Browsing Tag

conversion

Spaces

CLARENDON WORKS

21st November 2014

From a former print works to a Victorian brickmaking factory, regular readers might detect a theme in the last few posts here on the Files. I’ll admit, warehouse or loft living is a style that I’m instinctively drawn to. Years ago, back in 1999, I wrote about a loft development in Edinburgh’s Leith area – the development of two former whisky bonds – and that, for me, was the moment where I fell for the whole concept of loft living. I love the industrial styling and the patina of brick and timber contrasted with crisp contemporary finishes. I’ve been back to Leith Lofts several times since to write about individual properties, as well as loft spaces elsewhere, and it’s a look and style I’ve always admired. 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…

Architecture

OFF LORDSHIP LANE

30th September 2014

Having worked from home for 16 years, I understand the challenges of finding or creating the ideal live/work space, and was reminded of this recently when friends returned to Edinburgh and began searching for a home that would also offer a showroom for their incredible collection of mid-century furniture and design objects. They couldn’t find a rental property that was suitable, and ended renting up a flat and (at last count) three storage units for their furniture. It wasn’t ideal. Continue Reading…

Architecture

NEWLYN

25th July 2014

Every so often I sit down to write about a property and realise I don’t know where to start. It’s not that I’m lacking things to say – quite the opposite, usually. It’s more a case of connecting so strongly with a house or apartment that I really need to do it justice and… I don’t know where to start.

And this warehouse conversion in the Cornish fishing village of Newlyn is one of those properties. So I’ll keep it simple: I love this house. Just file this one under ‘Fiona’s ideal home’. Continue Reading…

Spaces

THE WATER TOWER

9th July 2014

I’ve featured a few live/work spaces so far on the Files with properties such as The Workshop and Slip House – both highly individual family homes designed by their architect owners to accommodate a studio space for their respective practices. Ten years ago, would live/work spaces have been quite so prevalent? I doubt it. Technological advances have transformed our ability to work from home after all, so more people are in turn looking for homes that offer an integrated studio or office space.

Continue Reading…

Architecture

THE WORKSHOP

30th May 2014

There’s a saying about not judging a book by its cover, and the same is often true about properties. Sure, some houses show you just how wonderful they are from the exterior. You’re sold from the driveway, basically, or when standing outside the front door.

But others give little away from their façade, which only makes a house seem all the more intriguing, particularly when the interior turns out to be something truly spectacular. Continue Reading…