Standing on a beautiful quiet Chelsea street, situated close to the King’s and Fulham Roads; The Vale is a spacious end of terrace, period residence, with a large landscaped garden.

This home has been decorated in a fantastically eclectic style, using influences from across the world and is currently for sale through Hamptons International.

The Vale is approximately 7,881 sq ft and is arranged over four floors:

On the lower ground floor there is a stunning hand crafted country style kitchen, with an Aga and flagstone floors and space for a large dining table.

This leads onto a spacious family room/library and a beautifully constructed large conservatory, which makes the most of the lovely garden throughout the whole year.

There is also an elegantly proportioned dining room with a large bay window, which is perfect for formal dinners as there is an interlinking door to the staff quarters and food service area.

The raised ground floor is where the formal entertaining rooms can be found: two reception rooms, both generously proportioned and looking over the garden.

The master bedroom suite contains two vast bay windows, which overlook the garden, a walk in wardrobe, large bathroom with an original antique mural and an enormous wet room.

One of the main features of this house is the constant natural light you receive from the large windows, giving The Vale a feeling of space, which is a major benefit, as light is often lost in taller town houses.

The house has substantial staff accommodation, with private access to the property.

The Vale has off road parking for four cars and a large garden, which are both valuable and rare commodities in central London.

Chelsea is renowned for its fabulous central location and good transport links to areas such as Knightsbridge and Piccadilly.

The King’s Road has a large variety of fabulous shops and excellent restaurants and bars all of which are near to The Vale.

Guide price - £12.5million.

Web: http://www.hamptons.co.uk/

The timber that lies at the heart of a Swedish House Company property, comes from pine trees that grow very slowly, straight and true in the Dalarna Forests in Sweden.

In the process they produce uniquely dense, close-grained timber that can’t be beaten for structural strength; ideal for the framework for a house - a substantial, strong and stable structure.

This timber also provides the beauty of natural wood for staircases, beams, interior doors, window frames and other visible surfaces.

Warm Winters:

• Swedish Houses are so well insulated that they heat up straight away and the heat is spread evenly throughout, so that there are no undesirable cold spots.
• A unique heat recovery system employs an optional heat pump, which utilizes the outgoing warm air to heat the incoming air, thus providing economy in energy use and costs.

Cool In Summer:

• High standards of insulation keep their buildings warm in winter, and keep it cool in the summer, they are designed to minimise solar gain, e.g. using glass with a protective coating to repel the heat of the sun.
• Built in ventilation constantly circulates fresh air throughout the house, while stale air, cooking smells and excess heat are extracted.

The Swedes value things that are not only superbly designed, but also superbly constructed e.g. Swedish cars and furniture; this obsession with quality extends to every aspect of design and construction of the Swedish House Company’s homes.

The Swedish House Company are exhibiting at the Spring Self Build & Renovation Show at The Renovation Centre from 6th to 9th March.

Web: http://www.swedishhouses.com

When it came to looking for her first home, Joanne Milne was just one more struggling first-time buyer trying to get her foot on the property ladder.

Then she discovered Barratt’s pioneering iPad apartments at Farrier’s Park, Stockton.

“I loved the iPad design and the fact that everything was finished to a really high specification, which was lacking in other properties I considered,” said Joanne.”

So after a small deposit, she purchased a top-floor apartment for £96,000 in a three-storey block in this attractive riverside location.

Joanne added: “I went for an iPad because it was within my price range, yet because of the open-plan design it didn’t feel poky.

“The bathroom is best of all; it has a large basin with a vanity unit, which is just right for a girl’s needs and a full-size bath with a shower over; many of the affordable homes only have a tiny shower room.

The Barratt iPad measures 381 sq ft and comprises a living, dining and kitchen area, with the kitchen separated off by a breakfast bar and comes with a freezer, fridge, oven and hob with extractor hood.

The living area leads on to a private balcony while the double bedroom has a 1.5m run of wardrobes, plus a dresser, bedside cabinet and double bed with ample room to walk around it.

Barratt is currently selling Barratt iPads at Parkside Gardens in Middlesbrough at prices from £95,000 and further iPad’s are planned for Hardwick Green in Stockton.

Web: http://www.barratthomes.co.uk/ipad

Tel: (0845) 60 80 100

Barratt has developed the new Barratt iPad Home, specifically to be more affordable for increasing numbers of first-time buyers around the UK, struggling to achieve their first step on the home ownership ladder.

The design philosophy was to produce highly affordable accommodation, which is still classy, ergonomic and manageable, within attractive elevations.

The accommodation had to be innovative with creative use of space to appeal to a variety of buyers; primarily first-time buyers, but also parents funding children at college, and single people.

The stylish 1 and 2 bedroom apartments make creative use of space and include a living/dining area, fully fitted kitchen and bathroom, plus a private balcony providing additional amenity space.

At just over 380 sq ft, the iPad has a wealth of features including a spacious open plan kitchen with integrated oven, hob, extractor hood, fridge and freezer.
An 18ft 8in by 10ft living/dining room, a separate bedroom with fitted wardrobes and a bathroom, with a full-sized bath, basin and loo.

The living area in the 2-bedroom iPad has a contemporary double-height ceiling and mezzanine floor with en suite.

Building is soon to begin on 170 more apartments on six sites, at prices from £85,000. They will cost from £100,000 in the Midlands and from £120,000 in London and the South.

Another 1,600 iPads on 40 sites across the country are in the pipeline;
Locations include Leeds; Stockton on Tees; Edinburgh; Chorley, Lancs; Wirral, Merseyside; Cardiff; Swansea; Bognor; Fareham; and Bournemouth.

Web: http://www.ipad.barratthomes.co.uk/