Boston's South End boasts custom-designed condo

The trendy SoWa district in the South End gets its name from its location: South of Washington Street.

It is a haven for artisans and the visitors who come to see the studios during First Fridays, the SoWa Art Walk and spend summer Sundays at the SoWa Open Market.

This area is a great place to live, too, and one of the neighborhood’s most fabulous lofts is now on the market.

The unit, No. 325 Wilkes Passage Lofts at 1313 Washington St. in SoWa, is based on a glass cube concept.

It has amazing site lines and magnificent finishes, and it is ideal for a buyer looking for a condo at the apex of urban chic.

Offered by Bill Farmer and Mike O’Hagan of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, this breathtaking unit is listed at $1.085 million.

“It came as sort of an unfinished box with a basic bathroom and kitchen,” Farmer says.

“The owners bought it as a box, and they did everything.”

Everything here includes creating an open loft with a sleek granite and stainless chef’s kitchen and book-matched cherry cabinetry.

The living room not only serves as a conversation area but also as a gallery for the homeowners’ art.

Everything also means marble baths; big living and dining rooms, and a central, glass-enclosed den and media room that allows the homeowners to see from one side of the unit clear through to the other.

This is a welcoming home, colored with elegant taupes and sepia tones. “One of the owners is an architect,” explains Farmer. “He has the architectural sensibility. Most of it was his concept.”

The homeowners brought in Jeannine Campbell, a principal of Perkins + Will and former director of interiors at Jung | Brannen, to design the unit.

Even the entry foyer shows the remarkable care that went into designing this place. A glass shelf floats against one wall directly opposite tall cherry doors enclosing eight closets.

The flooring is solid white maple. Contemporary stainless steel halogen track lighting illuminates the entire condo and adds a sculptural framework to the ceiling.

The first room that you “see” in the loft is the glass-walled den/second bedroom/media room.

The open floor plan and abundant windows add to the sense of spaciousness.

It floats in the center of the open floor plan, allowing the site lines to extend throughout the home. This room is a spot where the homeowners can find total relaxation.

The lowered ceiling makes the room feel especially cozy, and its beautifully lit cove not only makes the room look wonderful, it improves the sound in the entire space. A full marble bath adjoins the media room, and the glass-enclosed shower is reminiscent of the glass walls of the larger room.

Behind the media room on the right is the open galley kitchen. Its cherry cabinets add great warmth and they balance the cool black granite that starts on the countertops and slides up the wall as a backsplash.

The stainless steel appliances include a Thermador Professional range, a built-in GE Profile refrigerator, a KitchenAid dishwasher and an attractive undermount sink.

A 12-foot granite peninsula seats five for casual dining and also serves as a home office, with a monitor/TV screen installed on the wall next to it.

If you owned this unit, you would want to spend plenty of time in the bright sitting area.

The dining area is open to the living room. Tiny halogen lights and three pendant lights above the table illuminate the area.

With ample room for a couch, four chairs and an oval glass table, it’s a nice spot to rest while gazing out across a huge, well-landscaped common area, while enjoying Back Bay skyscraper views.

This living room also serves as gallery space. The current homeowners display their impressive art collection on the walls of this part of the home.

Opposite the living room is a dining room with a built-in buffet. This is another fantastic corner in which to showcase art. The next owners might decide to assign this space a different function, but it is rare to have dining space like this in a city home.

It presents the feeling of entertaining in a personal restaurant. The dazzling lights and the nighttime views must enhance every dinner party held here.

At the end of the day, the homeowners retreat to a spacious, peaceful master suite. Oversized pocket doors provide privacy and call attention to the 10-foot ceiling height. The big master closet has custom built-ins for organization and offers a tremendous amount of wardrobe storage.

unique, open corridor shower with multiple shower sprays is the highlight of the marble master bath, where Dornbracht fixtures convey a feeling of luxury.

The bathroom’s cherry cabinetry matches all the other custom cabinets in the home, and some of these conceal a full-sized Maytag Neptune washer and dryer.

This stunning condo at Wilkes Passage boasts an open floor plan with a glass-enclosed den.

There are so many amenities here, including soundproofing in the walls and floors. A Bose integrated two-zone sound system allows the homeowners to enjoy music anywhere they want. There are museum shades on all the windows.

Transportation is convenient: the Silver Line goes right by the building. The unit comes with two tandem garage parking spaces, and the building has a full-time concierge.

This unit is about high style and real comfort. Farmer describes it this way: “It’s like Architectural Digest meets come home and relax.”

DETAILS

Address: 1313 Washington St., No. 325, South End

BR/BA: Two bedrooms, two baths

Size: 1,439 square feet

Age: 2002

Price: $1.085 million

Taxes: $7,527 with residential exemption

Condo fee: $741 per month, including parking spaces

Features of building: Full-service concierge building in hip SoWa neighborhood with landscaped outdoor terrace and common roof deck with 360-degree views.

Features of unit: Stylishly renovated loft with glass-enclosed media room, chef’s kitchen with home office, marble baths, custom cherry cabinetry, living area and dining room with terrific views, built-in sound system and gorgeous master suite; two garage parking spaces. 

Close by: Boston’s South End with access to art, restaurants, specialty shops and cultural attractions; easy access to MBTA Silver Line and Back Bay MBTA station and commuter rail, and Routes 93 and 90.

Contact: Bill Farmer or Mike O’Hagan, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, 633 Tremont St., Boston, MA 02118. Phones: 617-424-6244 (office) or 617-823-2444 (Farmer cell) or 617-834-3298 (O’Hagan cell).

Website: www.NewEnglandMoves.com

An open house will be held at this property Sunday, Feb. 20, from noon to 1:30 p.m.