Sometimes a house grabs your attention with a beautiful hallway, or kitchen; sometimes it's a garden; often it's the grand sweep of the architecture which fires up the imagination.
In the case of Colwell Wood Cottage, however, it's the location which took our breath away. It's a house which looks as if it's been lifted from the pages of a children's fairy story.
This beautifully-proportioned home – on the market at £1.25m – isn't a mansion or hall, but instead a three-bedroom cottage that sits in a clearing in these woods, which consist mainly of oak, ash and sycamore trees.
It was originally built at the start of the 19th century by Admiral Thomas Graves, the officer who made his name as Nelson's second-in-command in several key battles. Graves built the house as a sylvan retreat for his daughter.
Later it came to be used as both a gamekeeper's and a woodman's cottage, but the place fell into disrepair until the present owners took hold of it in the 1980s.
Those owners have lovingly restored the house while keeping plenty of the original features – including the inglenook fireplace, ceiling beams and the Aga in the kitchen. There are three bedrooms and one reception room, with one of the bedrooms downstairs including an en-suite.
Internally the house is perfectly liveable but could do with some updating. But to focus on that ignores the true selling point here: those glorious acres of woodland, gardens and paddock which present a sort of bucolic fantasy setting.
While it seems as if it must be miles from anywhere, civilisation is actually gratifyingly near. The nearest village, Offwell, is only a few hundred yards down the private driveway, and offers a few shops, pubs and a primary school.
A few miles further away is Honiton, one of East Devon's larger towns and well-connected to Exeter by both road and rail.
Colwell Wood Cottage is on the market via Humberts, who are asking for offers over £1.25 million – see more details and pictures here.
A romantic cottage in the heart of the Cotswolds at the price of a small city flat
A heart-stoppingly romantic cottage in the Cotswolds has come to the market at a price which will make city dwellers
Credit: Pond Cottage - Clarke Gammon Wellers - Haslemere
Romantic but affordable cottages within an hour of London
You don't have to go as far as the Cotswolds for a cosy cottage at a reasonable price.
31 of the most spectacular properties for sale in the world right now
From eye-popping New York penthouses to French country houses where you'll scarcely believe what you can get for your money,
-
What a report on the spending of female billionaires tells us about the future of museum collectionsBetween 2015 and 2024, the number of female billionaires grew from 190 to 344. Could this be good news for the art world?
-
A simply perfect thatched cottage in Devon, with charm, walled gardens and all the space you need for family lifeThatched cottages are often pretty, but pretty small — but Julie Harding finds one brings which blends cottage charm with the space of a country manor.
-
A simply perfect thatched cottage in Devon, with charm, walled gardens and all the space you need for family life
Thatched cottages are often pretty, but pretty small — but Julie Harding finds one brings which blends cottage charm with the space of a country manor.
-
'A rare gem' of a country house, in 163 acres of the idyllic Colne Valley, just 50 minutes from the CityThe Regency-style Over Hall in Colne Engaine is a country house whose previous owner has spent 40 years getting everything just right. Penny Churchill takes a look.
-
Five home offices so good that every work day will feel like a holiday (well, probably)Five years on from the Pandemic, millions of us are still working from home much of the time — and thus the appeal of a home office is as strong as ever. They don't much nicer than these.
-
A grand country house and 329-acre estate for sale at £1.89 million — and it's on the market for the first time in a quarter of a millenniumArabella Youens takes a look at the beautiful Monreith House and Estate on the south-west coast of Scotland.
-
A beautiful home on the outskirts of one of Scotland's prettiest market towns, and an easy commute to EdinburghArabella Youens looks at Kirklands House, a wonderful old home set in five acres of charming gardens near Melrose.
-
18 grand country homes, from £600k to £6 million, as seen in Country LifeOur regular look at the best homes to come to the market via Country Life this week include a house in a charming seaside village and a 17th century farmhouse.
-
Caveat renovator: The TV star, the writer and the salvation of a crumbling farmhouseThe actor, writer and comedian Robert Webb and his comedy writer wife Abigail Burdess embarked on a renovation project in 2019 which became far more than they imagined — and just as the job is at last complete, they've decided that it's the right time to put house on the market.
-
An Alpine hideaway on a Swiss mountaintop that's like something from the pages of a Gothic novelA wonderful Baroque castle set amid gardens and woodland is for sale in one of Switzerland's most beautiful areas.
