The home with no pale limitations

ANN WALLACE

FROM lively Christmas parties of two hundred or more revellers, to quiet, intimate suppers for two, Fae-Me-Well House is a property which likes to entertain. “In the 20 or so years since we moved in, the house has tended to be full,” smiles current owner Professor John Simpson.

“We have a large extended family, lots of friends, and every year I held a festive party for my students and colleagues at the University.

“The house copes well with lots of people.” Professor Simpson, a Professor of Pathology and former Dean at Aberdeen University, bought the house, which is located in the Aberdeenshire hamlet of Cothal, near Fintray, with his late wife two decades ago, because it ticked all the right boxes.

“We were living in a small terraced house in Aberdeen, and were keen to move into a bigger place, with a bigger garden,” he explains.

“The house is 10 minutes from Aberdeen, which was ideal for my work, but it was secluded, in a lovely countryside setting.”

He smiles: “My wife went to a viewing and when she came home, she told me she had found the house we were going to buy.

“I had a feeling it was Fae-Me-Well, because we had been looking around and I’d spotted it in one of the newspaper adverts.”

Fae-Me-Well is a fantastic family home in an idyllic setting on the northern banks of the River Don. The property was originally extended in Victorian times when it became the dower house for nearby Fintray House, long since demolished.

The Simpsons extended and upgraded the property, but many period features remain, including beautiful bay windows, high ceilings, ornate pitch pine doors and staircase, and wonderful open fires.

“The honey gold pine panelling is really lovely,” says Professor Simpson. “It’s a great feature in the hallway and up the stairs.”

The hallway, with its beautiful stained glass window and Victorian tiled floor, leads to the three reception rooms.

The stylish living room has two bow windows facing south and west and an open fire with a pretty, ornate pine and gesso mantelpiece.

The more formal drawing room, is elegant and bright; while the spacious formal dining room has been tastefully decorated in rich greens and tartan accents.

The Simpsons added an impressive kitchen extension.

“The original kitchen was small and dark, with low ceilings, so we decided to open it up into a much bigger space and family room,” says Professor Simpson.

“The pitched roof over the table is part glass and light floods in at all times of the The mellow yellow combo of honey gold pine panelling, limestone tiling and large rooflights creates a light and airy feeling of space day. It faces east, so it gets the morning sun.” The kitchen has a limestone tiled floor, with under floor heating and a gas burner in the sitting area, plus beautiful views. There is a useful pantry off the kitchen area and the rest of the ground floor comprises a spacious, south-facing conservatory and a fantastic master bedroom suite with dressing room, bedroom and luxury en-suite shower room.

The staircase leads up, via the mezzanine shower room, to the first floor, where there are six further double bedrooms including one en-suite.

Two of the bedrooms are used as studies at the moment. This floor is also home to a modern family bathroom, a luggage room and plenty of storage cupboards.

The sale also includes a one-bedroomed, self-contained cottage attached to the north side of the property, which would make fantastic accommodation for extended family or an independent teenager, and more than three acres of land.

The gardens and grounds are beautifully maintained and private – and Professor Simpson’s pride and joy.

“I was the gardener – my wife looked after the greenhouse, so she was in charge of the peaches and the tomatoes, while I was much more interested in the ornamental stuff,” he smiles.

“It’s a great garden, with plenty of space and privacy for children to play.”

As well as an extensive area of lawn with