A 400 year old character cottage in the centre of Godshill old village, Isle of Wight. Photographed on 02/07/22, so an accurate depiction of the cottage on this date.
It is mainly advertised on another site with 4* and 5* reviews, and a rare opportunity to stay in one of the oldest cottages in the village.
Having bought the cottage in 1996 in a poor state of repair, it has undergone major renovation. In the course of this, original fireplaces were unearthed and the beams revealed to their former glory.
In the Georgian period the cottage was owned by a gentleman who made alterations which included - replacing the frontage of the building with faced stone, raising the upstairs ceiling height and changing the thatch roof to tiles. He would have lived in one side with a grand fireplace, as his servant lived in the other.
During the period of the window tax, windows were filled in on both sides of the property, and the hidden window facing the neighbouring building shows that Christmas Cottage pre-dates it.
In approx 1906, Topsy was born in Christmas Cottage - formerly known as Syringa. She lived here her whole life and used to love people watching from her bedroom window.
Topsy and her husband had the first post office in the village and would sell stamps from the window of what is now the utility room. Mail would be delivered through a chute, into the cellar space underneath the dining room.
Later, Topsy had one of the first tearooms in the village, which is why the frontage of the cottage shows 2 doorways. Customers would have tea in what is now the dining room, and there were peek holes through the walls so Topsy and her staff could easily see when a customer needed assistance.
It's fascinating to me that Topsy and her husband did their own renovations. Following the fashion of the time and ripping out old ranges and covering the inglenook fireplaces in the lounge and dining room and covering the lathe and plaster and beams in yet more plaster.
When I bought the property, behind the 20+ layers of wallpaper, were disintegrating 17 century bricks. In fact, the paper was all that was holding them up.... And her toilet was only supported by a piece of 2" x 1" timber!
All the beams bar 1 were replaced upstairs and the ceiling height was raised again by over a foot.
In the roof there are 1000 yr old ships timbers that were salvaged from the Islands shorelines.
Downstairs, the 1960's fireplaces were removed, and earth floors with rotten boards were concreted and replaced, and half the central beam running through the middle of the property was replaced, walls were pointed and the place made open plan (because the walls fell down).
At one point the gable end of the house nearly collapsed because of the weakness of the stonework and a collapsed fireplace. But before the fireplace could be repaired, I spent a day removing bird sticks that were packed up to the top of the chimney stack.
The rear bedroom was derelict, with no roof, earth floor, and filled with cobblers lasts because Topsy's husband mended shoes. One of these is now in the fireplace at Christmas Cottage.
Another thing in the fireplace is an old kettle...
At some point in Topsy's ownership the rear end of her garden was sold off and the soil from that piece was dug down and put in the remaining Christmas Cottage garden. Years later, when I got the digger man in to remove the overgrown area and rubbish dump from the back garden, not only did we find the broken china from Topsy's tea room (which are now in a mosaic in the conservatory), but the top of a well was uncovered, and deep in the well was the copper kettle!
Please see the photos of Christmas Cottage in 1996 and the renovation journey. We are only custodians of these character properties, as anyone who has ever lived in an old place will know.
And please DON'T book if what you're really after is a modern hotel.
Stunning scenery, down-land views, woodland walks, and Godshill Central Mead a minute away, so perfect for dogs.
In the heart of the village near Chocolate Island and popular restaurants, shops, pubs, and The Model Village.
Upstairs-
2 double rooms.
1 double and single + ensuite. Bathroom
Fold away Childs bed and cot.
Downstairs-
King sized bed with en suite.
Lounge with 32" T.V.
Kitchen with new dishwasher, new fridge and range cooker.
Dining area.
Utility room with washing machine.
Conservatory.
Courtyard garden.
Parking for 2 cars to rear.
Art workshops with Nicola are always available.
