Stroll down this tiny village road in the Vale of Glamorgan and it's unlikely you will be able to stop yourself from lingering outside the prettiest of properties along the street scene.
Keepers Cottage in Llanblethian is a picture perfect property.
From its primrose painted ground floor facade to its stone upper floor with brick framed feature windows, everything about the home is .
The little iron gate nestled into the stone front wall opens onto a path that takes you on a short but very colourful journey through the garden, bursting with flowers and shrubs.
It's a cottage garden, of course, so it has a couple of fancy, vintage metal benches for sitting and admiring the view in this south facing spot.
There's flowers in borders, pots and hanging baskets that bring the open space alive as well as ensuring the most colourful of welcomes for any visitor.
And the minute you open the white-washed front door, you soon realised that this is a home as pretty on the inside as it is on the outside.
The current owner has completely refurbished the cottage and created a successful balance of the property's eye-catching original features with a tasteful and elegant interior design that is both appropriate and yet modern.
Straight into the lounge and it's a relief to see that the expected character fireplace is still intact and working as a charming home for a log burner.
The exposed stone wall, wooden shelving and striking cobalt blue hearth tiles all combine brilliantly. And they ensure this feature is the star of this room. But it's not the only gorgeously stylish thing about this abode.
The ceiling beams appear to be original and have been painted white - which makes this cosy cottage look deceptively big on the inside.
The room is also enhanced by classic country cottage style patterns, textures and pastel colours.
The window shutters and chandeliers are classic interior features currently popular with homeowners as a subtle nod to the past.
And the choice of slate tiles for the floor is not only practical but a connection to what would have been the original flooring, with the dark tones broken up and given warmth by a tactile cream rug.
Then there's the two sash-style windows - which are the icing on the cake.
From the lounge and into an internal hall that provides access not only to the kitchen at the rear but the only bathroom in the cottage too.
Again, the design of this room is stylish and tasteful - and quite surprising as the owner has found room for a classic roll-top bath.
The hand-painted, Spanish floor tiles and pale grey and white colour palette in the bathroom bring a contemporary element to the space as well as successfully creating the most light possible within a room with no external windows.
It's the attention to detail that, initially, a visitor might miss that arguably elevates this cottage to above comparable properties. A lovely example of this is the choice of period, traditional cottage handle on the bathroom door.
Then through to the kitchen and some potential buyers might be surprised that the choice of design of units is not a Shaker-style but rather a high gloss finish with over-sized metal handles.
This touch of contemporary ensures that the light from the side door to the garden is bounced around the space via the high shine units.
The choice of a pale cappuccino shade, combined with the white walls and pale flooring all continue the colour scheme established in the other ground floor rooms and ensures a visual connection between all spaces.
The subtle mosaic tile border in the kitchen cleverly ties all elements of the colour palette in this room together.
Upstairs the main bedroom runs across the width of the property and has engaging village and out of both windows.
The view inside is rather engaging too.
The pale cream walls provide a subtle canvas for the in-built wardrobe country style door and fireplace, which have both been painted a soft grey.
Medium tones of grey are also picked up on the bed frame, feature wall and chest of drawers, with a darker grey introduced via a bed throw, ottoman and even on the feature ceiling beam strutts.
This use of multiple tones of a colour creates a layering effect that provides visual depth that ensures this cosy space is a co-ordinated, calm and yet light and uplifting place to relax.
At the back of the property can be found the second bedroom, which has partial views towards the cottage's most intriguing neighbour- St Quentin's Castle.
According to the website visitthevale.com, the castle is a Grade II listed scheduled monument thought to have been built in 1102 with later additions dating back to the 1300s.
It is believed that the castle was a defensive structure and was also used as a prison during part of its long life before being left to decay during the 18th century.
Now in a ruinous state, the remaining structure includes a substantial twin-towered gatehouse.
The side and rear garden of the cottage may not be as unique as its neighbour, but it is still bursting with character.
The pathway from the pretty front garden meanders past the kitchen door to a rear area that has enough space for a shed and a cute al fresco dining area on an elevated patio.
The estate agent selling the property suggests that there is planning in place to extend Keepers Cottage, which is currently on the market for £289,000.
The village of Llanblethian is a small community just south of Cowbridge and as well as its own castle can boast history dating back to the Norman times, a 12th century church and a pub.
For further information about arguably one of the prettiest Welsh cottages currently on the market, contact Watts & Morgan at their Cowbridge office on 01446 773500.
