Detached house for sale in Ilminster TA19, 3 Bedroom

Completely charming, this Grade II listed character cottage with attractive generous gardens enjoys a peaceful setting in a small but thriving rural community.

The Property
The property has been well looked after by the current owners and has undergone a series of improvements over past ownerships too, but still leaves a little scope should you wish to adapt the cottage to your own needs. Perhaps one of the nicest things about this cottage though is its typical lack of right-angles and straight lines! Every room has something endearing whether it's a quirky niche to display something pretty, a wonderfully deep window sill or the substantial Elizabethan smoke hood rising majestically through a bedroom. If you like character and personality in a house then you won't be disappointed.

As you enter the front door you stand in the centuries old cross passage hall with its blue lias flagstone floors and wattle and daubed timber partitions. To your left a very pleasant living room has been extended in the past to create a characterful room with beams, window seat and fitted oak shelving for your book collection. A cosy corner enjoys more built-in shelving which not only gives you space for your television but also makes a nice extra spot to sit. A stone fireplace houses a pretty cast iron woodburning stove. Across the hall the dining room boasts another wood-burner, this time a larger Villager model set within a larger inglenook fireplace with bread oven to one side. Beyond this a cottagey kitchen enjoys a dual aspect and has limed oak style units with the benefit of an lpg gas hob and wok burner, electric oven and space for dishwasher. Currently incorporated within the units are spaces for the smaller style upright fridge / freezer and under-surface freezer which the vendors are happy to include.

Off the kitchen is a wonderfully versatile Garden Room. So much more than a conservatory, it is an additional living room which includes a dining area and small built-in corner office space. There is room to relax on the sofa and enjoy views of the garden. It has double doors which spill out onto the large patio area or easy al fresco entertaining. Retracing your steps back to the entrance there's a very useful rear hall with practical tiled floor giving you lots of room for muddy wellies and coats, a handy downstairs cloakroom and a further utility space with plumbing for washing machine and tumble dryer space over as well as extra storage space.

Upstairs the landing window gives you a large horizontal glimpse across the garden and countryside beyond, and a little journey past a beam or two takes you to three delightful bedrooms. The master bedroom is a very nice size with dual aspect to the front and rear. A timber door leads through into a walk-in dressing room with laundry / airing cupboard to one end and lots of hanging space. There's potential here to create an en-suite shower-room subject to any necessary consents and alterations.

The guest bedroom at the other side of the property is a lovely double with a little low-level window giving you a peek to the lane at the front and another letting in the morning sun from the east. The third bedroom is a good size single room or could easily take a pull-out bed for when those extra guests come to stay, the impressive smoke hood from the inglenook below allowing you a little extra floor space to one side. The family bathroom has a lovely large windowsill to display your pretty things whilst enjoying the view across the rear garden. There's a wash hand basin edged with gingham curtain and WC of course, whilst the bath has an electric shower over. There is also scope to connect a mains shower off the pressurised system.

Outside
The generous gardens are sure to attract green-fingered buyers, but likewise those who wish to potter and mow will not find the current layout too onerous. For entertaining, there's a substantial patio at the rear of the cottage which makes the most of the afternoon and evening sunshine. The original well is still in situ (though covered) and has kept its water even in the dry summer. The gardens stretch out to the west behind the garage by way of another pleasant patio / seating area well placed for your morning coffee, and more parking. Through gates there is more driveway parking at the front and access to the garage – not quite a double but much roomier than your average single, with power and light connected and up and over door. Across the front of the cottage is a wide well-stocked cottage garden border with plenty of sun-loving plants. The wide sweeping lawns meander under a mature copper beech and tall silver birch tree and back onto open fields at the rear. There is a nice view to the west, as well as a large office/workshop with power and light connected (and security light), adjacent log / fuel store, and the PVCu Oil Tank. To the east side of the garden is a designated kitchen garden area with large green anodised aluminium greenhouse, raised beds and large border area, fruit including raspberries, blackcurrants, redcurrants rhubarb and gooseberries. A gate opens back into the main garden passing an ornamental pond, rose beds and a westerly facing perennial border. As you walk back down to the cottage and patio, you pass a herb garden ideal for nipping out and snipping a few whilst you cook.

Stocklinch is a small but surprisingly active and accessible rural community. We are told there is a great sense of community for such a small village with the village hall very much a hub for local events throughout the year. There's a great mix of people in the village spanning all age groups. Despite not having a village pub per se, Stocklinch Ales, the local micro-brewery was set up in 2012 and has a bar in the barn with full premise licence, open on Friday evenings and Sunday lunchtimes.

The nearby village of Barrington, famed for its superb National Trust property Barrington Court, has a village pub and pre-school as well as other local groups. Just 3 miles to the south-west Ilminster is a highly sought after small market town with an excellent range of facilities.