Location

It's so inspirational to live here in the heart of Mid-Wales, in rural old Radnorshire (now part of the county of Powys). We're deep in the midst of lovely rolling countryside, yet only thirty minutes away by car from the county town, Llandrindod Wells, and an hour away from the coast. From our central location, the rugged beauty of North Wales is readily accessible, with the vibrant capital, Cardiff, and the varied delights of the rest of the south also within easy reach.

Our cottage, Dyffryn Cwm, is stone built and has a slate roof and lots of internal oak beams. It used to be part of a smallholding, but that was many years ago. When we purchased the property, most of the land was gone and the cottage, though still sound, in bad need of restoration. We brought it up to modern standards but retained most of the old world features, including an inglenook fireplace in the main room and craggy stone walls.

Upstairs, the traditonal Radnorshire plank ceilings are still in place and again, we left the characterful stone walls. There was no water available to the property (other than from a muddy well in a nearby field!) but we had a bore hole sunk and now are self-sufficient in that regard.

Dyffryn Cwm in situated in the middle of Llanbister Common, an area of open hill where sheep graze and very little road traffic is to be seen. We have a lovely quiet spot here, conducive to all sorts of creativity. In our leisure hours, Roger and I like to walk the surronding hills, or maybe go out on our mountain bikes for a challenging ride over the rough terrain of the common. Other times, we like to do our shopping in some of the local towns, and afterwards potter around antique shops. Sometimes we'll go on longer trips to the coast or to towns further afield and explore the ever-fascinating land of our fathers, Wales!