53 Durweston

Rural chic at its best! A thatched 18th-century cottage bursting with character and clutter-free style. Dreamy window seats, an inglenook fireplace, oak floorboards and latch doors, exposed beams, cob walls, wood-burners, a rustic antique dining table, a vintage leather armchair… fresh flowers, soft furnishings, candles and contemporary artwork complete the picture. Picasso print line drawings dot the kitchen – a long, narrow Victorian addition with stone flooring, a painted dresser and all you’ll need. Up the cottagey stairs to the oh-so-pretty bedrooms, light and luxuriously carpeted with views of church, water meadows and woods beyond. Both have king-size, French style, cream iron beds, crisp white cotton and chests of drawers; the larger gets a buttonback chair, the smaller, a cast-iron fireplace, and the spacious bathroom between them has sumptuous towels and toiletries. All this, and a herb and flower-planted garden, in the quietest part of a most attractive village in Dorset. Fantastic for cycling and chalk ridge walks, and a ten-minute drive from Georgian Blandford. It’ll be hard to leave.