Wellesley Road

A five-bedroom house for rent in Chiswick with a touch of the Riviera: olive trees, a swimming pool and a cocktail bar in the garden.

From the street, this detached Victorian house in Chiswick keeps its period composure. Inside, Vada Collective’s reinvention heads somewhere sunnier: marble and brass in the kitchen, steel-framed glass that slides back onto the terrace, and a garden with a swimming pool, landscaped by Max Parker-Smith.

There are two reception rooms, each with its own mood. The lounge handles everyday life, with deep cream sofas drawn up to a black marble fireplace and a second seating area tucked into the bay window. Across the hall, the snug turns up the cosiness. Dusky pink walls wrap around another marble fireplace, while mustard velvet armchairs and a pair of bouclé footstools face the screen for film nights.

At the back of the house, the ceiling rises into a run of skylights and the walls dissolve into glass. Slide the steel-framed doors open and kitchen and terrace merge into one. Panelled cabinetry and a walk-in pantry keep clutter out of view. An oval dining table is circled by sculptural bouclé chairs, with the garden as the backdrop.

Step through the glass and the garden takes centre stage. On the stone terrace, scalloped parasols shade lounge seating on one side, with a dining table and barbecue on the other. Lavender, swaying grasses and slim cypress trees screen the swimming pool, where a striped double daybed waits for sun-seekers. At the far end, a pool house is painted plum from floorboards to ceiling. As the light fades, pour a drink at the marble bar and settle into one of the velvet seats. On the lower floor, a home gym comes with a sauna and shower room.

Upstairs, five bedrooms are finished with care. The principal suite is soft and calm, with a scalloped headboard piped in black, plush carpet underfoot and a carved Louis-style settee. A dressing room lined with panelled wardrobes sits beyond. The en suite pairs blush-veined marble floors with a walk-in shower and a freestanding bath beneath the window. Each of the four further bedrooms has a character of its own.