York Road, Gee Cross.

A red-brick semi of real character, where Art Nouveau detail, heritage tiling and a deeply planted garden turn a modest footprint into something rather special.

Some houses are content to be practical. York Road has chosen to be charming as well. Behind its hipped roof and mellow red brick lies a home that has been decorated with genuine flair, one where period-inspired detail and confident colour sit easily alongside the comforts of modern life.

The tone is set the moment the front door opens. Leaded glass panels throw soft light across a hallway floored in geometric encaustic-style tiles, their terracotta, slate-blue and cream pattern recalling the grand hallways of an earlier age. A carpeted staircase rises ahead, and a discreet cupboard keeps everyday clutter neatly hidden away.

The lounge is the showpiece. A graceful arch frames the deep bay window to the front, where slatted blinds filter the light across dark wood floors. Opposite, the chimney breast is dressed in a striking teal and gold feather-print paper and anchored by a pine mantel housing a cast-iron insert of real beauty: Art Nouveau curves and hand-painted tulip tiles surround a living-flame fire. It is a room made for long winter evenings, a book and the glow of the hearth.

The kitchen runs the full width of the rear of the house and makes the most of every inch. Matt blue cabinetry and warm wood-effect worktops are set against the same heritage tiled floor as the hall, and the sink sits beneath a broad window looking straight out into the greenery. At the far end, a bistro-style dining corner offers a sunny spot for breakfast, with a door leading directly out to the garden.

Upstairs, the principal bedroom lies to the front, a calm and generous room of over fourteen feet with fitted storage built neatly into its corner. The second bedroom faces the rear, its wide window filled with the garden’s palms and the flame-red leaves of a Japanese maple, a view that changes with every season. The bathroom is crisp and bright, with white tiled walls, a black and white star-patterned floor, and a bath with a shower over and a glass screen.

And then there is the garden, perhaps the greatest surprise of all. Seen from above, it is a ribbon of green among its neighbours, densely planted with mature shrubs, conifers and swaying cordyline palms that give it an almost Mediterranean air. Immediately behind the house, a gravelled terrace sits beneath a timber pergola strung with festoon lights, the perfect setting for morning coffee or a glass of something cold as the evening draws in. Beyond, stepping stones lead across the lawn through borders thick with foliage, and the planting is so well established that the garden feels wonderfully private. To the front, a block-paved driveway is screened by mature hedging.

Parking - Driveway