A steading conversion near the Stirlingshire village of Deanston features in episode four of Scotland’s Home of the Year.
The Dairy has been home to Mhairi and Andrew Wilson and their family since 2023. Located close to the village of Deanston, near Doune, it enjoys a superb outlook over the Trossachs.
It forms part of a steading conversion carried out in 2022 by developers Mallet Construction. The original stone steading walls were retained and a new build added to create a striking home that’s a fine blend of traditional and modern. The roof is a mix of zinc and slate, with Scots larch, stone and render walls.
The ground floor has three bedrooms, one with en suite; a living room; and a dining kitchen. On the upper level there is another en suite bedroom and a mezzanine balcony that enjoys outstanding views.
Mhairi, 51, and Andrew, 54, first met in the January before Covid struck. “Our relationship had just started and we were thrust into lockdown together,” Mhairi explains.
“I was living in Dunblane with my son from a previous relationship and he was in Edinburgh with three children from his prior relationship. We formed a ‘bubble family’ so we spent a lot of time together.
“We got engaged and then married in Florence. When we got back we started house hunting. We loved this area and when this place came up for sale we pounced on it.”
Social spaces
One of the things Mhairi likes best about the Dairy is the number of social spaces it has. “There’s the mezzanine balcony, which is perfect for reading a book or being on your phone.
There’s the living room sofas by the wood burner, and there are two armchairs that face the bifold doors, so you can open them up to the garden. And there’s a breakfast bar in the kitchen.
“We are a blended, modern family and we didn’t want to force my children and Andrew’s together. We have kids staying or visiting all the time – they’ll be coming back from uni or school, or from staying with other parents – and they can all have their own space if they want it.
“The house is a fantastic sanctuary for them to escape to and recharge. We love having them to visit. And just as much we love to help them pack up and get the house to ourselves again.”
When Mhairi and Andrew bought the Dairy it was a blank canvas. “The walls were painted neutral colours and there were floor coverings and that was it,” Mhairi continues. “We wanted to live in the house for a while and get a feel for it before we decided what to do with it.”
Decorating the Dairy
Mhairi took painstaking care over every decision. “Some of the furniture was ordered at 3am,” she laughs. “The chairs on the balcony were the result of an all-nighter. The balcony is narrow so they had to be a certain width but still look right and be very comfortable. I eventually found the right ones on John Lewis’s website.
“What I wanted most of all was to take inspiration from the outside. We would sit up on the balcony, look at the colours changing, and we started to build the house around that. We brought all the colours of nature into the house.
There are lots of homely touches such as the hand painted animals on a bathroom wall. Meanwhile, the kitchen has a narrow but wide panoramic window that lets anyone washing the dishes enjoy sweeping countryside views.
Mhairi runs a PR agency, Shine Creative, which works in the tourism and hospitality sector. She is also a freelance journalist, writing travel features for the Scotsman and the Herald and an interior design column for Scottish Field.
Forever home
Although she and Andrew will be empty nesters in a few years, Mhairi says they have no plans to downsize. This is our home,” she says. “We love it here and this is where we intend to stay. It’s great having the space to have the kids back and host family gatherings.”
In Scotland’s Home of the Year Mhairi places the heart – depicting her faourite spot – on a balcony armchair. “This is where we spend our evenings watching the sun go down over the Trossachs. It’s really special.”
The show’s judges were impressed by the layout of the property. Although it has huge windows to capture the views, it also has cosy spaces, such as the lounge, where the furniture is tucked in under the balcony close to the wood burner to create a sense of intimacy.
SHOTY judges
Anna Campbell-Jones says of the Dairy: “I’m really impressed with the number of zones they’ve managed to create in this space. The comfy seating area at the back. The dining area. This conversational seating area in the double height space. Another conversational area on the mezzanine. And space for circulation.”
Mhairi says she was delighted to have her home featured on the show.
“I’m obsessed with Scotland’s Home of the Year. It’s such a positive and wholesome show. We’re going to try to get all the kids home from various universities and schools so we can have a family watch party.
“I applied to go on SHOTY the year we bought the house but we hadn’t furnished it yet and it was still quite bare. Now was a much better time, with us having it the way we want it.
“Although we’re never finished. Our current project is a garden room with a loo and an office. It will be ideal to work from and it’ll have a sofabed so it will give us extra accommodation.”
The Dairy in Deanston features in Episode Four of Scotland’s Home of the Year which is on BBC One Scotland on Monday May 12 at 8.30pm
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