Studio 432 rebrands

I am tempted to claim this as another victory for this blog! When Studio 432 took over from Wendy's Workshop I wrote that it was hard to read the shop name and they obviously agreed as the original motif has been replaced by a simple sign that is much easier to read.

The halloween look is good too!

Odd one out

Work on the house at the end of Thamesgate Close has now finished and while it is something of a oddity it is not as bad as it could have been.

The main problem at the front is that the windows have (vertical) mullions rather than (horizontal) transforms. It is an error made elsewhere on the estate so it is hard to be too critical. Similarly the arched window has been truncated but it has been retained.

 

The biggest problem with the side view, facing Ham Lands, is the presence of two (!) air conditioning units. Trees have been planted in front of them in the hope that they will provide cover. Similarly trellises have been put against the wall to help merge the house with its surroundings.

The side view is the house's biggest problem and it is up to time to try and fix this. 

 

The back garden has gone to be replaced by decking which is spied on by four porthole windows. It is a bit bland and a few pots would help.

It is still a nursery

Over the years Petersham Nurseries has concentrated more and more on the restaurant and cafe sides of the business and at times I have felt that the nurseries side has suffered massively as a result. I have kept going back just to check on things and on this visit I was delighted by the show of plants, pots and other garden paraphernalia.

There are two main nursery sections outside, a collection of pot plants just inside the entrance and the long borders, featured here, that run along one of the green houses.

 

The tall plants that dominate the long border are nicely complimented here by the displays of pots on the near side.

There are paths either side of the border so it is a pleasant, if somewhat short, walk to go down one side and back up the other. Here, at least, Petersham Nurseries is still a nursery.

Cropped fence

I like to think that I can claim some credit when things I have criticised get better, and this is an example of that.

About a month ago I complained about an oddly tall fence in Maguire Drive and now it has been reduced in height to become normal. The height of one of the concrete pillars on the left, and the rough finish of the tops of the pillars along the front, suggest that the height reduction was an after-thought. It was an after-thought worth having.

The Dysart Petersham

I am old enough to remember when The Dysart Petersham was a pub called The Dysart Arms.

In those days it was a welcome sight when approaching Dysart Gate from Ham and it was difficult to resist the temptation to cross the road and have I pint. I often gave in to that temptation.

Its transition from a local pub to an up-market restaurant has included a screen of trees across the front so that the previous view has gone, as has the possibility of a pint. Also gone is all branding from the front of the building.

More house, less tree

I took a similar photo to this one just a day or two earlier, to capture the growing extension slightly side-on where more of it could be seen than from the front where the hoardings do a good job of hiding it, but before I could post it the trees along the front were cut back massively so I took another one.

My guess is that the trees are going (few people will complain about that) and there will be a new higher wall instead. If it looks like the one on the right belonging to the property next door then I, for one, will be happy.

Not Croftway

For reasons that do not matter I was recently in a conversation with colleagues on the correct name for Croft Way. The confusion was caused by this street sign which gives its name as Croftway, just one word. 

It is indeed Croft Way and we checked various maps, the post office and Richmond Council to confirm this.

The Local in Ham Street

I have only lived here for something just over twenty years so I do not know the full history of The Local in Ham Street but it was definitely Ham Village Store previously and I believe that it was Dunkley's before that so the new signage has both the new name and old ones. 

It is also a very smart and contemporary sign. I love it.

The new look Fox and Duck

As someone who has been known to go to the pub occasionally (!) I have had little good news locally in the fourteen years that I been doing this blog so I am absolutely delighted with what is happening to The Fox and Duck.

I liked the old pub, and went there regularly for the music, but I accept that put me in a minority and to survive the pub needed to attract a wider group of people. The new owners are doing just that.

I took these photos of the new front area at around 10am when I popped in for a coffee and a nose around. All the other times that I have gone there, or passed on the bus, this area has been busy, as has the surprisingly large inside.

Window box

I always walk along Petersham Road with mixed feelings as the awfulness of the traffic on one side is balanced by the interesting houses on the other. On this walk the interesting houses won thanks to this delightful window box.

Ben Forrest has a van

I have seen many small 3-wheel vans in Paris but not so many here, so this one was definitely worth a photograph. It is also nicely decorated, which you would probably expect from a shop that deals in looking good.

A minor point; the branding here has "Ben Forrest" as two separate words whereas the shop concatenates them into one.

Early days

The controversially demolished end-of-terrace house in Sandpits Road is being rebuild and while it is very early days the signs are good. I am impressed by both the materials selected and the quality of the work.

Into Richmond Chase

Richmond Chase is all but finished and, after four years, this will be my last photograph of it - until something changes, obviously.

This is the path into Richmond Chase from Latchmere Lane. It is also something of a short cut to Church Road if you are heading west, not that many people do that. 

CE09 ZWA takes all of the pavement

I am not happy that cars are allowed to take half of the narrow pavement in Clifford Road and even less happy that CE09 ZWA oversteped that mark and took all of it. 

Neighbours in Dickens Close

The works on this house in Dickens Close generated a lot of mess when it was in full swing about a year ago and now that it is all finished the difference from the outside is minimal, which is clearly a good thing. The garage door on the far left has been replaced but the new brickwork and door are fully in keeping with the rest of the house.

The garden seems to be the current area of work so I made need to go back to take another picture of the final result.

Meanwhile next door has started its own building works and these seem to be far more substantial. Obviously I will be going back to see how this work progresses too so Dickens Close will remain on my walking route for a while to come.

Incidentally, this house has been featured here before because of its neatly shaped shrubs. These are looking a little ragged at the moment so that is something else to keep an eye on. 

That's the way to do it

I have been trying to get a photo of this extension on the corner of Clifford Road and Meadlands Drive for some months but each time I went there the view was ruined by having a car parked on the pebbles. This time I was lucky.

I took a few pictures of this while the work was in progress and the finished result was every bit as good as I hoped from the early indications. Obviously I have no idea what the house looks like inside but from the outside the extension is absolutely spot on. I love what they have done here and am delighted to be able to share it.