The house opens to a raised living area which is bathed in light from the east-facing floor-to-ceiling windows. These have been lined with custom-made linen, inspired by Japanese Shoji Screens, to provide privacy without losing any natural light. White-painted wooden slats run the length of the ceiling and down to clad the kitchen wall. On one side of the central oven is a stone worktop and on the other, a stone double sink. Glass bricks from the original shop have been revealed and restored, laid into the floor of the dining area to allow light to penetrate the accommodation below. To the right of the kitchen are two glazed stable doors which lead onto a gated alleyway.
Downstairs, the master bedroom is illuminated by light from the shop front windows which dip beneath the raised floor of the upper level. Fitted cupboards, with bespoke cast-iron doorknobs, line one side of the room. The second double bedroom is currently used as a dressing room/study and is lit from above by the glass-brick section of the ceiling and a high ribbon window. Parquet flooring runs throughout the sleeping accommodation. At the end of the corridor is a bathroom with decorative tiles on the floor and an elegant unlacquered brass splash-back that lines the perimeter of the bath. Hand-painted Delft tiles, commissioned by the owners, sit above the sink. The room echoes the aesthetic of the kitchen with white-painted cladding along the walls and bath.
Out and About
Mortimer Road is situated within the eponymous conservation area and is a short walk from London Fields and Broadway Market, with its weekly organic farmers’ market, gastropubs, restaurants and shops. There are a number of excellent pubs and restaurants in the area, notably the
De Beauvoir Arms, and the popular
De Beauvoir Deli is close by. The
Towpath Café on Regent’s Canal is a short walk away.
N1 Garden Centre is around the corner and Columbia Road, known for its flower market on Sundays and its independent shops and cafes, is within easy reach to the south. Both Shoreditch and Spitalfields are close by.
Haggerston Station and London Fields Station (both London Overground) provide convenient access to the City, the West End and Canary Wharf. Dalston Junction has been proposed as a station on the new Crossrail II route.
Further Reading
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