With cosy overhead beams and oak floors, Grade II listed Christmas Cottage is on the market via Savills for £575,000.
Built of Horton Stone under a Welsh-slate roof, this four-bedroom home is in the charming village of Chipping Warden, on the Northamptonshire-Oxfordshire border around seven miles from Banbury.
The whole place is full of charm with beamed ceilings and an original tiled floor in the kitchen – a space which has been beautifully re-done to make the most of the original features.
Upstairs there is a particular treat in the form of a first floor landing so large as to act as a second sitting room, with space for a large sofa and armchair – the old stone fireplace, beams and delightful windows make this seem like the perfect snug space to curl up with a book.
There are four bedrooms in all, two on the first floor and two more on the second floor. The master bedroom has an unusual touch: an en-suite in the corner of the room, separated only by an Indian screen. It gives a little touch of the bath-in-the-bedroom look much favoured by hotels these days.
The cottage garden is delightfully private, with trees, hedges and shrubs creating a secluded little space with all sorts of nooks and crannies – we can imagine young children playing and exploring happily all summer long.
There is also a timber-framed summer house at the end of the garden; at the moment one of the bedrooms is used as a study but this could easily be converted as a garden office.
Christmas Cottage is for sale via Savills at £575,000 – see more pictures and details.
18 things you really ought to know about Northamptonshire
From George Washington and Frances Crick to the Gunpowder Plot and Formula 1, you'll love our Northamptonshire trivia.
Credit: Alamy
Oundle: Britain's most perfectly-preserved Georgian market town?
Matthew Rice pays homage to Oundle, a beautifully-preserved market town that is one of the jewels of Northamptonshire.
-
A country house near Windsor that could be straight from the pages of a Jilly Cooper novelPenny Churchill looks at the beautiful polo-lover's sanctuary that is Barkham Square Park.
-
The factory that once fuelled the Victorians' insatiable appetite for pianos has become a set of gorgeous, characterful apartmentsChappell & Co were a huge name in 19th century music, even working with Beethoven. Today, one of their old factories in Camden has become a series of beautiful apartments.
-
What £1 million buys you across Britain, from a Cornish cottage to a miniature castle in the HighlandsSprawling country houses, a mini-estate in Scotland and homes where the sea almost laps up at your feet are among the property options open to those with a seven-figure budget. Here's our pick of the best £1 million houses for sale across the land.
-
The Hampshire home of a Victoria Cross-winning British WWI ace fighter pilot is for sale, with lake, chapel and some of the best fishing rights in EnglandPenny Churchill looks at Longparish House, a north Hampshire haven on the River Test.
-
Five superb country homes, from under £1 million to £20 million, as seen in Country LifeOur look at some the best homes to come up for sale via Country Life in the past week includes a Wiltshire dream home and a vast Kent mansion that's an easy commute to the City.
-
Rock stars and the country house: Liam Gallagher's life in the Cotswolds is in the finest tradition of music A-listers, from The Beatles to BeyoncéWhat is it about the British countryside that draws A-listers from every walk of life? With Liam Gallagher's Cotswold former home on the market, Toby Keel takes a look.
-
Life on Portugal's Coast of Kings, where Ian Fleming met the triple-agent whose gambling inspired 'Casino Royale'Once a quiet fishing village west of Lisbon, Cascais became an unlikely hive of activity during the Second World War, attracting regal refugees and intelligence operatives in equal measure. Russell Higham investigates its enduring glamour — and its connection to Casino Royale.
-
An extraordinary Italian palazzo built in the heart of Oxfordshire is up for sale at £16 millionThe Palazzo Pallavicini in Genoa inspired the creation of Newington House, which is on the market for the first time in 35 years.
