The Seafront Apartment, Sliema

The brief was short and difficult: open water, no road between the building and the sea, and a lift. In Sliema the first two are common and the third is not — a great many of the best-placed flats sit above three flights and no more.

This one came from a vendor who had not yet decided to sell. The concierge had walked the block that winter, noted the shutters closed out of season, and left a card. Nine days from the brief to the accepted offer.

The balcony faces north, which in Malta is the useful direction: light all day and no afternoon glare. In August that is the difference between a terrace one uses and one that is looked at.