Inside the stunning Scottish Arts and Crafts house on sale for £675,000

This property is in a quiet town near Glasgow

If you want a home that feels like a sanctuary, then Ardlinnhe might be the place for you.

This desirable Arts and Crafts property has a grounding feel, thanks to the neutral palette and the softly diffused light throughout the sensitively preserved four-bedroom house, which is on sale for offers over £675,000.

It’s situated in Bearsden in Dunbartonshire, and is currently the only Scottish property on the books of estate agency, Inigo, who specialise in upmarket period properties.

The vendors are relocating to London and are sad to say goodbye to the house, which has only been owned by two families since it was built.

“It’s a very special place and I love it,” says one of the current residents, who is a journalist and interior designer.

Originally, it was a home for one of the two unmarried artist daughters in the famous Scottish Sandeman family - who also built the five-star hotel Fonab Castle in Perth as a residence, back in 1892 - and a second house was built near Ardlinnhe for her sister.

“They’re a port wine family, with roots in Bearsden and Oporto. They owned the old 17th century farmhouse opposite and their farmland ran down to St Germain’s Loch,” says one of the property’s current owners. “In the early 20th century on the cusp of WW1 they built Arts and Crafts houses for their daughters in the farmland - each with a huge garden. The house name, Ardlinnhe, means ‘high above the water’”.

Miss Sandeman was over 100 years old when she died and, although much of the original structure is perfectly preserved, she made some changes to the property in her lifetime.

“In the Thirties, she converted the attic, opening up two extra bedrooms, and she extended to the rear to create a lovely double aspect dining room,” the vendor says. “When war began she built a bomb shelter underground in the garden. It’s still there, complete with Forties lighting.”

The owner has also lovingly upgraded the property over the last few decades of his tenure. These tweaks include the addition of a large CP Hart bathroom, with roll-top bath and walk-in shower, which is used as an en-suite for the main bedroom on the ground floor.

“I have a soft spot for that bathroom. I love lying in the double ended bath with a glass of wine and the fire roaring,” says the owner, whose other favourite domestic spaces include the Thirties bedrooms, as they’re up in the eaves and full of ‘atmosphere’.

The owner has also added a Shaker-style kitchen, with butler’s sink, cabinets painted in Farrow & Ball’s Card Room Green shade, orange linen blinds and Fired Earth’s Portuguese patterned floor tiles, as a smart nod to the Sandeman heritage. “Although the house looks traditional, it’s got very modern amenities,” he says.

All of the original oak floorboards, wooden sash windows, original chimneys and fireplaces, which were blocked up in the Fifties, have been restored, and they’ve re-slated the roof of the original Twenties garage. It probably had a Ford Model T inside, once upon a time.

All the property’s walls , apart from the brighter kitchen, have been painted in Farrow & Ball’s neutral putty and misty green shades.

In fact, their home is such a perfect canvas for the luxury paint company’s hues that they were once featured in some of their marketing literature.

All of these features are accentuated by the owner’s glorious collection of furniture, paintings, restored stained glass and curios. There are plenty of Arts and Crafts era pieces, but also some mid-century and older pieces. It’s not a museum, but has a homely feel.

“I’ve been addicted to jumble sales and junk shops since I was a wee boy,” the seller says. “That’s where I’ve got some of the pieces. But I’m also pals with the wonderful Anita Manning of the Great Western Auctions in Whiteinch. I’ve been going there for years, picking up bargains along the way. When I was a boy, my granny would give me a wee bawbee, as she called it, and I’d buy prints and other items. Everything you see in the house has been bought at auction, they’re not family heirlooms”.

He’s open to including any of these items, should a buyer be interested.

Indeed, it’d be tempting to scrap all your own stuff, and buy the house fully furnished.

Another relatively new addition to the building is the wooden terrace, which extends from the dining room and overlooks the Edwardian garden and woodland area, with its weeping willows, acers and towering firs. Apparently, it’s so quiet out here that the only sound they ever hear is the occasional screech of an ‘amorous fox’.

It’s as well tended and loved as the house, without a single dandelion on the sweeping lawn.

“It was planted incredibly carefully by the Sandemans and Miss Sandeman had a full time gardener. Each season different colours burst into bloom,” says the owner. “We’ve maintained the garden and the London-based Spanish landscape architect Luis Buitrago carried out an extensive restoration 20 years ago which involved planting scores of native Scottish trees.”

Those who buy the house will be a 20-minute train ride from Glasgow’s city centre, and 80 minutes away from Edinburgh. Although the city lights are on the doorstep, the house has the feel of a countryside retreat.

“It’s not a wild party area, at least as far as I know,” the owner says. “My mother-in-law told my other half when she first visited it was how she imagined paradise. It’s a peaceful area. There are great transport links and we have terrific shops and restaurants. The schools are outstanding.”

Apart from the occasional loved-up fox, it seems there’s no downside to this gorgeous property.

For more information, see www.inigo.com

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