Going Round The Bend

From Stonehenge to modern apartment blocks, Nicola Venning explores the undying appeal of architectural curves

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CURVES have always had allure—and we’re not only talking about the female figure. From Stonehenge to Zaha Hadid’s creations, rounded buildings delight and fascinate in equal measure and often make for distinctive homes. ‘They’re easy on the eye and we’re instinctively drawn to the curved shape, which occurs naturally, so curved buildings appeal to property buyers,’ believes James Greenwood of Stacks Property Search (01594 842880). Indeed, converted windmills, towers and oast houses ‘always attract a lot of interest and tend to sell easily,’ he adds.

Millway Tower, in Upper Oddington, near Stow-on-the-Wold in Gloucestershire, is believed to have been a 14th-century sawmill, but is now a mellow brick cylinder of light and space, with an abundance of period, curvaceous charm. ‘I love it because it is unique and quirky,’ says Carl Barnard, who converted what was a glorified ruin in 2007.

From the master bedroom at the top of the tower, the space spirals down ‘like a corkscrew, becoming larger and larger as it flows to the extended living areas’.