FIVE minutes was all it took for Tina McGreevy to fall in love with her garden flat on St John's Road, in Pollokshields, on the south side of Glasgow. Call it female intuition if you like, but this selfemployed lawyer knew the minute she walked through the front door that this property was for her.

"I remember it clearly, " says Tina. "It was a really sunny day and I came to see the flat after just loosing out on one in Strathbungo. This wasn't the right area, or the kind of property that I ideally wanted, but I just got a great feeling from it - something I'd never experienced before when I was looking for a flat."

In fact Tina was so excited about her find that she raced into Shawlands to meet a friend to discuss purchasing the flat. "He works in property and was trying to calm me down and tell me not do something rash, " she says. "But we made an appointment to come back and see it and I ended up putting an offer in that very day."

The rest, as they say, is history. Tina has injected her own personality into the property thanks to a love of bright colours, antique furniture and handbags.

The lounge's focus point has to be the accent wall around the marble fireplace, which has been covered in beautiful pink floral wallpaper. Tina has finished off the room's lookwith some of her antique finds, including a chaise longue and retro dining table and chairs.

Indeed, brightly-coloured accent walls are a bit of theme in this otherwise traditional property. "I'm not that good at living with cream, " says Tina. "I like bright colours, but I knew that I couldn't paint every wall in bright pink. So I decided on accent walls instead."

For a fun and girlie decorating look, she has hung a mixture of antique and vintage handbags on door handles throughout the flat. There are even a couple placed neatly on the antique furniture in her bedroom.

Tina's modern-meets-retro decor is the perfect accompaniment to this period property. The flat is part of a larger blonde sandstone Victorian house in the heart of the south side suburb of Pollokshields. While it might look modern on the inside, the exterior of the house is distinctly traditional in atmosphere, as is the whole surrounding area.

"I often walk my dog around the area and just marvel at the properties around here, " says Tina. "It's amazing how big some of them are and how close they are to the city centre as well."

Great transport links aside, Tina's flat also boasts some sleek fixtures and fittings, including a white marble floor and an allwhite suite in the bathroom and a modern fitted kitchen with a black granite work surface. Although Tina hasn't used her accent colours in either of these rooms, she has added some of her own distinctive style via paintings, posters as well as numerous accessories.

However perhaps one of the most endearing aspects of this property is the unusual cottage front garden and private entrance. The white-painted door and stained glass insert add a touch of character, while the mature trees which border the garden, afford the flat a great deal of privacy.

But even with its colourful interior and enviable location, after two years in the property Tina has decided to move on and find somewhere a little bigger. "I've just recently set up my own business and the amount of paperwork I have is really unbelievable. There just isn't enough space for it in here, so I'm looking for something with an extra room that I could use it as an office."

IN BRIEF

What: A chic one-bedroomed garden flat with stylish decor and plenty of modern fixtures and fittings.

Where: On St John's Road in Pollokshields, not far from local shops and transport links into the city centre.

Price: Offers over GBP125,000.

Contact: Slater Hogg and Howison, tel: 0141 649 4986.