Two steps more

We were tasked to improve the angle of a stair.

It was simply too steep.

Rather than demolish the existing concrete structure and start anew, we chose to keep it, adding a second layer to change the slope. Two additional steps were slipped in—like cards in a deck. Increasing the count from fourteen to sixteen reduced the pitch from 42 degrees, the UK’s maximum for domestic stairs, to a more forgiving 38. Small adjustments make big differences.

Through our approach to resourceful design, solving a practical issue often leads to design discoveries. There is the visual rhythm and richness of differently sized treads, each sized to maintain an equal rise and run, set in dialogue with the old stair.

In addition to the changes on the stair, we carefully cut an angle in the ceiling to preserve head height with the stair extending further into the room. A slight curve lends the transition a softer, more deliberate presence—another pragmatic move that became integral to the design.

Completing the story, we introduced drawers and cabinets to fill in the space below, taking the door fronts to a traditional bookbinder to cover them, while adding leather handes.

Making adjustments to what is already there is a testament to the joy of reappropriation, resulting in new details while celebrating the collaboration of new and old. It’s a reminder that constraints often unlock creativity, yielding unexpected solutions that are sensitive, while celebrating the collaboration between old and new.