Home near the castle

Rose Martin says idyllic Faerie Fort is zoned to retain privacy

FAERIE FORT is the suitably lyrical name of a property at Barryscourt, in Carrigtwohill, Co Cork.

Set within the protection zone of Barryscourt Castle, the 12th century seat of the Barry Clan, development is prohibited around the perimeter of the castle which means that the valuable privacy of Faerie Fort is enshrined in the county development plan.

Once a simple bothán on the old Carrigtwohill road, the property is now a two-storey cottage which sits snugly under the new link road to Midleton.

Wooded, pastoral surroundings and a quick commute to Cork city is the ideal compromise in terms of location and also, the beaches of East Cork are within easy reach.

Priced at €500,000 through auctioneer, Kevin O'Connell of Dan O'Connell and Co of Glounthaune, Faerie Fort has 2,250 square feet of space and is in superb condition.

Unlike modern houses with country-style interiors, the cottage look is perfect for a house that probably dates back to the early 1800s. Painted latched doors, white metal bedsteads and colours picked from a soft, floral palette all blend to create a house of character and comfort.

There's no mustiness or no unfinished corners here as the vendors have spent the best part of 17 years restoring and improving on the house and grounds.

Their major project was doubling the height of the original cottage and, to do this, they had to move out and rent for a while.

The wall plate was raised, (and the join is hardly recognisable) and a new floor was added, a bit of nightmare, they say, but worth it when you see the finished product.

Half-and-half dormers were installed, back and front, and the old slate roof and windows are now trimmed with decorative barge work.

Windows to the front are white PVC, double glazed, but in the rear extension there are solid teak and painted white with some finely finished French doors.

The original ground floor of the cottage is now one, large living room, with a study to one side and access to a ground floor bathroom and master bedroom on the other side.

This is a long, multi-purpose room with antique fireplaces at either end. Ideal for entertaining, but also cosy, it has low beamed ceilings and old stone walls with dense layers of white paint.

Wide-plank pitch pine runs the length of this room and at the rear, an open plan staircase rises to the upper floor.

There are three spanking new bedrooms here and all come with sloping, beamed ceilings and lots of light. One room in particular has windows back to front and some top quality pitch pine wardrobes running the entire length of the room. The floor is hand-painted in a tinted, white matt paint.A new bathroom with modern fittings has also been installed.

The ballroom that is the master bedroom was the last of three extensions to this house.

Very Laura Ashley, it has pale lilac colours and French doors to the garden. Also included is a full bathroom, with stand-alone, cast-iron bath and a separate walk-in wardrobe. To the rear of the main living room are the kitchen, dining and sunrooms and these face full south.

Hand-built in distressed pine and coloured yellow and blue, the units are a classic shape and could take any colour change.

The gardens are sublime, with lots of herbaceous perennials and other interesting and surprising features, here and there.

According to Kevin O'Connell there's almost an acre here and this includes vegetable beds, a green house, and best of all, a huge pond with water-lilies bursting forth.

This fine water-feature makes a mockery of the modest plastic jobs and is made the most of with a wraparound timber deck at one end: there's a seating area here and large stepping stones connect the deck to the lawn.

Surrounded by tall trees and with the battlements of Barryscourt in the distance, the setting is picture perfect - almost Faerie-tale.