Modern take on farmhouse

NOTHING left to do....and that’s part of the reason the owners of this west Cork retreat are on the move — there’s no challenge there anymore.

This modern take on the traditional two-storey farmhouse is at Kilmacabea, up on a height half a mile or so from the outskirts of Leap, between Skibbereen and Clonakilty, just over an hour from Cork city, airport and car ferries.

It has been built by a couple from the UK, who built anew on the site of an older dwelling a few years ago, calling it The Farmhouse — though the ‘farm;’ is just an acre and a half.

But, what a plot. They’ve landscaped and gardened to a high degree, making best use of the site’s mature trees, and then adding more recent planting and sympathetic ground shaping.

They made sensible use of a patch of boggy, hard-to-drain ground right in front of where they built their new home, turning it into a feature pond, and knitting it back to the two-storey, comfortable 2,400 sq ft dwelling by way of decking, simply fenced off for relative safety via timber posts and nautical looking ropes. That precaution, though, hasn’t been much help to the pond’s resident koi, reduced from a couple of dozen to three or four, presumably after herons found them easy prey in the recent cold spell.

Selling agent now for The Farmhouse is Pat Maguire Properties, who seeks €550,000 (it was about last summer with different agents with a €650k price ask) for the immaculate offering, with four/five bedrooms in a mix of contemporary meets traditional decor style, and given an assured stamp by the choice of external colour, a rich and unapologetic terracotta hue: “that’s the first thing everyone comments on, the boldness of the colour,” says Mr Maguire.

He says the owners “can’t do any more, they’ve done it all, with huge attention to detail and finish. The entry hall, double height, set the tone inside and the gardens are another strong suit, and have a shed, a detached garage, and a glasshouse for the next owners to garden in.”

Built in timber frame by local man Frank O’Donovan, The Farmhouse has a sitting room with oak floor and wood-burning stove, opening to a vaulted, high ceilinged sun room and both rooms overlook the pond and decking, there’s a study, a kitchen/dining room, the entry hall is room-sized, with oak floor and curving staircase and high ceiling with top floor window to flood it with light, and there’s one ground floor bedroom, plus laundry, utility and washroom.

Overhead, are three more bedrooms, one with en suite, and the other two have vanity units with sinks.