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The Colourful Houses of Notting Hill

Grey clouds hovered over London most of this weekend, blocking out our hopes of some springtime sun. So I went in search of colour in one of the most vibrant parts of London: Notting Hill.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little ObservationistThis print is in my shop!

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Growing up in New York, our neighbourhood had houses in many colours, but they were split by gardens and trees and space that diluted the impact you have when you see them as terraced homes in an otherwise pretty brown-brick city like London.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill is full of them. Instead of walking toward Portobello Market, I wandered away from the crowds (almost always a good idea!) and through the tiny Saturday farmers market behind the tube station.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Further into the back streets, the homes are a rainbow of colour. They are canary yellow, light lilac, bright mediterranean blue. They have doors the colour of gemstones: ruby red, emerald green, rose quartz pink.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

I wound my way through a maze of street, taking photos of olive branches against a pastel green wall, cherry blossoms against a mousy pink and a bike parked outside a blue corner house.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

The neighbourhood was a sleepy one: cats sitting in windowsills watching the wind rustle the branches, a man sitting on the front steps in a bathrobe drinking coffee and reading the paper with a cigarette tucked between his fingers, a woman returning from the market with a cloth bag full of fruits and vegetables.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

It was a real contrast from the flow of tourists just a minute walk away who were all heading toward Portobello.  I wouldn’t mind living there. If I was a millionaire, anyway.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Eventually, I joined the crowds and headed into the chaos of Portobello, grey clouds all but forgotten, but more on that in another post.

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Notting Hill, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Enjoy the colourful photos!

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19 Comments

  • Reply
    Caroline
    March 23, 2015 at 10:27 am

    Hey Steph, thanks for sharing these great photos, they gave me a colourful energy boost on an otherwise dull Monday morning at the office. I was in Notting Hill myself a few weeks ago, on a bright and sunny February day. Hope to return in the summer! Have a lovely week, and I’m looking forward to your next post(s).
    Greetings from sunny Netherlands (really!), Caroline

    • Reply
      littleobservationist
      March 24, 2015 at 9:25 am

      Thanks Caroline! I’m glad they made Monday a bit more cheerful – that’s always a good thing 🙂 Fingers crossed our sun comes back soon. And fingers crossed for another trip to the Netherlands soon for me. I’m definitely due for a visit to your lovely country. Enjoy your week!

  • Reply
    travellousworld
    March 23, 2015 at 10:32 am

    Beautiful colors!

  • Reply
    Elizabeth A
    March 23, 2015 at 1:00 pm

    Love these photos–so beautiful! Makes me want to visit.

  • Reply
    Kati Rose
    March 23, 2015 at 6:34 pm

    Notting Hill is one of my favorite spots in existence due to the cute little colorful houses.

  • Reply
    Art Farm
    March 25, 2015 at 4:40 pm

    I want to live in the Farm Cottage! I love that bright pink door! Beautiful photographs, Steph!!

    • Reply
      littleobservationist
      March 25, 2015 at 5:18 pm

      Right? How much better would life be if you came home to a pink door every day? 🙂

  • Reply
    Petra
    May 15, 2015 at 11:30 am

    Hello:)

    This might seem very random, but I just came across yoour blog and article about Notting Hill. I love the photos! I have been trying to find out where exactly in Noting Hill these colourful house are 🙂 the reason being my fiance and I are having our enagagement photoshoot done next weekend and as I love Noting Hill so I thought it would be super cute to have some photos done infront of these houses specially the pink one 😉

    If you can help me with tthe name of the street it would be great. It isnt’s the main Portobello Road isn’t it?

    Many Thanks,

    Regards,

    Petra 🙂

    • Reply
      littleobservationist
      May 15, 2015 at 11:57 am

      Oh, that’s exciting! Great place for it. It’s actually in the opposite direction of Portobello. When you come out of Notting Hill Station, find the passageway that leads to the Farmer’s Market and I was wandering the streets just behind the market. Not sure exactly what street the pink house was on but you can do some Google streetview research. Try Farmer Street, Uxbridge Street, Jameson Street, Hillgate Street, Callcort Street and Hillgate Place. There are tons of colourful housed around those few streets.

      Have fun and thanks for stopping by the blog!

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  • Reply
    Ibtissam
    November 3, 2021 at 7:56 am

    I absolutely love finding new colorful streets in London, they’re one of the things that just make me happy and brighten up my day in no time. I’ve discovered lately some new Camden Town and Kentish Town colorful streets that I’d never come across, and they’re really worthwhile and so underrated too! Thank you for taking the time to share those amazing pictures with us 🙂

    • Reply
      littleobservationist
      November 9, 2021 at 9:48 am

      Yes! There’s some beautiful colourful houses up that way 🙂 I love stumbling on new ones too. Thanks for stopping by ❤️

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