The Glasshouse has a village setting but a countryside feel. Accessed by a 33 metre private driveway, it sits well away from the road.
It also has fields on two sides, giving pretty views and lots of privacy.
The house in the lovely Fife village of Kilconquhar, in the East Neuk of Fife. Kilconquhar Loch is a short walk from the house, as is the excellent local pub, and the beaches of Elie and Earlsferry are just a couple of minutes’ drive away.
The Glasshouse was built around 2008 on land that was originally part of a huge garden owned by the house next door. It’s understood that the owner wanted to convert her barn into extra accommodation and sold the plot to raise money for the works.
For the last 11 years the house has been home to Catherine and Alan Thomson. The former GP and retired engineer are the second owners after the couple that built the house, having moved there in January 2013.
“We lived and worked in Falkirk during our working lives but we had a wee holiday home in Kilrenny,” Catherine explains. “We both spent a lot of time in St Andrews and the East Neuk when we were young and we like it here.
“When we retired we sold our house in Falkirk and lived in our holiday home for six months. It was a bit too small for us though and when this place came up for sale we bought it.”
Peaceful setting
The Glasshouse is located on a quiet narrow lane set back from the main road through Kilconquhar. A long private driveway from the lane has electronic gates and leads to a monobloc parking area with a garage.
The front door leads into a vestibule and then a spacious, light-filled hallway. The main living area is a semi-open plan living room, dining room and kitchen.
This has a fantastic double-height ceiling with a large glazed section of roof that throws in lots of natural light and makes the already generous space feel even more voluminous. Large exposed beams add extra grandeur.
Bi-fold doors open onto the garden decking and another set of glazed French doors also leads out to the garden.
There is a dining area and a high end kitchen with a huge central island. One of the nice things about buying a bespoke new-build home is that not much needed done to it.
“In the 11 years we’ve lived here the only thing we’ve done is give the rooms a coat of paint,” Alan says. “Everything was done really nicely when we moved in.”
On the other side of the hallway are three double bedrooms, a shower room, and a utility room. One of the bedrooms has an en suite shower room and is ideal for guests. The garage has power and light and an electronic door.
Mezzanine floor
A bespoke spiral oak staircase leads to the upper floor. A huge circular skylight above is a beautiful feature and cleverly mirrors the shape of the spiral stair.
The mezzanine level is used as a second living room. It has two east-facing Velux windows and a gallery that looks down onto the living room below.
From this level you can also look straight out through the glazed roof and enjoy views over gardens and countryside.
“We really love this room,” Catherine says. “It’s a nice place to sit and read. We like to entertain and usually after dinner we’ll all move up here. It’s a really good party house.”
The gigantic master bedroom is also on the upper floor. It has a large dormer window looking to the front of the house as well as a spacious dressing room and an en suite bathroom with a corner bath and a walk-in shower.
The Glasshouse has gas central heating, with underfloor heating running throughout the ground floor and radiators on the upper level.
Gardens and decking
The gardens are to the front and the side of the house. There is a vegetable patch – the couple recently harvested the last of its parsnips – and an expanse of lawn.
Three water butts capture rainwater from the gutters which is used to irrigate the garden in the spring and summer months.
Decking runs across the entire front elevation of the house and faces south to enjoy the best of the sunshine.
“The garden is very sheltered so you can be out here even when it’s windy,” Alan says. “It gets the sun all day long.”
A spherical ‘party pod’ sits on the decking and provides a nice way to enjoy the outdoors even when the weather isn’t great.
“We had that installed because a lot of the time it isn’t warm enough to be outside,” Alan says. “You can have lunch or a drink inside the pod on cooler days and it lets you get natural light while also staying warm.”
Fields run up to the fence line on two sides of the garden, giving plenty of privacy.
Downsizing
After 11 years at the Glasshouse Catherine, 70, and Alan, 73, have decided it’s time to move on. “We’ve really enjoyed our time here but our family is in Falkirk and we’d like to be a bit closer so we can see our grandkids more easily,” Catherine says.
“At the moment we’re looking at Aberdour, which is a lovely village and easy to get to Falkirk from.
“We’re also planning to downsize a little bit. We’re both still very fit but when I was a GP I always used to tell my patients to make their last house move while they’re still able to. I suppose I had better take my own advice.”
The Glasshouse, Kilconquhar, Fife is on sale with Rettie for offers over £675,000.
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