North Bar Without, Beverley, East Yorkshire. £625k
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-67355101.html
What do you think of dove grey with orange brick? I love the colour generally and the white of the lintels, pediment, cornice and architrave makes a good contrast with it, but I think I would have chosen a warmer, off white or very pale primrose yellow for those and a period shade of green, say olive colour or perhaps a Heavenly blue for the shutters. I wouldn’t bother changing it now though, it is very pretty.
The house has an amazing Dutch gable at the back. David Neave who re did the York and East Riding edition of Pevsner, some years ago, produced a pamphlet on the Dutch influence on the design of East Yorkshire buildings. I can’t find a link to it at the moment. The buildings of historic Beverley are also the subject of a book by Ivan Hall who ran the Hull and East Riding Georgian Society. By the way, before Pevsner, which is a rather dry read, was Arthur Mee’s The Kings England. Arthur Mee was the editor of The Children’s encyclopaedia among other things and his writing is much more colourful. He visits the historic villages and towns and cities of each county as Pevsner did, but he enthuses a bit more and tells stories.
The kitchen is the biggest room in the house, almost ballroom sized, though it seems to have been ‘knocked through’. This is a great advantage because sometimes one feels like dancing, if one is preparing a meal while listening to radio 3. I have even danced to choral evensong once or twice, while making scones. In a small kitchen there is always the danger one might accidentally sink into a bowl of left over cat food, while doing one’s ‘dying swan’ in the manner of Anna Pavlova.
I love the colour of the walls in the kitchen. I hope the new owners don’t change it, it goes so well with the quarry tiles I have noticed that all the houses I love best have a room painted in one of these shades of old rose, and yet I don’t have a room this colour myself. I shall remedy the matter forthwith. The blue makes a pretty good combination and the grey draws it all together.
The checkered floor in here is wonderful. I think one would need fairly masculine furniture to go with it, fairly plain, of the 17th century and early 18th century, say plain panelled coffers, an early 18th century livery cupboard, an early chest on stand in walnut, a bureau, then some of the plainer regency, Sheraton or Hepplewhite furniture, but nothing too spindly or feminine, perhaps the sofa
should be a Chesterfield type, or a big country house piece from 1900 rather than anything more elegant.
There is original paneling in two of the other rooms and the beautiful Georgian hob grates remain in
place. I don’t know if you can burn coal in Beverley, but I suppose the house will have mains gas, for the boiler. These rooms don’t have quite such exacting demans when it comes to furniture. Of course one would want antiques of the right period, but Chinese Chippendale and Rococo styles would work well, as would the more feminine, regency pieces.
The early 18th century staircase is lovely. Dan Cruikshank has his painted in a Pea colour with the bannister rail grained to look like mahogany, but this might be rather gloomy. I think I see two balusters per tread.
To be truthful, one of the reasons I feel a bit sad about this house, is that it is better value for money than mine and in an interesting historic town. I only have four bedrooms in my house, and although my ballroom is an elegant Adam style drawing room with its period features in tact, rather than a kitchen, still, this house definitely has more space altogether than mine and without any Victorian alterations elsewhere. All in allwhoever has bought it has secured themselves an absolute gem at a bargain price. It also has a beautiful, well maintained, interesting garden.
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