Sleeps 11 nicely, perfect for 6-8
Our barn home is an escape, a release, with the constant feeling of space. Hoping you love it too
Main open-plan barn room with double height ceilings brings breadth & light flooding in. The 3/4 acre surround garden has 360' rural views, & many different zones adding to the vibe of expansiveness
Nicely balanced between being just out of the village, whilst not being isolated. The local beach, river estuary, Nature Reserves, are all close by & walkable
The space
Some info on the barn to give you a better idea:
* OUTSIDE - It sits on a large plot of land (3/4 acre), with a wraparound garden containing a few different zone areas for you to hang out in --> front back and side lawns; 2 separate fire pit seated areas ; rear wooden decking terrace with dining table/chairs and benches for afternoon sun; front garden terrace with wooden table/chairs for morning sun overlooking the palm tree/grasses/lavender shingle & stone garden; a few sculptures and art objects scattered around; water well; pro NBA basketball net and 3/4 size football goal; private driveway and parking area; is all fenced in so our dog doesn't go AWOL; the Summer House is there for you to use too, either keep the glass doors closed, or open them to be inside/outside; the views from any part of the garden to the surrounding fields and feeling of space, is just fab!
* INSIDE - dating back to 1830, was fully redeveloped in 2010, is now spanning c.3,000 sq ft in space --> it's all on ground floor level; the main room was originally the thresher barn area, with double height ceilings; it's open plan; great for socialising/hanging out across the 2 living/seating areas, 1 dining zone, a breakfast bar, and all basic mod-cons in the kitchen space; this big open plan room is a great canvas for lots of our art, wall hangings and sculptures, many items shipped over from India and Asia; the views out from the extensive glass windows/doors onto the fields and surrounds, we find are better than watching any TV (apart from watching the footie); spotting a deer & rabbits happens weekly; the bedrooms and bathrooms are located in 2 connected wings, with oak wooden floors throughout, some bedrooms have wooden/glass double doors opening onto their own terrace; all 4 x double bedrooms are large, 2 have additional single beds with room to spare also, some bedrooms have original exposed oak ceiling beams; bathrooms are all in terracotta floor tiles, limestone wall tiling, all showers & taps are new in an antique style; the gamesroom has darts, pool, air hockey, table tennis, board games, with its own drinks fridge, you can also open the glass bifold doors to also make the "inside" gamesroom be "outside too; there's a small washer/dryer room which also houses the newly built "dog bath/shower". Would prefer if you're able to smoke outside and not inside the barn, if that's OK.
A bit on what's around us locally in Wrabness:
* IMMEDIATELY SURROUNDING THE BARN - Our garden is adjacent to the farmers fields, was growing wheat last summer, this is our view from the back & side garden. Across this field, we get a view of the lovely Dimbles Hall house, plus distant view across the valley of the old village church. 75m away is the neighbours farm house, they've recently bought a pig and some black sheep who roam in the field adjacent to our front garden, a lovely additional view for us, and gives our dog Thiago something new to bark at !
* IN THE VILLAGE - 8-10 MINS WALK AWAY - there's Wrabness train station, goes into London Liverpool St Stn; the Wrabness Village Shop, a community shop for some of the basic food stuff; The back of the shop turns into a pub on Thur/Fri/Sat nights; And the tourist attraction of Grayson Perry's 'A House for Essex', see the photos for this
* SOME OUTSIDE STUFF THAT'S 10-15 MINS WALK AWAY - Our fave spot is Wrabness Beach, with it's wooden beach houses, this is actually on the Stour River estuary, can swim here, walk here, moor up a bit here, no cars, no pavement, no boardwalk here, it's quite wild, is a protected Essex coastline spot, and adjacent/part of the Nature Reserve; There are a few Nature Reserves within walking distance, lots of bird watchers & walkers come, it's by the rivers edge, barn owls, geese, turtle doves are all to be seen; Wrabness Woods is close too, our Thiago dog often gets an evening walk here
* AND SOME THINGS A FEW MILES AWAY - main shops including large grocers (Tesco, Morrissons) are in the towns of Manningtree (3.5 miles to the west) or better for this stuff is at Harwich (3.5 miles to the east), these are easy to find on the A120; for a quaint old town with antique, tea shops & decent Gastro Pubs then the towns of Mistley which merges into Manningtree are both nice, it has a nice harbour and pubs overlooking the river estuary; And going the other way to Harwich, it's really pleasant to visit the old Harwich port and pier, Harwich is on the North Sea, see photos of all these places; Merging into Harwich is the town of Dovercourt (also 3.5 miles away), which has an 'award-winning'
Beach with Victorian antique lighthouses to guide the old ships; 10 miles away is one of Eastern Englands finest beaches Frinton-on-Sea; And finally, Flatford Mill with its historic buildings is great, famous for John Constable paintings from the early 19th century
And finally, here's the overview, it's the "summary sell", so sorry about that:
Hope you enjoy the barn as much as we do ! We only came across it and bought it a year ago, and every week we're still amazed by: the inside space, the panoramic views from every window and terrace, the lovely garden, the local area, including the beach, the Nature Reserves and wildlife, the historic woods, and all are within a 10 mins walk, and it's only 1hr 45 mins away from London. Have fun "being in amongst it", and shout if we can point you in any direction, Dan & Sophie
Guest access
The entire house, outside summer house and gardens are open and available only to you guys, our guests.
Other things to note
Hope you enjoy our Domine Farm Barn as much as we do, Dan & Sophie
