Words: Jonathan Wells
A cluttered desk, they say, is a sign of a cluttered mind. So what does that mean for the work-from-home brigade? Is a cluttered house now a symptom of a hopelessly disorganised brain?
We certainly hope not. There are so many strewn coffee cups, half-chewed Biros and misplaced print-outs littering our locked-down homes that they’d paint a pretty poor picture of our intellects.
So what’s to be done? Just move house, probably. Somewhere clean-cut and austere enough that it won’t drive you to distraction. Thankfully, there are more than enough of these minimalist mansions on the market; pared-back properties with simple set-ups, limited decoration and plenty of space to think. Here are six of the finest.
Pontifex Wharf, Borough Market, London
Pontifex Wharf seems like a good place to make a stripped-back start. High-rise, high-flying — but definitely not high-maintenance — this London penthouse is so close to the city’s skyscrapers that it almost feels like a place of work itself. Less a home-office; more an office-home.
- 3 Bedroom Penthouse
- Triple-Height Entrance Hall
- Designated Workspace
- £4,495,000
King Henry's Road, Primrose Hill, London
But it’s not all slicked-back, sleek-looking city pads. This haven of a home on King Henry’s Road is as decluttered as homes come. With a tranquil ‘garden room’ and rare Japanese Acer tree out front, it’s a Primrose Hill property that puts the ‘zen’ in Zone 2.
- 5 Bedrooms
- Large Private Garden
- Double-height Glazing
- Japanese Acer Tree
Outhouse, Brockweir, Gloucestershire
But why stay in the city at all? With the work-from-home boom blasting off, maybe it’s finally time to up sticks to the sticks. And don’t worry about missing the Big Smoke — thanks to award-winning angular digs like Gloucestershire’s Outhouse, there’s plenty of concrete out in the countryside, too.
- 5 Bedrooms
- Four Acres
- Underfloor Heating
- £2,695,000
Ghost House, Moreton Paddox, Warwickshire
With Warwickshire’s Ghost House, too, you can bring the concrete jungle to the wilds of the Great British countryside. Partially sunken into its plot, the house has been designed to offer exceptional privacy — and is cantilevered over a three-and-a-half-metre-high slope.
- 3 Bedrooms
- Sunken Courtyard Garden
- Crittal-style windows
- £2,500,000
Costa de la Calma Villa, Calvia, Mallorca
Of course, with remote working now the norm, you could flee the country altogether. We hear Mallorca’s lovely at this time of year — and there’s no cleaner start than this minimalist villa on the Costa de la Calma, complete with vehicle access on the sky deck and panoramic views of the Bay of Costa de la Calma.
Coastal properties have seen a surge in prices, in particular
- 4 Bedrooms
- Private Pool
- Panoramic Sea Views
- Sky Deck
1160 San Ysidro Drive, Los Angeles, California
The same goes for 1160 San Ysidro Drive; a starkly stylish, multi-million dollar mansion in Beverly Hills. Of course, you needn’t really buy a minimalist mansion at all. You could simply stay put — and clean your desk. But where’s the fun in that?
- 6 Bedrooms
- All Glass Elevator
- Tempered Wine Cellar
- $19,950,000
This article was taken from the Winter 2020 Issue of Gentleman’s Journal. To subscribe and receive your copy, click here…
Want more minimalism? The Aston Martin-designed Sylvan Rock is a modern architectural marvel…
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