This wonderful Victorian apartment on the peaceful Ospringe Road is just a stone’s throw from Tufnell Park and Kentish Town. Recently restored by its current owner, an antiques dealer, the space retains many of its original features and is particularly notable for its voluminous interiors and its share of a south-facing private garden. The whole terrace is defined by beautiful arched windows on the piano nobile, or main floor, of each building. Ospringe Road itself is wonderfully quiet and rarely used by cars; it is minutes away from Fortess Road with its array of independent shops, cafes, butchers and bakers, and not much further away from Hampstead Heath.
Setting the Scene
Built in the late 1800s, the apartment has fantastic proportions. It is filled with light and has a real sense of volume, thanks to its high ceilings and large expanses of glazing. The current owner has gradually renovated the apartment, revealing details such as the wooden floorboards, whilst simultaneously introducing a more refined palette of colours and materials and updating major spaces such as the kitchen. The open-plan living and dining room is illuminated by an incredible floor-to-ceiling south-facing sash window, flanked by its original wooden shutters.
The Grand Tour
Entry is on the raised ground floor into a wide communal hallway, which leads into the apartment’s corridor and through to the rear of the house. Here, the more intimate private hallway gives way to a voluminous light-filled living and dining room. The original decorative cornicing remains intact, crowning the high ceilings, and the original marble fireplace surround sits atop dark wooden floorboards running underfoot. Shelving has been built into the alcoves, as well as a discreet desk. The current owner has a dining table set up in the bay of the sash window, where it seems beautifully settled.
To the right is a new entryway leading to the kitchen. This space has also been renovated by the current owner, who has introduced new wooden cabinetry, painted in Farrow & Ball’s “Black Blue”, alongside a reclaimed Iroko worktop from Retrouvius, salvaged from a school science laboratory. Handmade Zellige tiles in a mottled cream colour have been used for the splashback, while the new terracotta floor is made from tiles constructed in Saltillo, Northern Mexico, sourced through Milagros on Columbia Road. To the other side of the kitchen is a row of open shelving. A glazed door opens onto a small balcony, with a metal staircase winding down into the garden below. The second half of the garden is demised to this flat, surrounded by walls and planted borders, with a lawn in the centre.
Upstairs, another doorway leads back into the hallway, which in turn gives way to the front of the flat and the bedroom. This room has been painted a tranquil light blue and has jute bouclé carpeting from Alternative Flooring, plus more inbuilt cabinets and open shelving. The room is bathed in sunlight streaming into the beautiful curved windows, framed by original panelling and painted a bright white in contrast to the walls. New white column radiators are found throughout the flat, whilst a bathroom sits in the centre, with a terracotta-brick tiled floor.
The Great Outdoors
The apartment comes with its own section of garden, surrounded by other private gardens and looking onto the handsome backs of the neighbouring houses. This part of Tufnell Park is noticeably quiet and peaceful, despite being so close to so many popular amenities. Ospringe Road is a short walk from the sprawling Hampstead Heath, one of London’s most-loved green spaces and home to Kenwood House as well as extensive sports facilities, a lido, walking trails, cafes and far-reaching views of the city’s skyline. Both Highbury Fields and Regent’s Park are a short cycle from Ospringe Road.
Out and About
Ospringe Road is exceedingly well-located, equidistant from Kentish Town and Tufnell Park Underground stations (Northern Line & City Thameslink). There is a diverse range of local shopping facilities, including the aforementioned shops on Fortess Road, as well as fishmonger Jonathan Norris, butchers Meat NW5 and bakery The Spence Bakery. There is a fantastic wine shop, Theatre of Wine, on Junction Road, opposite The Tiffin Tin which is often cited as the best Indian takeaway in north London. Kentish Town is home to numerous other independent shops, delis and pubs, such as The Southampton Arms and The Pineapple.
Islington, Highbury Fields and Highbury Barn are easily accessible to the south, while Highgate and the open spaces of Hampstead Heath are to the north.
Interested? Let’s talk
Related Listings
Related Stories
