Love at first sight.
I was sat in the car, checking my emails on a shoot at Winterton beach, when the property particulars came through on my phone.
Love at first sight
My client and friend had gone to speak to a car parking attendant, so I hurriedly forwarded the email and phoned Bobby. He answered and I said “have you seen your emails?” Followed by “check your emails, check your emails.” He replied “okay, okay, hang on”.
I declared, “we’ve found the one!”
This was April 24th, the day before my birthday. To celebrate, we’d planned to take the day off work and mooch around Norwich, before collecting Stanley from school. All that was shelved – we had to book the appointment with the agent ASAP.
The cabin was one we’d admired for many years and our search for a second property was now in it’s fifth year. We had just three locations we were interested in and had a modest budget with a long list of requirements.
The cabin ticked them all, and then some!
The day of my birthday Bobby and I went to the viewing. We did everything one shouldn’t do when they’re trying to buy somewhere – we couldn’t have been more obvious that we loved it!
As I was taking a final look around the garden, I heard Bobby make an offer. In our relationship, we’re fortunate that we can usually support each other in the areas, where we fall short. Negotiating is something I’m notoriously bad at – so I was relieved to leave Bobby to it.
Our first offer was rejected but within 48 hours we’d agreed terms and then exactly 6 weeks later we got the keys!
On Friday 6th June, with the permission of the school, we took Stanley with us to collect the keys. That entire weekend, the three of us started work on the cabin – stripping carpets and tidying up the garden.
Stanley has always loved helping and having ‘jobs’ (on the basis he enjoys the jobs of course!)
As well as having river views to one aspect, nestled behind the hedges, we have an uninterrupted view of the countryside and a herd of grazing cows. It feels like you’re staring at a moving Turner or Constable.
We’ve already met with a local carpenter and talked through the work that requires a skilled craftsman (a new roof and opening up part of the attic). Everything else we plan on doing ourselves. Yesterday we submitted planning to the local authority for some minor alterations and, today, we’ve had some really encouraging and positive feedback. The next step is to more formally submit our application.
This weekend, with it being Father’s Day, we’ve decided to work on the garden, so we can enjoy a barbecue with the family on the Sunday. Weather permitting.
Lots of friends have suggested we take plenty of photos, so I’ve setup a dedicated Nor–Folk Stays Instagram.
I’ve planned the majority of the cabin in my head – you can see the aesthetic on my Pinterest feed below.
The cabin is going to be our opportunity to escape the city at weekends and we will also list it with Airbnb for others to enjoy holidays and long weekends. Our proposed launch date is late October or early November this year.