HEIGHT OF ELEGANCE
Transforming a mildewed country house into the striking family home it is today took vision, determination and one or two tears
Knockdow has been reincarnated as a grand old house in Argyll
Knockdow in Argyll wouldn’t have been everyone’s first choice for a holiday home. Mould, mildew, bare lath and plaster, the roof timbers visible through the ceilings of some rooms, and the fact that only about a third of the house was habitable, might have acted as a deterrent for most of us. Fatima Albizua and Stewart Cameron had other ideas: they knew it could be home.
‘It was just one of those places that felt nice,’ Fatima says. ‘I remember going to view it with my niece, who was about seven at the time. She knew we’d lost out on a number of properties, and when she saw this one she said, “I think you will live here; you will get this one. I love it” .’
She was right. After four years of searching, Fatima and Stewart had finally found ‘the one’. But then it was time for the work to start. While
‘When the radiators arrived and were unloaded onto the front lawn I burst into tears’
the interior of the 18th-century mansion house had been left to its own devices since 1958, the roof at least had been maintained so it was watertight. Unfortunately, though, water tanks in the attic had flooded and there was mould and mildew everywhere. The servants’ quarters, which took up a large portion of the house, were pretty much derelict. The electrics were in need of a complete overhaul, and there were only 13 radiators in the entire property.
‘We started the work in August 2011, as it took about a year to get all the permissions through and we had to get Historic Scotland involved. We didn’t want to change the character of the house, but we wanted to alter the servants’ quarters to add more light and get rid of the cell-like feel.
‘We replumbed and rewired, and we now have 117 radiators – I know, because I did the heat-loss calculations myself!’ laughs Fatima. ‘We were on a strict budget and didn’t have an architect to project manage so we did a lot of the planning and redesign ourselves.’
Not long into the renovation, Fatima was delighted to discover she was pregnant. This didn’t slow down the project, though it might have made it more memorable for the tradesmen. ‘When the radiators arrived and were unloaded onto the front lawn, I burst into tears. I’d spent a fortune on them and I hated the look of them. It was just hormones. Eventually, the plumber suggested we take one inside to see how it looked in position. Of course, the proportions were perfect for the rooms.’
‘It was just one of those places that felt nice’
As well as bringing the house’s utilities into the 21st century, the couple decided to create a bathroom for every bedroom. In the servants’ quarters, meanwhile, they added cornicing to match that of the rest of the house.
To take advantage of the stunning cupola, Stewart and Fatima turned the Great Hall into their sitting room and, using part of an old corridor which ran behind, installed a new chimney and fireplace. ‘We use this room on a daily basis and the fires are lit all the time – I’m quite romantic that way,’ smiles Fatima. ‘I also have my butler [painted on a wall] and then of course I have Stewart who does all the fires!’
Elsewhere on the ground floor is a large drawing room with beautiful ornate cornicing, a TV room, a tea room, a dining room and the original library, which has been made into a snooker room and bar. There is nothing in the tower except the staircase to the ramparts and the rooms on the first floor.
Surprisingly, considering the state of much of the house, the cornicing and cupola needed only minimal repairs. ‘The TV room and tea room had no embellishments whatsoever, so we added cornicing to them,’ explains Fatima. ‘I feel that these houses were incredibly avantgarde for their time, so making some rooms grander than they would have been isn’t a problem for me.
‘Because I’m Spanish and have family all over the world, I haven’t been exclusive to the UK in my choices of furniture or décor. If you were a purist you probably wouldn’t agree, but
‘I haven’t been exclusive to the UK in my choices of décor’
I think everything works. It’s my home and I need to live in it. The reaction of people when they visit is surprise – “oh my goodness, it’s warm, it’s cosy”. I take pride in that.’
Knockdow is a house that was designed to welcome guests, which is why it attracted the couple in the first place. ‘We were looking for a property that was large and comfortable enough for everyone to get together. But Spanish families have their tempers, so we needed a house that gave everyone space too. At Christmas they were all here for about ten days, but we weren’t living on top of each other – it was bliss.’
Indeed, the number of visitors and the addition of Catriona (who is now four years old) to the family has shaped how the house has evolved. ‘A child was an enigma to us, we’ve never had that day-to-day dynamic and it has changed how we planned to use the house,’ said Fatima. ‘We didn’t even factor in a nursery – the playroom was going to be a staff bedroom.’
Today, Knockdow is no longer a second
‘We were looking for a property that was large and comfortable enough for everyone to get together. We needed a house that gave everyone space too’
‘Every time we had friends to stay they would tell us the house was beautiful, then ask the same question: why don’t you make it work for you?’
home. Stewart and Fatima have left their jobs in investment banking, and Knockdow now has a nursery, a playroom and four self-catering suites that can be let out.
‘Every time we had friends to stay they would tell us the house was beautiful then ask the same question: “Why don’t you make it work for you? You have enough rooms to make a few suites.” So we did and they’ve been very popular. We’re also hosting a few weddings this year to see how that goes, but whether we do more or not will depend on the impact it has on our family life. My niece was right – we are here and we do love it.’