Chidham Lane, Chidham, Chichester, West Sussex, PO18

Thistledown House was designed and built by the present owners, completed some seven years ago, creating a unique home which with a skillful use of contemporary colour schemes, vaulted ceilings and large windows has a great emphasis on creating space and natural light throughout its interior. The visitor cannot help but be impressed by the reception hall which is over 27 ft in length and has a bespoke carved oak staircase, lit by a skylight, rising to the galleried landing above. Double doors open south onto a vaulted sitting room with exposed oak beams and handsome inglenook style brick fireplace with a solid oak cross beam mantel and wood burning stove. Double doors open west onto a black limestone terrace and lawned gardens beyond. A west and south facing kitchen/dining/family room provides a relaxed space for everyday family living with two sets of south facing bi-folding doors opening onto the adjacent terrace. An oak kitchen fitted and designed by Neptune has an excellent range of matching cupboards and drawers with polished stone worksurfaces and returns. The central island unit has a polished stone breakfast bar and there is a comprehensive range of integrated appliances include induction hob with extractor, two fan assisted ovens with warming drawer beneath, fully integrated dishwasher, fridge and freezer. A ground floor bedroom suite looks east and has its own shower room en-suite with open sided shower enclosure. There is also a ground floor cloakroom and separate utility room which, with water softening system, keeps the white goods away from the main living area and has further access onto the garden.

The house is fitted with smart lighting in most rooms and this, together with CCTV monitor and hard drive recorder, ethernet and TV network distribution panels, wifi hub, intruder alarm panel and underfloor heating manifolds, are all conveniently housed in a large walk-in cupboard accessed from the reception hall.

The outer driveway provides vehicle access from Chidham Lane onto a light grey stone chipped approach leading to remote controlled iroko wooden gates set on brick pillars opening onto an enclosed and secure courtyard and the house itself. This provides parking for a number of vehicles together with a sheltered sitting area for the cottage. A secondary access with double five-bar gates provides an alternative access to the garden and a grass area that incorporates additional well-drained casual parking for larger scale entertaining. A south and west facing semi-circular limestone terrace is approached by way of doors from the vaulted sitting room, dining room and kitchen/family room. This is enclosed by a low ornamental wall. Beyond the gardens are laid to a wide expanse of easily maintained grass and borders are stocked with a colourful variety of spring bulbs, lavender, rosemary, evergreen shrubs and perennials. To the west a number of specimen trees have been planted including silver birch, flowering cherry, apple and plum. Coming to just over an acre the gardens and grassland provide an ideal setting for the house with far reaching views over the surrounding farmland. Please note the plot is divided into residential (property and garden) and agricultural areas as shown on the plan layout below).

On the first floor there are four bedrooms including three suites and a fourth bedroom served by an adjacent family bathroom. The principal suite is particularly well appointed with walk-in wardrobe and looks east towards Bosham church. A stylish, spacious bathroom includes twin wash hand basins, free standing bath and open sided shower enclosure.

This pretty, little-known hamlet of Chidham, lies in the centre of its own peninsula jutting out into Chichester Harbour with Bosham Channel to the east and Thorney Channel to the west. The surroundings are entirely rural and set amidst open fields with views to the harbour and the South Downs in the distance. The little hamlet has its own parish church, public house and for sailing enthusiasts there are various hards around the peninsula itself and a Sailing Club at Cobnor Point. Despite the idyllic surroundings Chidham is nevertheless within convenient travelling distance of both Chichester and Emsworth which offer a wide range of shopping facilities and railway links with connections by way of Chichester to London Victoria and via Havant to London Waterloo. Access to the A27 via Emsworth also provides easy access by car by way of the A3.