Light and airy, warm and welcoming, this sensitively designed two-bedroom house in Forest Gate isn’t just well-connected transport-wise, it also has a wonderfully friendly feel and lots of kerb appeal. Walkable to both Crossrail and Underground and a stone’s throw from leafy Wanstead Flats, it’s full of lovely details such as original floorboards, double-glazed sash windows, calming paint shades and beautiful radiators.

Shielded from the street by a planter-topped wall, the house greets you with a traditional two-tone brick frontage, with white-painted stone lintels and foliage-topped columns to the bay window and porch arch. A monochrome chequered tiled path leads to a dusky blue, four-panelled, part-glazed front door with numbered transom above and chrome furniture, including a doctor’s knocker.

Step inside the hallway, where the subtle dove-grey walls and restored original floorboards flow throughout most of the ground floor. There’s a pendant light and space for coats, but the real showstopper is the gunmetal triple-column floor-standing radiator with traditional valves – a feature repeated in every room of the house.

A four-panelled door to your left leads to a living room filled with light from a UPVC sash bay fitted with full-height white plantation shutters. The dove-grey walls, floorboards and radiator match those in the hallway, yet the room is fantastically cosy thanks to the working Carron wood burner nestled in the exposed brick fireplace. There’s also a factory-style white pendant light and plenty of storage potential in the alcoves.

Back in the hallway, the staircase rises to your left, but for now, head into a dining room with views onto the side return courtyard through a large sash window with a radiator beneath. You’ll also find a grey factory-style pendant, bespoke floating alcove shelving, and a door to a useful understairs storage cupboard.

Walk through to the kitchen, equally light and bright thanks to an anthracite-framed UPVC window and a glazed door opening onto the courtyard. Matte pale grey units with slim-profile brushed chrome handles pair with a light wood-effect laminate worktop and a glossy white metro tiled splashback, while stone-look tiles run underfoot and a factory-style pendant hangs overhead.

There’s a stainless-steel sink and drainer with chrome mixer tap, plus integrated appliances including a four-ring gas hob with extractor, a wall oven, a fridge-freezer, integrated washer dryer, and a Bosch dishwasher. The boiler is also housed here.

The bathroom is at the rear of the house. Lit by a frosted anthracite-framed casement window, square white gloss square walls tiles with charcoal grouting contrast nicely with grey-painted walls and slate-coloured floor tiles. The well-laid-out space includes a shower bath with a frameless glass screen, a wide black two-drawer vanity basin with a chrome mixer tap, towel rack radiator, and a close coupled loo.

Head up the charcoal-carpeted staircase to the first floor, where the original floorboards continue in both double bedrooms.

You’ll find the master at the front, spanning the full width of the house. With white walls, it’s lit by two sash windows with bespoke blackout roller blinds framing another fabulous radiator. Other details include a pendant light fitting, an over-bed shelf, a run of tall wardrobes, and more storage potential in the alcoves.

The second bedroom has a similar décor scheme, with views over the garden through a central sash fitted with a neutral roller blind. Currently used as a sunny home office, there’s an ethernet connection for high-speed internet, a radiator, pendant fitting, bespoke floating shelving to one alcove, and a practical walk-in cupboard.

Outside, timber fencing encloses the south-facing private garden, which enjoys the sun almost all day. A paved patio perfect for barbeques steps onto a grassy lawn featuring a sleeper-edged flowerbed with mature shrubs. Meanwhile, a wide stone chipping path leads to a good-sized charcoal-painted storage shed.

A NOTE FROM THE OWNERS

‘We’ve loved living in this house for the past few years – from its situation on a quiet tree-lined road to its interior, which has always felt calming and cosy. The spaces within the house feel separate whilst still being well connected.

‘During lockdown, we loved spending time in the garden, which catches the sun all day long. Being so close to Wanstead Flats for a morning run or an evening stroll is also great. We enjoy visiting many of the neighbourhood's shops, cafés and restaurants. In short, this has been an ideal first home in a perfect neighbourhood.

IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

The beautiful Wanstead Flats and Jubilee Pond are just beyond the end of the street and provide a delightful environment to picnic, jog or simply surround yourself with nature and wildlife. You can always explore a little further on the weekend with a trip to Epping Forest or the nearby Queen Elizabeth Park at Stratford.

Forest Gate train station is a 16-minute walk. From here, you can take the new Crossrail link, racing you to Canary Wharf (12 mins), Bond Street (19 mins) and Heathrow Airport (47 mins). You can also reach Liverpool Street in 12 minutes, stopping at Stratford's major interchange just two stops away. Here you'll find connections to the DLR, Central and Jubilee Lines, plus retail therapy at Westfield and foodie delights in the East Village, including Mother Kelly’s Taproom, Fish House (for great fish and chips) and Appetite, an Italian butcher and deli.

Trumpington Road is just 13 minutes' walk from Wanstead Park Overground station, connecting Barking to Gospel Oak via Walthamstow, with a handy change to the Victoria Line at Blackhorse Road.

The current owners highly recommend the Wild Goose Bakery ‘for a cheeky croissant’ and Joyau wine bar under Forest Gate Arches; The Leytonstone Tavern; The Pretty Decent Beer Co taproom; Sinburi for Thai; Dina for craft beer and natural wines, and Caner Supermarket, ‘probably the best corner shop in London’. The Rookwood Village pub and Tromsø Scandinavian Café are other local favourites, while Mora plates up authentic, fresh pasta, and the Holly Tree pub has a working miniature railway to amuse children of all ages.

Forest Gate's recent renaissance has created a thriving community of independent local businesses. Among the other great places to eat and drink in the neighbourhood are Wanstead Tap for craft beer, Burgess and Hall wine bar and shop, and Corner Kitchen for daily breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Ofsted-rated 'Outstanding' and ‘Good’ local schools include The Jenny Hamond Primary, Colegrave Primary, Davies Lane Primary, and Forest Gate Community School, as well as Odessa Infant School and Maryland Primary.