Browsing Tag

concrete

Spaces

A MONASTIC OASIS

5th July 2018

When I look at this house, just as a set of photos without any of the accompanying details, I’d never guess that it was located in London. From the choice of materials to the quiet restraint of the design, to details such as the pebbled courtyard garden, I visualise this house in a much less urban setting; a peaceful place away from the hustle of the city.

Yet this house sits on Tiverton Road, between Kensal Rise and Queens Park in London’s NW10, and this ‘quiet’ design offers a respite from the urban environment that extends out beyond it. Currently on the market with The Modern House, this property is described as a ‘monastic oasis’, and I can’t think of a better description for a design as pared back and beautifully simple and thoughtful as this.

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Architecture

THE GJØVIK HOUSE

19th January 2018

If, like me, you’re already an admirer of the Copenhagen-based Norm Architects – the home of Norm’s co-founder Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen has been a favourite of mine since I first laid eyes on its restrained and elegant interior – then any new project from the practice is going to demand attention. And, as these photos show, the Gjøvik House in Norway is another beautiful example of Norm Architects’ understated approach.

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Spaces

ALDERSGATE STREET

14th January 2016

I wanted to start this year – in terms of properties that are on the market – with something truly knockout, and I figured that an apartment that (in my mind anyway) looks like Bond’s London pad pretty much fits the bill. This staggering apartment – staggering in scale and style – is currently on the market with The Modern House and is located on Aldersgate Street within the Barbican Estate in London. Described by the selling agent as “one of the most extraordinary living spaces on the Barbican Estate”, this property occupies the former Estate Office, which was once used to sell other apartments on the Estate and which then stood empty for ten years before being purchased by its current owners.

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Spaces

HOUSE OF BRICKS

7th January 2015

I can’t resist exposed brickwork, so it’s easy to see why this new house in Melbourne caught my eye when it was featured on HomeDSGN. House of Bricks was designed by the Melbourne based studio Jolson who describe the building as a “contemporary re-interpretation of warehouse living. Continue Reading…

Spotlight

THE CONCRETE KITCHEN

11th December 2014

My first experience of seeing concrete used in a kitchen was years ago – way before concrete started popping up in super-cool interiors all over blogs and on Pinterest. Indeed, way before Pinterest. Turn the clock back about 15 years and I was writing about a Georgian townhouse in Edinburgh where the designer – it was also her home – had installed a contemporary kitchen featuring a poured concrete worktop. Now, I won’t pretend to know the practicalities of this, but I recall that it was a challenging detail as the kitchen needed to have a reinforced frame of some kind to support the weight. The concrete looked fantastic though, with a lovely patina. And, I remember, it felt very different to the sleek granite worktops I was seeing everywhere at that time. I was sold. Continue Reading…

Spaces

ROYLE BUILDING

11th November 2014

Exposed brick and concrete, high ceilings and open plan living, and an aesthetic that offers more than a hint of an industrial vibe – this apartment on the third floor of the Royle Building on Wenlock Road in London’s Hackney is one of those properties that falls into the ‘love at first sight’ category for me. Continue Reading…