The fairytale cottage that isn’t a dream
WE’RE brought up on tales of enchanted forests, where hides a secret cottage known only to a few woodsmen. When you’re grown up, you sometimes realise that such properties really do exist.
Through the forest of Beveridge Park in Kirkcaldy, Fife, lies a delightful property, hidden from sight of passers-by on their way up the tree-lined Southerton Road.
But climb a few stairs from street level, negotiate a high wooden gate and the secret is finally revealed, an Art Nouveau treasure that even close neighbours have never seen.
No 30 Southerton Road dates from 1905, just at the time when architects such as Charles Rennie Mackintosh were taking control of every aspect of a building’s design. There was no point in drawing the perfect property if the people moving in were to mess things up by selecting the wrong décor and furniture – so design that too.
The three-bedroom cottage looks to have received such all-round engineering, immediately visible in the lovely wood panelling and fireplace in the hallway, complete with a heart-warming legend carved into the mahogany. It reads: ‘Here Rest Ye Warm Mid Wildest Storm.’
The property is being sold for the first time in almost 50 years. Owner John Christie, now retired, said: ‘When my family moved in here in 1969, I was in my late teens.
‘It was, and still is, a magical little spot. It is completely private, one of the few gardens you will ever find that’s overlooked by nobody.’
Whether it was the architect’s intention to factor the garden into the all-round plan is not certain. However, the devoted decades of attention lavished on its lawns and shrubberies by the Christies has fashioned a garden that almost cradles the house within its greenery.
Mr Christie said: ‘My mother and father were very serious about looking after the garden. They planted a huge amount of flowers and shrubs over the years – it’s as mature and full a garden as you can get.’
The exposed timber beams that are a feature of the glorious reception hallway/sitting room are repeated in the dining room.
Here, the gardens are visible from twin aspects, each of which has a window seat from which to admire the view. The windows themselves are original leaded glass, with a lovely heart shape seared into the centre of each pane.
There’s also a comfortable lounge but it’s the kitchen that will get retro fans all a-flutter. Suddenly it’s the 1950s again, all simple white cupboards and wall units, finished off with a floral-patterned worktop. The shiny avocado wall tiles set it off to perfection.
A wooden staircase leads to the three bedrooms and a family bathroom.
To top it all, the ‘secret cottage’ is offered for sale with all fixtures and fittings included in the price.
Fairy tale? This place could not be more make-believe if the next door neighbours were Hansel and Gretel.
Offers over £275,000 to James Thomson & Son, Kirkcaldy. Tel: 01592 268 575 or email James Thomson.Son@btinternet.com