A Guide to Maximising Daylight in Home Design

Daylight is one of the most powerful tools in home design. It can transform a space, making it feel brighter, more spacious, and uplifting, while also reducing reliance on artificial lighting. At MW Architects, we believe that thoughtful daylighting is essential to creating homes that are not only beautiful but also functional and sustainable.

Orientation: Designing with the Sun

The orientation of your home or extension is fundamental to maximising daylight. South-facing rooms are ideal for living spaces, capturing bright, warm light throughout the day. However, this light can also be harsh, so incorporating shading elements like overhangs or planting is essential to manage glare and heat gain.

East-facing spaces, such as kitchens, benefit from soft morning light, creating a welcoming atmosphere to start the day. Bedrooms can also face east if you enjoy being woken by the morning sun. Alternatively, north-facing bedrooms provide consistent, cooler light, perfect for restful spaces.

Cosmo’s house kitchen is filled with morning light

Glazing: Size, Placement, and Purpose

Glazing is a key element in daylighting. Large south-facing windows and bi-fold doors flood spaces with light but must be balanced against potential overheating. Skylights are particularly effective in spaces lacking vertical glazing, such as mid-terrace homes or extensions. They allow sunlight to track across the room, bringing the changing colours of light throughout the day and creating a connection to the time of day.

For darker areas, clerestory windows or light wells can channel daylight into deeper parts of the home. High-performance glazing is essential to reduce heat loss in winter and prevent overheating in summer.

Interior Finishes: Enhancing and Controlling Light

Interior finishes significantly influence how daylight interacts with a space. Light-coloured walls and reflective surfaces amplify light, bouncing it deeper into the plan. However, in south-facing rooms, these finishes can cause glare, so it’s important to balance them with matte textures or softer hues.

In darker or north-facing spaces, don’t shy away from darker tones. Warm, rich colours like deep reds or earthy yellows can create a cosy, intimate atmosphere that feels inviting and comforting.

Other Considerations

Open-plan layouts allow light to travel further into the home, while thoughtful landscaping—such as avoiding tall trees directly in front of windows—ensures light isn’t obstructed. Skylights, light wells, and reflective materials can all enhance natural light, creating homes that feel alive with brightness and connected to the outdoors.

At MW Architects, we integrate these principles into every project, creating homes that are functional, sustainable, and uplifting. Daylighting isn’t just about light—it’s about creating spaces that connect people to their environment and enhance their daily lives.

Collaging Concepts

Cut and paste collaging is a technique that aims to give new meaning to pre-existing photos and forms. It’s an opportunity to see things differently, shift them around, discover elements once left out. I started exploring this form of artistic expression while I was in university and helped me challenge my design proposals. I found new inspiration on how to proceed with my project through cutting, pasting and exploding, physically altering the shapes of my designs to generate new ones.

Fig 1. MW ARCHITECTS WINDOW DISPLAY

Since then I’ve used this method in my personal work to convey my satirical view on current world events (fig 3) as well as to promote the work of MW Architects (fig 1) and assist in the design process. I’ve expanded on my methods of expression, from handmade and printmaking to digital collages and used multiple sources such as newspapers, magazines or targeted photos like in the case of MW Architects. 

The creative method I follow is by expanding on the given topic both conceptually and physically while completing the collage. There’s rarely a specific aim or preferred outcome before starting. I initially start by cutting and exploding existing photos and forms to find ways to improve them visually. I simultaneously develop the theme by reflecting on the work so far and generate new ideas from it. This process runs in circles until the collage is completed.  

Fig 2. DIGITAL COLLAGE

As an example, the collage above (fig 1) was composed after getting inspired by all the work MW Architects have completed so far. My initial mindless exercise was to cut out the outlines of the projects’ openings (visible on the top right of the collage), which led me to realize the importance of symmetry in their work so I proceeded in balancing the collage against a vertical axis. Simultaneously though, I challenged this by breaking this symmetry but making sure to keep a visual balance.

Collaging overall is a method that brings new life to old completed ideas. It is a method that is very open to interpretation and I believe can be very successful with conveying architectural design ideas: It sets a very broad yet a very defined base for discussion which can immensely help with developing the proposals. It can convey concepts without the use of strict sketch lines on a plan or an elevation which can prove very restricting sometimes. You can see all my work to date on instagram @delete-utopia.

Fig 3. DIGITAL COLLAGE

by Gina Andreou

Garden Rooms That Don't Require Planning Permission.

Here we showcase some of our garden rooms, none of which required planning permission, even in conservation areas!

There are a few parameters and a restrictions, but these featured garden buildings were all covered by the same permitted development as a garden shed! Our largest to date, built in the garden of Mr & Mrs Smith, is 60 sq meters and has a WC, shower, hot tub and enough space for yoga or a gym. Here we see the exterior of this project, the ‘Yoga Dojo’.

the yoga dojo // photography by french + tye

Intended to be a place for the practice of yoga and meditation it provides a distanced and calm retreat from the busy home.  The building is highly engineered with precision detailing throughout and forms three main spaces connected visually through the building’s design and physically through the continuation of materials.

Yoga dojo // inside //photography french + tye

Garden rooms can be hugely varied in both scope and design. In stark contrast to the above, our Greenwich Garden room has a more rustic feel. Still containing a WC, the room was more focussed on home working than home relaxing, however it created a very relaxing place to work!

greenwich garden room // photography by french + tye

The compact outhouse transformed a cramped rear garden into a courtyard and provides a garden studio for a writer in South London. Working from home has suddenly become the reality for millions of people around the globe. Walking out of your house into an entirely separate useable space, with protection from the elements yet still in the seclusion of your home boundary, has become an increasingly tempting option for many. As the outbuilding are usually designed and built from scratch, they can be customised entirely for the needs of the family, whether it be homeschooling, a place to work, work-out or relax.

greenwich garden room // inside // photography french + tye

Maresfield Outbuilding is also built under householder permitted development.  This highly engineered structure floats under the tree canopy on a concrete raft only 200mm thick with insitu exposed concrete walls. The copper roof gives the building a refined elegance that is visible from the upper floors of the house, fulfilling the brief that the arial view of the garden had to be beautiful. 

maresfield outbuilding // photography by french + tye

Mainly used as a place to exercise this garden room keeps bulky equipment away from the main home. Music can be played without disturbing others and it saves on the annual gym subscription for years to come!

maresfield gardens // exterior // photography french + tye

Garden studios are a great way to add useable space to a family home. So much more than a posh shed (but with the same building rules) studios can be thermally efficient ensuring they can be used throughout the year. Studios provide a striking focal point for any garden and can be blended into the landscape using materials that match the style of the exterior and landscaping at your home. Natural or modern finishes and high specification glazing can be sure to add the wow factor. Whether you are looking for a place to entertain guests, a cover for outside dining, or just a retreat from the general buzz of family life a garden studio could be the perfect solution. We can design you a useable, flexible space that fits in with whatever your family needs.