Bexton Croft

The plans and photographs of “Bexton Croft” represent the realisation of a scheme for a house d-escribed in the Studio for January 1895, and somewhat rashly entitled there an ideal suburban house. A study of the ground plan shows that it consists mainly of three sitting-rooms, of which the centre one, the hall, is two storeys in height. These three rooms may be combined by sliding back the wide doors which divide them, forming a spacious interior effect focused in the central hall. The passage on the north side of these three rooms allows of access to all of them and to the front door without infringing on the privacy of the house. The kitchen premises are isolated but conveniently placed for service. Under them is a larder and cellar.

On the upper floor there are five good bedrooms, with bath and w.c, and over them again a central attic, which is used as a study or “den,” as well as a boxroom and servants’ room.

A special feature of the plan is the little secret staircase which opens in the panelling at the side of the drawing-room bay and gives access to the south gallery in the hall and beyond this to the principal bedroom.

The photographs give some idea of the homely character of the woodwork in this house, though they do not show the brilliant colouring of the heraldic decoration which, in the hall ceiling and elsewhere, relieves the dark oak. In the fittings of this house considerable use was made of old panelling and balusters.