September 2, 2015

I’ll Take This: Studio in London

When I lived in the UK, I initially worked at King’s College in the Strand doing fundraising and at the weekend, I’d go back to Wales. My route took me west along the Talgarth Road, past a row of houses called the St. Paul’s Studios, that I always looked forward to seeing with great anticipation. image

One was for sale a few years ago, and I wrote about it here. The house had been completely transformed inside, and not much of the original charm was remaining. Now another one is for sale, and this one has great provenance. It was owned by Dame Margot Fonteyn, the English prima ballerina, and she used it for her practice studio.

This row of houses was designed by Frederick Wheeler in 1891 and each features a huge north-facing window, perfect for the artistic types.image

Each house features such amazing detailing but they’re on a major route out of London, and some are looking a bit run-down. This one still has it’s original fireplace, although it looks like the surround has been nicked.image

Here’s the other side of this room. Scary kitchen, but fabulous balcony!image

This house has four bedrooms, two baths, a south-facing garden, and a servant’s flat in the lower ground level. There’s a tube station close by, but unfortunately, the line runs right behind the garden.image

Here’s a great sketch of one of the houses from the blog, Remember the Window, by a resident of one of these special houses. It hasn’t been updated in ages, but there are some great images.image

So, there’s a ton of traffic out front, and trains going by in the back, imagebut they’re still charging £1,400,000 for the property.

5 comments:

  1. One gets used to the noise, and it's worth it for those yummy houses. If they are still getting that kind of price, then they are considered desirable. The shabby ones were probably gotten for a song and the owners no longer have the wherewithal to maintain them.

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  2. The beauty in those windows sear my heart and brain. Why, oh why does anyone spend millions, billions on monstrous glass boxes and every other example of mc mansion?

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  3. I have passed this sooo many times + glad to know about it.xxpeggybraswelldesign.com

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  4. Scary Kitchen? That door appears to be leaning against the wall as far as I can tell!! In all these big homes you spotlight Meg there had to be some serious cooking happening in them don't you think? I find items to add to my battery de cuisine from estate sales and yard sales. Brand new pans can be expensive The spring form, Bundt , heart shaped pans, all have been treasures in my mind as were the Madeline pans made in France.

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