Balls Pond Road

The Grand Tour

With map-lined walls, the entrance hallway runs along the left-hand side of the ground floor. On its right is a double reception room; a dining space occupies the front, while the kitchen lies beyond. Both have ‘Moles Breath’-painted floorboards, sea green-washed walls and refined marble-framed cast-iron fireplaces. Double doors can be used to delineate the spaces if desired, or left open to allow light to diffuse from end to end. The view from the front aspect is the house is delightful, overlooking a cluster of 19th-century almshouses.

Shelving frames the arched window in the dining room, providing display space for books, ceramics or other objets d’art. There is also plenty of open shelving in the kitchen, including above white units that run along one side. There is room for a second informal dining set-up here, in front of a tall, garden-facing sash window.

The house’s original staircase and beautifully patinated handrail coil up through the core of the building. At the front of the first floor is a traditional piano nobile reception space, complete with elegant floor-to-ceiling shuttered sash windows. Posy pink-painted walls provide a subtle contrast with grey-painted joinery and fitted alcove cabinetry on either side of a cast-iron fireplace. Wall-to-wall bookcases on the opposite aspect provide space for an impressive personal library.

There is a bedroom to the rear of the first floor, with two further rooms upstairs. The principal is at the front of the second storey, with a surprisingly sculptural curved wall and twin sash windows. All three bedrooms have white-washed schemes that enhance their light-filled feel.

A colourful counterpoint, the second-floor bathroom has brilliantly contemporary reddish-orange walls. A roll-top bath has been perfectly placed beneath a deep roof light cut out above.

The main staircase cascades down to the lower-ground floor, where a fourth bedroom (presently used as a study), a studio (or a fifth bedroom) and a second bathroom are sited. With access to the garden, the spaces combine to create a private retreat – ideal for guests or elderly family members.

The Great Outdoors

The house is set back from the street by a 25-foot garden with a a mature ornamental flowering cherry tree, which provides a leafy view from one of the top-floor bedroom windows. Autumn provides white flowering Japanese anemones, while in winter the ground is carpeted with variegated leaves of miniature cyclamen.

Accessed from the lower-ground floor, the house’s tranquil rear garden delights in its south-facing aspect. There are four freestanding trees here: the three Himalayan silver birches at the end, planted in the circular white gravel eating area, and a halfway down the garden a mature magnolia stellata that flowers in February. The periphery is planted with wall-trained trees and shrubs including a fan-trained morello cherry, a Japanese quince, and a climbing hydrangea that in summer covers the entire end wall of the garden in glossy dark green leaves and large white lacecap flowers.

The planting scheme is principally white, blue and purple, beginning with white daffodils and tulips in the spring. Summer flowers include blue camassia, purple and rust-coloured irises, a white hebe, a striking acanthus, purple salvias, blue geraniums, a hibiscus, white and mauve phlox, and a couple of magenta dahlias for late summer colour

Terraces lie at the front and foot of the garden; one is grounded with brick, while the other is gravel laid. The latter sits nestled amid foliage, providing an enchantingly secluded spot for outdoor dining.

Out and About

Balls Pond Road connects some of north and north-east London’s best loved neighbourhoods. Dalston is to the easterly end of the street and is home to the likes of Brilliant Corners, Mangal II and The Dusty Knuckle. The Talbot and The Spurstowe Arms are among local favourite pubs.

Canonbury and De Beauvoir Town are to the north and south of Balls Pond Road. Local favourites here include pubs The De Beauvoir Arms and The Scolt Head, coffee spot Batch Baby, bar Hector’s, De Beauvoir Deli and newly opened bar Goodbye Horses. The Regent’s Canal lies just beyond and is home to the inimitable Towpath and self-proclaimed ‘kid-friendly’ Japanese café Toconoco.

Highbury Fields and Highbury Barn are also close at hand. Popular spots here include the wonderful butcher Godfrey’s, Bourne’s Fishmongers, Da Mario Deli and the excellent original branch of La Fromagerie. The Estorick Collection is a stroll away and runs a brilliant year-round programme of exhibitions; it also has a charming Italian café.

Newington Green is also easily reached and has become synonymous with a first-rate culinary culture in recent years. It is known as the home of some of north-east London’s best-loved restaurants including Jolene, Perilla and Cadet; nearby Primeur is similarly well-regarded.

There are plenty of state-run and private schools on or near to Balls Pond Road, including Canonbury Primary School,St Paul’s Cathedral School and North Bridge House School. Some of London’s best independent secondary schools are a short bus or tube ride away, including the City of London School and the City of London School for Girls.

Dalston Junction and Dalston Kingsland station are a short walk east and run Windrush and Mildmay line (Overground) services. The area is also exceptionally well-served by bus connections.

Council Tax Band: E