The Househunter is back. There’s a new crop of properties on the market and whether we can afford them or not it’s always good to spent a little moment poking round other people’s houses isn’t it? So shall I hang on while you grab a cup of coffee/glass of wine/mug of water/whatever your poison… grab me a biscuit while you there, doesn’t matter what time of day you eat those.
Now, what do you think of this? It’s a classic open-plan warehouse apartment in The Factory, in Islington, north London and costs £1,595,000 via The Modern House.
It’s all about the living space really as there’s only one bedroom, although with 1,301 sq ft there would be room to create a couple more if you needed. There’s plenty of four bedroom houses have been fitted into that kind of square footage.
There are windows on two sides, as you can see, lots of exposed brick and, a great detail this, the parquet floor. Parquet is having a mini revival and while there are many who still hate it, it brings a touch of luxury to this space which might otherwise be a little too industrial.
The kitchen was made from bespoke cabinetry with stainless steel worktops (which are the most practical as they will take all sorts of abuse from stains, to heat, to scratching and really don’t mind at all) and, again, this is all softened by the parquet.
The pink chairs are a nice touch too and this is a very cool bathroom. Instead of two basins, the vendors have, very sensibly, opted for two storage units and two mirrors which should make mornings a little easier. Although I wonder who gets the small one?
I’m a fan of black slate in a bathroom too. I have just redone the shower-room in black slate and it’s turned out really well. The details will be revealed soon. Well as soon as I can take some good pictures. All that black is quite hard to photograph…
We’ll stay with The Modern House for this next property because it’s also used exposed brick and a similarly restricted colour palette but the overall effect is cosier.
This is a two bedroom loft-style apartment created from a former office building and is on the market for £1,050,000.
I love this black and white kitchen and anyone who has been paying attention will know that I’m a fan of an open shelf in a kitchen. Mine come all the way down to the worktop because I had a very wide worktop so that I wouldn’t lose space but these are great too. See how everything just looks really great when it’s displayed against a black or dark grey background.
The vendors have employed a similarly rustic/soft industrial look in the bathroom with this wooden unit. I was visiting a client’s house recently where she had clad the island in panels like these and it looked fantastic. I love the hanging pendant lights too but you have to get special bathroom rated fittings to be able to do that so do bear that in mind in case that’s one of the ideas you’re taking from this week’s Househunter.
Or you might prefer this bathroom. White metro tiles and black grout is a look often seen in the magazines but I’m not aware of that many people who have done it in real life. And don’t worry about being a cliche – how many visitors do you have in your bathroom anyway? If you like it and it’s basically your space then don’t worry about it. I’m also quite keen on the strip of green marble just to life the space a little. If I bought this house and, on that basis, didn’t need to do much to it, I might consider putting brass fittings in this room. That would look fantastic against the black and white.
Finally, do you want another? Why not. In memory of the summer that never really got going here’s a tower in Tuscany that could be yours for £3,200,000 via Coldwell Banker. I think I might just bookmark this page and look at it all through the winter.
It was built in the late 15th century and has been fully restored. There’s the tower and a second, larger, building on the site as well. And this is the view from one of the windows.
So, on the basis we’re all now moving to Italy, which of the other two houses do you fancy this week?
