Gortnahoe cottage leaves a lovely scent of lavender lingering

Rural but not remote, you’ll be relaxed as soon as you enter, writes Trish Dromey.

Everything about Lavender Cottage is pretty — from its colourful flower-filled gardens to its tastefully renovated interior and picture postcard frontage. It is, almost predictably, owned by a UK couple who bought it ten years ago and invested time and effort into turning a rundown farmhouse into a romantic rustic cottage.

Located 5km from Gortnahoe village and 11km from Thurles, it has everything you might expect from a property of this type, including a front garden planted with lavender, half doors, and windowsills painted lavender blue.

Inside there’s a country-style kitchen with blue walls and white Shaker-style units and an oil range cooker. Partly painted a deep shade of red, the living room has a large fireplace with a solid fuel stove and patio doors. Also on the ground floor there’s a utility room, shower room, and bedroom.

On the upper level the owners have used timber wainscoting and floral wallpaper to very pretty effect. There are two timber-floored bedrooms with sloped ceilings and dormer windows including one with an en suite bathroom with freestanding bath.

Fitted with oil-fired central heating and double-glazed windows, the cottage has an E2 energy rating.

Outside there is an acre of carefully tended gardens where the owners have planted rose bushes, and climbing wisteria along with the lavender. They have a small orchard and a polytunnel for growing strawberries and tomatoes.

Guiding at €137,000, Lavender Cottage is on the market with Dougan Fitzgerald auctioneers. They say it’s affordable and charming, rural but not remote. “It’s in a cul de sac with around 20 other properties, says auctioneer John FitzGerald, who believes it may very well catch the eye of another UK buyer.

VERDICT: Very pretty

Gortnahoe, North Tipperary

€137,000

Size: 83 sq m ( 900 sq ft)

Bedrooms: 3

Bathrooms: 2

BER:E2