Ivy House refreshed

A couple of weeks ago I noted that Ivy House on Upper Ham Road was being repointed and now that the work has finished I am rather impressed. 

At this distance it is hard to see that anything has changed, though the whiteness of the windows suggests that they may  have been repainted not long ago, and it is only when you get closer that the newness of some of the pointing can be seen.

The Hive revealed

For many months the lower part of The Hive on Ham Village Green has been hidden behind boards so I was delighted to find it finally revealed. And the ground floor makes a big difference as it explains why there is a grey arch on the first floor, which had looked out of place.

The Hive sits very comfortably in its Village Green setting and is a welcome addition to the area.

Celebrating Wimbledon

This hedge at the Common end of Ham Street is something of a local landmark and I have posted a picture of it before when the two spheres became Christmas puddings. Their current transformation into tennis balls is stylistically simple but technically difficult as the two curvilinear ovals on each sphere have to be approximately the same size for the effect to work properly.

It is always good to see people making an effort like this to brighten the area even if all it takes is a little bit of white tape.

On entering Petersham Lodge Woods

It is easy to overlook Petersham Lodge Woods as River Lane and the towpath let you pass easily but it is worth making the effort to step inside and this is the serene view you get on entering from River Lane,

Three out of four

It is worrying that three out these four properties on Upper Ham Road are empty commercial units (the other is the intermittently used Ham and Petersham Cricket Club pavilion) and more worrying still that there are no signs on any of them suggesting that the owners are looking for new tenants.

Tree protection

The last time that I checked on these works at The Navigator's House in River Lane these gates were open and the tree was unprotected. I do not recall seeing protection like that before and I am sure that it is there for good reasons, better safe than sorry!

Dominic House in Sudbrook Lane

The changes made over the years to Dominic House in Sudbrook Lane have been small but noticeable. The driveway used to be paved and was smaller. The garden is reduced as a result and the row of semi-spherical trees that used to define the house has been reduced from seven to three.

Fallen tree

This fallen tree is on the towpath opposite Eel Pie Island and I like the way that it has just been pushed to one side. It has made the path a lot narrower but this is not a path that gets a lot of buggies or wheelchairs and there is still enough space for them.

More concrete posts

Richmond Council is continuing its welcome campaign against bad drivers by replacing fragile wood posts with stronger and taller concrete ones, this time on the bend of Church Road by the south-east entrance to Ham Common Woods.