A mid-century gem among the treetops on the Dulwich Estate in Crystal Palace
Another of the apartment’s most appealing attributes is the building it sits within. Grenville Court – minutes from Crystal Palace Park, where Grade II-listed dinosaurs meet restored sphinxes and a bewildering maze – is one of seven towers on the revered Dulwich Estate, designed by Austin Vernon & Partners between 1957 and 1963. Although it’s in good company, this particular block is among our favourites for many reasons. We love the façade, for instance, which features rows of Crittall windows and shiny mirrored letters that spell out its name above the communal entrance. This is another jewel, with its walls made of original encaustic tiles and glass bricks and its beautiful large iroko-wood door.
Inside the third-floor apartment, those Crittall windows steal the show, particularly in the bright and airy living room, where they run from wall to wall and flood the space with light and green. Corey took her cues from this view when it came to decorating: “I wanted to bring the outside in, hence all the house plants,” she says. “The space has dictated the design decisions I’ve made.” Making the most of its “incredible proportions”, she also added floor-to-ceiling shelving for her vinyls – “The first thing I do on a Sunday is put a record on” – and cherry-picked objects that truly suit the space. “I’ve been slowly collecting pieces that I will keep for a very long time,” such as a tangerine ‘Ekstrem’ chair, a Jeremy Gardiner painting that belonged to her parents and a moon-like Isamu Noguchi light. “I like to think my interiors are playful, colourful and not overly precious.”
We admire what Corey has done with the place, but the white walls and wooden floors throughout (including the original iroko boards in the living area and hallway) provide a blank canvas for future residents. The flat is flexible too: it measures 850sq ft and has two bedrooms, meaning there’s plenty of room to live, work and host here – something Corey has taken pleasure in. “I love sharing the space with people and having family and friends over,” she says. “I’m always inviting them round for lunch and to listen to music.”
As for the local area? Crystal Palace was included in Lonely Planet’s ‘Greatest little-known neighbourhoods in the world’ – and for good reason. This hilly corner of south-east London is one of the city’s most fascinating, not least for its name: a reference to the extraordinary glass building that hosted the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park in the middle of the 19th century, which was painstakingly rebuilt here a year later. Although the original landmark itself burned down in 1939, Crystal Palace still has plenty going on and makes for a wonderful place to live. “It has a long-established community with a lot of independent sellers, antique shops and a limited number of chains,” says Corey. “I always try to visit the farmers’ market on a Saturday. And the park is super nice too.”
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