Flat Apartment, Bassett Road, London

Minutes from the market stalls of Portobello Road and Golborne Road, Bassett Road feels removed from the bustle. Leafy and residential, it runs through a quieter pocket of North Kensington, just west of Ladbroke Grove. On the first floor of an imposing double-fronted villa, this apartment follows suit: generous proportions and period details are tempered by a calm, contemporary hand.

The bones set the scene. Tall southeast facing sash windows draw in the light, ceilings soar overhead and cornicing leaves a delicate decorative trace against an otherwise pared-back canvas. Wooden floors and pale grey walls quieten the volume further as the room falls naturally into places to sit, dine and cook, each shaped around an easy everyday rhythm.

The kitchen occupies one corner – a sweep of wooden worktops, subway tiles, open shelving and white cabinetry. Beside it, a floor-to-ceiling window leads onto a terrace, overlooking the leafy street below. At the opposite end, a fireplace gives the living area its focal point.

Two bedrooms sit beyond a punchy bottle-green entrance hall. Both continue the restrained material palette with sisal carpets and pale walls. In the principal, a wall of wardrobes keeps storage neatly contained, while its en suite borrows light through a clerestory window. A shower room, finished in subway tiles, serves the second bedroom.

Bassett Road is one of North Kensington’s most liveable corners – leafy and residential, yet minutes from the good stuff. Golborne Road, with its Portuguese cafés, delis and weekend market stalls, is a short walk away, as is the top end of Portobello Market. Kensal Rise and its cluster of independent restaurants and wine bars sit to the north-west, while Ladbroke Grove opens up the whole of Notting Hill beyond. For green space, Kensington Memorial Park is on the doorstep. Ladbroke Grove station is also within easy reach, connecting quickly across west and central London.

Ladbroke Grove – 8 mins
Latimer Road – 10 mins