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The Househunter 22/4/16

Good morning and welcome to our weekly fantasy househunting group. Is everyone well this week? Excellent. We’re going to start off with a tour of this two bedroom flat in Little Venice, west London, which is on the market via Savills for (ahem) £1,550,000.

blomfield villas savills external

Note the elegant black window frames against the white (probably Portland) stone. It’s handsome already and we’re aren’t even inside yet. It’s right next to Regent’s Canal by the way and has a private patio garden as well. This is beginning to explain (if not justify) the price tag.

For what it’s worth, I agree that these prices are unjustifiable but they are what they are, so it might help to explain what pushes them up and, in this case, it’s location, outside space, and the fact that there are two bathrooms – one for each bedroom.

navy blue doors and windows via savills

Anyway, the reason I wanted to show you this was the way the owner has made the most of this long, narrow kitchen. The walls and units remain white and light but by framing the window in navy blue and painting the doors, this has worked to foreshorten it and make it seem squarer.

Also – great use of navy. We are used to seeing black like this but blue is a new take.

narrow kitchen

It works well with the AGA as well doesn’t it? Which, I notice, has a gas top which is much easier for cooking on than those hot plates that conventional AGAs have.

The dining room is also long and thin but it runs along from the kitchen and the navy blue ties the two together perfectly. Big points for the huge pendant lights too. If you want to know more about how to buy vintage lighting then click the link.

dining room

Where shall we go next? Fancy a trip out to Bath? This one wants £1,475,000 and is on with Knight Frank (via onthemarket.com).

modern house near bath

It has five bedrooms, four of which are en suite, and a separate family bathroom. And, a good touch this if you’re buiding or refurbishing, the utility room is on the same floor as the bedrooms which is so much more pratical than having it off the kitchen. I mean you’re never going to persuade your teenagers to take their laundry to the washing machine but at least having it near the bedrooms means you don’t have to carry it as far.

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There’s a walk-in larder as well which I would KILL FOR. Well, maybe not, you know, yer actual murder, but if I was redoing and there was a way of squeezing one in, I would.

The downstairs is basically a large open plan space but look at this room divider below. You know what I would do? Plants. Lots of ’em. Climbing ones that would wind up the frame and divide the two rooms.

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Or you could make them into bookshelves, which would be another great way of splitting the space up. Either way, it’s a great house. What do you think?

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So there we have it. Town or Country this week folks? Forget the price tag it’s not about the money, money, money…. well not in fantasy househunting land anyway.

 

 

 

Kate Watson-Smyth

The author Kate Watson-Smyth

I’m a journalist who writes about interiors mainly for The Financial Times but I have also written regularly for The Independent and The Daily Mail. My house has been in Living Etc, HeartHome and featured in The Wall Street Journal & Corriere della Sera. I also run an interior styling consultancy Mad About Your House. Welcome to my Mad House.

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