“Exposed brickwork, raw concrete mouldings and expansive open-plan arrangements come together in this former church organ factory”
Occupying the entire first floor of Colina House, a former church organ factory, is this wonderful three-bedroom loft apartment. Measuring approximately 1,691 sq ft internally, the apartment bears many of the aesthetic hallmarks of warehouse living: oak floorboards, exposed brick, cast-iron pillars, raw concrete mouldings, and an original full-height hoist door opening out over the quiet street below. Positioned on Colina Mews, a short walk from Harringay Green Lanes, the apartment is a rare entity in a neighbourhood dominated by Edwardian and late-Victorian architecture. For more information, please see the History section below.
The Tour
The apartment offers incredibly versatile accommodation in an open plan. The two bedrooms, one with an en suite bathroom, are the only segregated areas. The remaining expansive lateral space is currently configured as a living and dining room. There is a wood-burning stove and a cinema screen installed in this area of the apartment. A contemporary kitchen adjoins this space, with stainless steel units and worktops.
The bright main bedroom is positioned at the far end of the apartment and has its own connecting dressing room and en suite bathroom. Two further well-proportioned bedrooms are configured in a similar fashion, one of which retains the original loading doors used to transport church organ ranks during the building’s former use. A family bathroom is positioned along the hall. There is also a utility room and significant storage spaces within the former lift shaft of the building and concealed along the edges of the communal areas.
The Area
Colina Mews lies in a peaceful location a short walk from Harringay Green Lanes. Numerous cafes, bars and restaurants are all within walking distance, as are the green spaces of Duckett’s Common, The Railway Fields nature reserve and Chestnuts Park. The East and West Reservoirs and their watersports and climbing centres are slightly further south.
The Harringay Ladder has become an increasingly popular area in recent years, partly as a result of its ‘village’ feel, but also due to its excellent traditional Turkish grocers, The Salisbury Pub and numerous Ofsted-approved primary schools.
The area is also spoilt for transport connections including Turnpike Lane (Piccadilly Line), Hornsey (National Rail), Harringay Green Lanes (National Rail) and Harringay (London Overground).
Tenure: Leasehold (Live/Work)
Lease Length: approx. 100 years remaining
Service Charge: approx. £1,000 per annum
Ground Rent: approx. £100 per annum
Please note that all areas, measurements and distances given in these particulars are approximate and rounded. The text, photographs and floor plans are for general guidance only. The Modern House has not tested any services, appliances or specific fittings — prospective purchasers are advised to inspect the property themselves. All fixtures, fittings and furniture not specifically itemised within these particulars are deemed removable by the vendor.
History
Colina House was originally built in 1897 as the home of renowned church organ manufacturers Rest Cartwright & Son. The firm’s motto proudly pronounced their status “Described as Artists in Organs” and the business remained based in the factory until the 1960s.
Mr Rest Cartwright was a Harringay local and in bombastic Victorian fashion was christened ‘Rest-in-the-Lord’, but shortened the name to ‘Rest’ for business purposes. He built up his business over many years, supplying organ ranks to parish churches and cinemas around the UK, eventually winning a number of prizes at the Japan-British International Exposition in 1910 and The Queen’s Coronation Exhibition in 1911.
After Cartwright’s business ceased to trade in 1965, Colina House was used variously as artists’ studios in the mid-1980s, until it was formally occupied as a number of photographers’ studios and eventually sensitively converted into three residential homes.
