A dark veined marble island with tan leather stools anchors the room, while floor-to-ceiling glazing and a tan leather armchair draw the wooded garden into the warm, mid-century-inflected interior.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

The interiors are shaped by a monochromatic beige scheme that gives the home a soothing, quietly immersive ambience while allowing the garden views to take centre stage. This calm tonal consistency is matched by a design language of clean lines, simple rectilinear forms and carefully resolved details. Lime plaster walls, chestnut timber ceilings and polished concrete floors form a tactile, pared-back palette, bringing warmth and depth to the minimalist architecture. Material contrasts further animate the spaces, with deeply veined dark marble and dark timber introducing richer, more dramatic notes to the otherwise soft palette, most noticeably in the kitchen, where marble countertops and backsplash are complemented by dark timber cabinetry and brass details.

Built-in furniture, shelving and cabinetry reinforce the home's mid-century-inspired clarity, as do the carefully chosen furniture and lighting, from sculptural globe pendants to low-slung seating and warm-toned timber pieces, while exposed timber beams lend the rooms a measured domesticity. Across the interiors, subtle detailing creates a quiet dialogue between inside and out. In the dining area, for example, the banquette echoes the castellated treatment of the exterior brickwork, one of several moments where external motifs are thoughtfully translated indoors.

  • Afternoon light falls across the dining nook at Skylark, where a fluted oak banquette and leather cushioning meet a pale brick pier. A globe pendant hangs above the oak table, while polished concrete floors lead the eye towards a tan leather armchair and the garden glimpsed through full-height glazing.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A still life at Skylark: globe pendants hang against pale brick and a chestnut-timber beamed ceiling, framing a low partition wall. Beyond, an expressive red-and-blue abstract painting and a framed work animate the warm plaster wall, while lemons rest in a wooden bowl on the oak table below.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A corner of the dining nook at Skylark, where clustered globe pendants float above an oak table set with books and a stovetop coffee pot. A square dark-framed window frames the garden's foliage, while warm plaster walls, fluted oak joinery and a leather banquette create an intimate, light-filled retreat.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • The kitchen at Skylark, where dark veined marble worktops meet timber cabinetry beneath a chestnut-timber beamed ceiling. Globe pendants hang above the central island, while the fluted oak banquette, dining table and an expressive red abstract canvas frame the open-plan space in warm, material-rich layers.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A detail of the kitchen at Skylark, where dark veined marble worktops and matching splashback meet brass-inlaid timber cabinetry and a tall concealed unit. Beyond the corner window, the house's pale brick wing and garden are framed, while tomatoes and garlic on a board lend the composition a lived-in warmth.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

A quiet sitting room at Skylark, where a tall slender window frames a neighbouring church spire and walled garden beyond. A pale brick fireplace with a built-in concrete shelf meets warm plaster walls, while a low cream sofa and ochre rug settle the room into a contemplative, earth-toned calm.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

The integrated fireplace at Skylark anchors the living space, its pale brick chimney and concrete hearth stacked with logs below a wood-burning stove. Warm plaster walls and a chestnut-timber beamed ceiling frame the view down a glazed corridor, where polished concrete floors lead towards the entrance hall beyond.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A built-in study at Skylark, where dark stained timber shelving and a fitted desk hold ceramics, books and material samples beneath a wall light. A vintage chrome-and-leather cantilever chair sits by the corner window, the warm plaster walls and rich joinery creating a focused, contemplative workspace.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A galleried upper landing at Skylark, where a band of windows frames silver birch canopies and a glass balustrade opens to the floor below. Pale oak floors and a hand-painted red folk-art urn meet a leafy potted plant, the space bathed in soft daylight from the rooflight above.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A child's playroom at Skylark, where a plywood climbing wall with colourful holds rises against warm plaster. A framed vintage racing-car print, child-sized timber chair and wooden toys rest on a patterned rug, the pale oak floor and beamed ceiling lending the space a calm, playful domesticity.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A bedroom at Skylark, where a soft yellow wall meets a beamed timber ceiling and a terracotta upholstered headboard. A slender oak shelf holds a marble-based lamp and books beside the bed, while a framed work and a sisal floor lend the restrained, earth-toned room a quiet, considered calm.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A bathroom at Skylark pairs warm microcement walls with a walk-in shower lined in dark stacked tile. A rounded white basin sits on a plastered vanity beside brushed brass tapware and globe sconces, the muted palette and natural sponge lending a spare, spa-like serenity.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

  • A bathroom at Skylark, where a brown marble-topped oak vanity meets terrazzo flooring and warm plaster walls. A ribbed glass sconce, exposed-bulb pendant and woven basket lend tactile warmth, while a fern on a rustic stool sits beside the freestanding tub in soft, diffuse light.

    Photography by Richard Gaston.

Al bathroom at Skylark, where terrazzo surfaces wrap a freestanding tub set beneath a window framing the neighbouring church and trees. A marble-topped oak vanity, ribbed glass sconce and rustic timber stool meet a half-curtain, balancing material richness with a calm, naturally lit bathing space.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A bedroom at Skylark wrapped in warm brown plaster beneath a beamed timber ceiling, where a tall window frames the garden's trees and a sculptural urn. A black metal bedstead, olive linen, woven pendant and round mirror compose an intimate, tactile scheme balancing rustic warmth with quiet restraint.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

A ground-floor bedroom at Skylark opens directly to the garden through a sliding glazed door set into pale brick. Within, an ochre wall, black metal bedstead and paper globe pendant glow softly, while a timber plinth and naturalistic planting frame the threshold between interior and gravel terrace.

Photography by Richard Gaston.

Throughout, views of the leafy setting become integral to the interior experience, bringing movement, seasonality and a sense of depth into the otherwise restrained spaces. This sensitivity to place extends to the project’s environmental strategy. Materials have been locally sourced whenever possible, including lime plaster from Herefordshire and chestnut timber from a nearby yard, while the concrete floors provide thermal mass, retaining warmth in winter and moderating heat in summer. Outside, extensive planting, 2,000 bulbs, new trees, pollinator-friendly species and a green roof have transformed the once-overgrown site into a layered garden that enhances biodiversity while softening the architecture’s edges.

As a first completed project, Skylark is a convincing declaration of intent. It shows House Of EM’s ability to think holistically, from massing and materiality to joinery, atmosphere and landscape. More importantly, it suggests a practice interested not in signature gestures, but in buildings that are carefully made, deeply lived in and quietly attuned to their place.

An aerial view places Skylark within its wooded Shropshire setting, the pale brick volumes and green roofs of its articulated F-shaped plan legible from above. A neighbouring stone church and terraced lawn frame the house, which nestles into mature trees on its plateau overlooking the River Teme.

Photography by Richard Gaston.