Picture this: a nature trail at the bottom of the garden wall, a study with a view of the trees and a ten-minute tube ride to Oxford Circus when you do need to show your face in the office.
This light-filled one-bedroom flat on the middle floor of a Victorian house backs straight onto the Parkland Walk, with a separate home office that makes working from home feel like a pleasure rather than a compromise. Florence Road is a quiet residential street lined with Victorian terraces in yellow stock brick, with red brick window surrounds and white stucco arches over the front doors. This house has been converted into three flats, with this one sitting on the first floor. Renovated three years ago, it pairs lofty period proportions with a clean, contemporary finish that feels fresh and easy to live with.
The open-plan reception and kitchen is the heart of the home, stretching to over 17ft with two tall sash windows whose arched reveals frame the terrace across the road. Ceilings are high, light pours in through the day and wide stripped wooden floorboards – honey-toned and full of grain and character – bring a lovely warmth against the crisp white walls. Recessed spotlights keep everything bright once the evenings draw in. There’s room for a generous sofa and TV at one end, with a small dining table by the window that makes a lovely spot for a slow weekend breakfast in the sunshine.
The kitchen wraps around the corner in flat-fronted white cabinetry with long brushed steel bar handles, set against dark speckled worktops for a smart, graphic contrast. It comes well equipped with an Indesit oven, hob, extractor, dishwasher, washing machine and a full-height fridge-freezer, plus a stainless steel sink with a swan-neck mixer tap.
At the back of the flat, away from the street, the double bedroom looks straight out onto the trees of the Parkland Walk. Soft grey carpet and a fitted blind make it a calm, restful retreat, with space for a double bed, bedside table and wardrobe. Next door, the shower room has a clean, spa-like feel, with pale grey large-format tiling, a glass corner enclosure with both a rainfall head and a handheld shower, a wall-hung white vanity with deep drawers and a recessed niche for toiletries.
Then there’s the study, the real draw for anyone splitting the week between home and office. It’s a separate room with its own sash window onto the greenery, plus a built-in cupboard for files, printer paper and all the bits that tend to creep into a living room. Currently it’s set up comfortably with two desks. With high-speed broadband throughout, you can close the door at the end of the day and leave work exactly where it belongs.
The Neighbourhood: Stroud Green
The Parkland Walk sits right on your doorstep. The old railway line turned nature trail runs one way down to Finsbury Park, with its boating lake, tennis courts and summer events, and the other up through the woods to Highgate – perfect for a morning run, a lunchtime walk between calls or a lazy Sunday ramble.
Closer to home there’s plenty to love. Max’s Sandwich Shop on Crouch Hill has something of a cult following, Pizzeria Pappagone is a long-standing Stroud Green favourite and Osteria Tufo serves up warm, family-run Italian cooking just around the corner. The Faltering Fullback is a much-loved local with a famously leafy beer garden. Coffee shops are plentiful and a large Tesco takes care of the weekly shop. Crouch Hill Station is a seven-minute walk away, while Finsbury Park Station – served by the Victoria and Piccadilly lines plus mainline trains – is around 12 minutes on foot, putting Oxford Circus roughly ten minutes away from there.