Comfortable furniture and warm texture contrast the rugged warehouse aesthetic of this industrial home for sale on Peckham Rye. Known as The Hat Factory, the building originally dates from around 1850 and was first used as a bakery. Then it became a helmet-making workshop during the Second World War, giving rise to its name today.

Softening the heavy industrial interior was a priority for the owners when they picked up the keys. “We really wanted an industrial space, and the previous owner did a fabulous job showing off the original fabric. But we felt it needed a respectful softening around the edges for some extra home comfort,” comments Mike.

Finding things to fill the space

This artistic quarter of Peckham has gained massive popularity among creative people, especially over the last five years. Given that changing demographic, more shops have sprung up to cater to new residents’ alternative tastes. This made the local streets a perfect hunting ground for interesting salvage and antiquities to complement the existing factory feel.

“We started contemporising the space with some wonderful pieces from Rye Not Retro, a fantastic vintage shop that’s very handily a couple of doors down. We found nice garden furniture and the metal BAR letters in there, plus bits and pieces of crockery.”

“Worn Not Torn in Bellenden Village is also a great source of inspiration for budding salvage hunters.”

Back to the warehouse… Heave open the chunky, double entrance doors, and you enter an airy reception hall with a noticeably cool ambience, largely down to the tiles: oversized greys on the floor and original glossy whites on the walls. There’s also a healthy dose of trailing plants suspended from the industrial mesh balustrade of an impressive open-tread staircase.

The three bedrooms lead off the hall at various corners, and they’ve all been treated to plenty of salvage to enhance The Hat Factory’s industrial roots.<

Shall we go upstairs?

Miss T: “The entire upper floor is all the room we ever wanted.” 

Immaculate exposed brickwork surrounds this uncompromising, broad space with delicious distressed floorboards. Look up, and you’ll see a vast, vaulted ceiling with warm timber beams.

“We had real fun furnishing this room: nothing was off limits! I love rustic, worn pieces, and the beaten leather armchairs and low-slung sofas really work in here. The space is so large it swallowed them easily. We dedicated around half the floor space to a living area, with plenty left over for dining and office zones”.

In one corner sits the large kitchen with its glossy cabinetry and black marbled surfaces between the brick and tiled walls. Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the room, a small industrial goods lift revived by the previous owner is still in working order.

What more could you want in an industrial home?

Would the owners have done anything differently during their time here?

Mike: “Maybe I’d have put a door from the main bedroom through to the ground floor terrace. Other than that, no, because life at The Hat Factory has been fantastic.”

To read more about this exceptional industrial home for sale, click here for the full description, gallery and floorplans.