A white house to trump all others...
FANCY being the king or queen of a modern castle?
There can’t be many properties for sale that can compete with this incredible home in Swansea.
It has a whole suite of reasons to stand out from the property crowd.
The location is pretty spectacular in its own right.
Situated within the grounds of the Clyne Castle estate in Blackpill, it becomes clear where the castle influence features in the distinctive design of this contemporary house.
According to website coflein.gov.uk, the original Grade Ii-listed Clyne Castle is actually a mansion built in 1791 and then externally remodelled in 1819-20 to add battlements and turrets within its new facade’s Gothic style.
The castle mansion was developed into apartments in 2003 and more recently the grounds have been developed into this exclusive and private estate of contemporary whitewashed homes.
The breathtaking design of this particular one-off property pays homage to a castle tower with its circular design.
Of the 15 new detached homes on the estate, this is the only circular one, a modern-looking almost art deco-style home with an internal circle at its core.
Access to the estate is via a restricted private road that leads to the gated entrance.
This particular house has an elevated position within the estate, and when you add four storeys of incredible interiors, it’s not a surprise to discover that the house can boast panoramic sea views from its roof terrace.
Step inside on the ground floor and maybe the best feature to notice immediately from the front door is the lift.
This bonus feature gives you very handy, and smooth, access to all four storeys.
If the stairs sound more exciting, then one of the distinctive ‘mini’ towers that form part of the home’s exterior design houses a staircase, curved in design but not quite a spiral.
Turn the corner from the ground floor hallway, around a straight internal wall and through double glass doors, and there is an open-plan living space occupying the main central area of the core circle.
The immediate sense is one of light and space, amplified not just by the white interiors but predominantly via the double-height feature window and over-sized doors out on to the garden.
At one end a high-end, glossy kitchen awaits, with granite work surfaces and all the luxury integrated appliances you would expert from a luxury home, including a stateof-the art extractor fan that looks like a piece of art itself, plus a huge fridge-freezer with ice and water font.
The added oak breakfast bar is a bonus and informal sociable space.
The large dining zone overlooking the rear garden can easily sit eight people and there’s even space for a lounge area.
But this is not the only living area; a special floor is waiting for a visitor elsewhere. Just pop in the lift and hop up a floor.
The whole of the first floor is almost wholly dedicated to a living space.
Here the smooth curve of the circular design gently surrounds the space, peppered with long narrow windows, again reminiscent of a castle design.
These modern versions of arrow slits are for light and view sharing between inside and outside, so thankfully no arrows will be raining down on any visitors below.
An ingenious glass-panelled internal balcony between this floor and the ground floor means light from that huge doubleheight window can be enjoyed and shared within both spaces.
Opposite the balcony, at the front of the property, this substantial lounge and formal dining space has a huge picture window, a perfect internal spot to drink in the views of the estate outside.
Up to the second floor and the circle becomes even more noticeable, bisected in the middle both ways to create four separate bedrooms, all with a curved outer wall, all with a sizeable picture window and all with an ensuite.
There’s even a separate shower room and seating area outside the circle of sleeping quarters, so totally utilising the whole internal space available.
Every floor has separate cloakroom facilities or a shower room to ensure the lift and stairs don’t get over-used, plus on the ground floor, next to the kitchen, is a handy utility room.
Up another floor to arguably the most impressive internal space.
The entire floor is dedicated to an opulent master suite, with the bed positioned in the centre of the circle.
The bed is in the perfect spot for looking out through the wall of glass windows and doors, across the private balcony and out to the sea on the horizon, directly from the pillow.
To add a degree of privacy and separation within the master suite there is a small false wall in the centre of the space, directly behind the bed.
This splits the space but gives full access to the dressing area behind the bed.
Most master suites have ‘his and her’ basins but this luxury home has his and her ensuites.
The final floor is the external roof terrace that is the top of the central tower and provides views of the estate below and the coastline, sandy shore and sea of Swansea Bay.
The property comes with a pretty rear garden that backs on to the castle estate’s original boundary wall, but there is much more open space to explore than just this patio and lawn area.
The estate agent selling the property says Clyne Castle’s private estate is at the residents’ disposal, with pathways that meander through about 1.5 acres of pleasant gardens situated between Clyne Botanical Gardens and Clyne Country Park.
The property is on the market for £1,095,000 with Fine & Country Swansea.