Ralph reviews a detached family house in Holt
Spring may have been a bit slow in arriving however, on my walks this week I couldn’t help but admire the bluebells which are in full bloom now. As I walked through aptly named “Bluebell woods” it seemed like a carpet of purple had been laid beneath the trees – just beautiful, so I have faith that those dreamy days of summer are just around the corner!
To keep my spirits raised through the recent endless spells of rain, the RP team sent me off to review not one but two properties this week. My first visit was to the utterly charming Cobbydale set in the heart of Holt village. When we arrived, I hopped down from the car and gazed up at a beautiful period style house. From first impressions it looked like it had been impeccably renovated as well as rather extensively extended. A little shiver of delight ran down my spine at the thought of what may lie behind the front door so, with no further delay, I skipped up to said front door and stepped over the threshold.
I found myself stood on a wooden floor in a very pleasant entrance hall. I wiggled my toes with delight at the underfloor heating which was warming them up to perfection. Before making my way through double doors in front of me, I spied another door to my left and popped my head round it to find a very handy cloakroom. Nodding in approval (the handy location of a cloakroom is always important) I continued on through the double doors and found myself in a light and spacious open plan family and dining room.
Daylight flooded into the room through several windows and double French doors which opened into the garden. As I wandered through the room my toes continued to tingle with the warmth from the underfloor heating. I spied a doorway at the back of the room and made my way over. On my way I passed a contemporary staircase up to the first floor – casting a curious look upwards I resisted and carried on past – there was still too much to discover on the ground floor.
No sooner had that thought crossed my mind than I found myself in a thoroughly beautiful kitchen. This room had been renovated to perfection – contemporary shaker style units perfectly complemented the period style windows and stunning period style outer door.
As I looked around I mused that this was just the type of kitchen that would inspire one to cook – I could just picture myself, stood atop a tall stool, chef’s hat at a jaunty angle on my head, my Delia Smith and Jamie Oliver cookbooks laid out on the centre island and me, elbow-deep in flour as I attempt another culinary delight – for some reason my wensleydale cheesecake with a crumbled bonio base was not a winner with my family but I’ll keep persevering – I’m sure I can improve their palettes in time…! Having had a full inspection of the kitchen (which included looking inside all the cupboards – well all these thoughts of bonios made me crave one!), I also discovered a boiler room and a utility room.
Feeling slightly crestfallen at the distinct lack of treats I had found in the kitchen cupboards, I made my way back to the entrance hall where I turned left and found myself in a stunning garden room which immediately cheered me up.
It was a room virtually encased in windows and it seemed like the perfect place to soak up the sun’s rays – mum would love sitting here with her morning coffee, and, rest assured, I would be right there next to her, ready to hoover up any crumbs from her rich tea biscuits! Smiling fondly, I continued my journey through the ground floor and found a lovely sitting room and beyond that another kitchen – wowzers – that opened up exciting possibilities – if the next owner of the house had young pups, this would be a great space to teach them to cook, or if they had a few pets this would be a great place to store and prepare their pets’ food (lots of cupboards for treat storage – yummy!). With my brain now in overdrive I also thought that this part of the house would definitely have potential as a granny annexe or teenager’s pad.
With my head full of ideas I ambled back into the sitting room and spied another set of stairs which led to the first floor – I bounded up them with no further ado. At the top of the stairs I found two contemporary styled bedrooms, one with an en suite shower room. Yes, I mused to myself, it definitely would not take much to turn this section of the house into its own independent dwelling – that could be a very useful thing for any prospective purchasers to know…
With that in mind I made my way (slower this time) back downstairs and followed my tracks back through the house until I was back in the family room, from there I made my way up the second flight of stairs to the remainder of the first floor. A spacious landing led me into a Jack and Jill bathroom and three further bedrooms.
Gosh, I thought, as I headed back downstairs for the final time, what an interesting property Cobbydale is, full of possibilities. My last stop before I headed back to the office was to check out the outside space. I simply loved the brick paved courtyard- big enough to park several cars. I also simply loved the fact that this can only be accessed via an electronically controlled gate which makes the property feel very safe and secure. I had a quick wander around a brick built double garage where I spotted a folding ladder up to an attic room. I did not feel nimble enough to climb it so I sent dad up instead and he informed me that the attic space would be great for storage or as a small home office. Next I made my way to the garden – this was a super low maintenance space, with a nice terrace area and an area of artificial grass – I could see dad’s eyes light up at this – no lawn-mowing ever again! And my eyes twinkled at the idea of playing catch the frizbee whilst never needing to hear mum’s sighs of exasperation as I create a giant skid mark through the grass!
Once back in the car, I took a last look at Cobbydale and thought about what a lovely and versatile house it is – one of those unique properties that would suit many different types of families no matter what size or shape they are! If you think Cobbydale could be the perfect fit for your family please get in touch with myself or one of my team on 01244 322322 or info@rickittpartnership.co.uk to arrange a viewing.
Until next time
Love Ralph X
