The Old Diary, Dalston, London, E8

Guide Price: £2,500,000 to £2,750,000

Set discreetly behind a pair of former shopfronts, this exceptional four-bedroom home is a quietly radical exercise in spatial layering and architectural reinvention. Designed by Lynch Architects, the 2,800 sq. ft house unfolds through a sequence of interlocking volumes that fuse a Georgian terrace, a 19th-century dairy, and a former milking parlour into a striking yet understated whole. Conceived as a home that embraces ambiguity, it balances privacy with openness, history with modernity, and calm with drama.

From the street, little hints at what lies beyond. The ground-floor façade is modest and tactile - oak-framed doors soften the studio entrance and bi-folding garage doors, while the upper floor introduces a surprising splash of colour, nodding subtly to Ricardo Bofill's exuberance.
Inside, a long corridor draws the eye towards the rear of the plan, with terrazzo flooring underfoot and finely detailed oak joinery lining the way. Glazed panels create an elegant threshold to the front studio - once a shopfront, now reimagined as a calm, contemplative workspace. A utility room connects this area to a former garage, now used as a Pilates studio, warmed by underfloor heating.

To the right of the corridor, an original red-painted staircase leads up to the Georgian portion of the house. Here, three generous bedrooms and a sensitively restored bathroom retain their period charm - lofty proportions, original detailing, and soft natural light all contribute to a quiet sense of permanence.

Returning to the ground floor, a study forms a transitional moment between old and new, linking to the former dairy via a slim glazed walkway that sits between two courtyards. A guest WC is tucked away here, lined with handmade tiles by Studio GdB. From this point, the house opens out, both spatially and in terms of light.

The kitchen and dining space - designed by Reform CPH is all clean lines and considered material contrasts: white cabinetry meets plate-steel worktops, set against painted brick walls and exposed timber beams. This space leads naturally to the courtyards beyond, dissolving the boundary between inside and out during the warmer months. A separate outhouse sits within the larger of the two courtyards, offering further flexibility.

At the very rear, a voluminous living room rises beneath a run of roof lights, its tranquillity enhanced by a smaller, more secluded courtyard off to one side. From here, an oak staircase climbs beneath a glazed clerestory to a mezzanine level. This final space, part guest suite, part principal bedroom is bathed in light from two aspects. Vaulted ceilings, Juliet balconies, and oak-framed glazing give it a lofty, almost gallery-like atmosphere, complete with a private shower room.