29 and a half, 28 and a half Lansdowne Crescent

29 and a Half and 28 and a Half Lansdowne Crescent

Two Grade II listed properties forming a cleverly designed infill development within a crescent terrace, built of load-bearing reclaimed London stock brick with painted render at the front. The ensemble occupies an exceptionally narrow wedge-shaped gap site, measuring just 3.9 metres (13 feet 2½ inches) wide at street level and narrowing further towards the top.

The main property, 29 and a half, rises through seven levels at the rear and six on the street frontage. The ground floor contains an entrance hall (converted from a former two-car garage) with a staircase running through the house on the right-hand side, alongside a ground-floor WC. A mezzanine level at the rear houses a kitchen and dining room with access to a terrace. The entire first floor is occupied by a split-level living room with projecting windows to front and rear; the rear section is double-height and overlooked by a gallery at upper-floor level, with a projecting window providing access to a small terrace. The second floor has a bedroom and bathroom at the front. The third floor originally contained two bedrooms, a bathroom and study; in 1986 the study was amalgamated with the smaller bedroom. The uppermost floor, set back at both front and back, contains a large, high-ceilinged playroom (now used as a library) with access to a rear terrace.

The separately accessed maisonette, 28 and a half, occupies a two-storey lower level reached via an external front stair. Living accommodation is on the lower-ground floor with sleeping accommodation at rear ground-floor level, connected by an internal spiral staircase. From the mezzanine terrace, a projecting enclosed spiral staircase descends to the communal gardens below.

Externally, the front facade is rendered in compliance with planning conditions requiring harmony with the surrounding terrace. A pierced screen occupies the ground-floor level, with the stained timber entrance recessed within the former carport. Windows are set back with splayed reveals and are paired on each floor, the right-hand pane narrower than the left. The fourth and fifth floors feature three windows each—a single right-hand light and paired lights to the left. A living-room window projects at first-floor level. The top storey, with a pitched roof, is concealed behind a parapet. The rear facade is of exposed brick, stepping gradually down to complement neighbouring properties, and features the double-height projecting first-floor living-room window, the mezzanine terrace, and the projecting stair tower.

Interiors are predominantly lined in British Columbian pine, lighter in colour than the stained exterior timber. Walls and ceilings are either timber-lined or finished in white painted render, with floors of pine boards except in the quarry-tiled kitchen, kitchen terrace, and entrance hall (the former garage). Fitted wooden furniture remains throughout. The double-height living room is impressive and naturally lit, with two-storey windows overlooking the gardens and affording views across the crescent; timber steps connect its two levels. The space can be observed from a timber balcony or through windows from the staircase at first and second-floor levels. The large, high-ceilinged playroom has timber lining with scalloped coffering following the pitch of the roof, and fitted bookshelves covering an entire spine wall. A high-level den is integrated into the room design. In the maisonette, the principal space is the lower-ground living room, where the curved brick wall of the spiral staircase projects into the space. The maisonette has been refloored, with the kitchen and bathroom subsequently refitted.

External timber is stained dark throughout, except the front projecting window which is painted white. Windows are softwood with hardwood sills. Floors elsewhere are of reinforced concrete and timber. The site slopes sharply from front to rear, creating the varied floor levels and distinctive architectural form.