Historic seats are rural treats

CLOODRUMMAN BEG cottage is a detached rural retreat that celebrates all that is traditional in Irish architecture. The two-bedroom straw-thatched house is set on the edge of a Coillte wood and has been painstakingly restored by owner Yvonne McGarry, who bought it in 2001.

The property is situated deep in south Co Leitrim – John McGahern country. Sitting on one acre of land, the renovated house has been extended and now measures 78 sq m (850 sq ft) in size. It has an asking price of €150,000 through agent Gabriel Owen Auctioneers in Ballinamore, Co Leitrim.

The house had been empty for 20 years when Yvonne bought it. She “wanted the building to survive”, so she took stone masonry classes with Patrick McAfee, considered the country’s best authority on dry stone walls, to learn about historic restoration methods. She then enlisted the services of “Mudwall Mick” who advised her on traditional building modes, which she had her builder execute.

The walls are covered in an old-fashioned hemp and mud render. These have been limed. The front door, a half door, opens into the living room. Yvonne retained the flagstone hearth and cob floor, which is covered with slate tiles. The dark beams in the pitched roof are all original. The new sash windows have old-style shutters and the property has a welcoming open fire and oil-fired central heating.

She added a new eco extension to the rear where the bathroom and large eat-in kitchen-cum-familyroom are located. The roof tiles are made from recycled car tyres.

The two bedrooms in the old part of the house have open fireplaces. On the land is a stone outhouse and a large corrugated iron hayshed, both of which have potential.

Five hundred meters from the house is Drumlaheen Lake, a coarse fishing lake. The house is 2km from Fenagh, 6km from Keshkerrigan and 20km from Carrick-on-Shannon.

The cottage is about 200 years old and has an asking price of €150,000 through agents Sherry Fitzgerald O’Leary in Enniscorthy.

The property was bought by its current owner in 2000 and has been completely refurbished and extended. Equidistant from the villages of Oulart and The Ballagh, it now measures 83 sq m (900 sq ft) in size. The extension is clad in sandstone.

The owner has maintained the cottage look to the front but opened up the back of the house to let in more light. As a result, the kitchen-cum-diningroom now has light on three sides, with French doors leading out into the garden. The hand-painted kitchen features a wood-burning stove, a Smeg oven and hob and a Belfast-style sink. Slate tiles cover the floor.

In the sitting room are white painted floorboards, a large granite fireplace and a large window to the rear, so allowing light in from both sides of the house. The family bathroom on the ground floor has a large glazed walk-in shower. There is no bath. Internal latch doors maintain the cottage feel.

The two dormer-style bedrooms sit under the eaves. Each has its own separate staircase, one leading from the kitchen, the other from the sitting room.

The house is set on 0.44 of an acre and has several mature deciduous trees to the rear. Included in the price is two stone outhouses with potential to convert into more bedrooms or an artists’ studio.