Castle living

Hey there! I am looking for a flatmate to join me in a beautiful, rustic flat within a historic tower on the edge of Edinburgh as soon as possible. It is £525 a month plus bills and I believe we are council tax band C. Please contact me only after reading the following and if you truly believe it would suit.

A bit about me-
My name is India and I have lived in the flat for a year now and adore it, it is somewhere I wish to be for a long time and truly feels like home. I am a life model, nanny and trainee herbalist who loves being in nature, sitting by the fire and cooking wholesome, nourishing food. My pasttimes are yoga, walking, foraging, scrabble, medicine making, reading, wild swimming and spending time with dear friends.

I thought that the house was best described in a pro and con list!-

Pros

It’s a really sweet wee room. There is a desk/dressing table and a wardrobe already in there and it has a pinky purple exposed stone wall on one side.

Surrounded by nature! We have ten acres of gardens, woodlands and raised beds to frolic in and watch the seasons change. Plus a river, a family of deer and a friendly badger. Brilliant bird watching location. An ideal home for gardeners, naturalists and foragers. The bedroom that is on offer has the loveliest view of the garden, Bonaly burn, an old dry stone wall and the neighbouring field, it gets lovely morning sun and is quite a bright room considering how thick the walls are!

Just next to the Pentlands! An ideal 2 minutes walk from Bonaly car park which is the start of many a Pentland hill walk. Our nearest reservoir for swimming is 15 mins walk but there is also another one 35 mins up the hill.

Plentiful, secure, off street parking and garage access (not for a car but for bikes and storage- it’s currently housing a defunct mini mushroom farm!).

Our nearest high street is Colinton which is very very sweet. We have a great local pub affectionately called the Colly and an amazing Italian restaurant called Osteria dei Sapori. There is also an independent deli/post office and pharmacy. It’s a lovely place to wander round if you like cute old houses and churches and is also on the water of Leith. All of this is a fifteen minute walk from our door.

This is a truly magical home. It is an opportunity to live in a castle in the woods in the cutest hobbit flat. It absolutely doesn’t feel like a rental place, it feels like a forever home. You’d be hard pressed to find a more unique place to live in Edinburgh! I absolutely adore living here, it is a joy and a privilege to wake up here and I’d love to share it with someone who feels the same way.

We have a wood burning stove which I have been running instead of the central heating in the afternoon/evening as it is also great to cook on! There is no better feeling than coming home from a windy hill walk to fire up the stove for soup.

It is a very quiet and private feeling flat. Although we have upstairs and side neighbours you rarely hear them and are most likely to hear birds and the burn at the back of the house. There is a motorway on the other side of the bridge but you can’t hear it inside the house. We get the occasional nosey person or tourist venturing down the driveway but for the most part you don’t get people peering into the windows!

There are loads of places for outdoor socialising! There is a barbecue on the main lawn which can be borrowed, a glorious sun trap of a patio and a fire pit in the woods that have all been used to host a variety of gatherings. It is a place that friends love to come and visit and I’m never stuck for summer picnic locations! Even though it is quite out of the way it is convenient enough that friends are always happy to make the trip.

The neighbours are really lovely and helpful! They are the types to offer gardening magazines, homemade jam and dinners if you make the effort to get to know them. They’ve mostly been in the castle for a long ol while and love it dearly. We have a local fishmonger/greengrocer/bakery van who comes by on a Monday afternoon which has been the venue for many a community chat about the castle goings on. It would be lovely to live with someone who makes a bit of effort to be a part of this community.

The house is fully stocked with all the kitchen accoutrements your heart desires (although I am missing a pasta maker now). I have created a warm, cozy and eclectic space full of books and knickknacks that I feel make a house a home. Ideally I’d look for a housemate who doesn’t have quite as much stuff as I do as otherwise it might feel slightly cluttered but am of course open to you adding your own touches to make it feel like home!

I do keep the flat pretty clean and tidy and would love someone who was as house proud as I am. I can be a little scatter brained so occasionally leave things lying about but am also a big fan of making things right again so they’re never messy for long. I usually do all my dishes in one fell swoop first thing in the morning with a podcast on which is a ritual I greatly enjoy.

This is a queer friendly space as I am bi and an ally to all.

The letting agent is brilliant! How often do you get to say that?! He’s a lovely guy who gets things done quickly, fairly and amiably. The family who own the flat are also nice but we don’t have contact with them. Our postie, Andy, is also lovely.

Cons

I don’t feel this is a con because I absolutely love the cycle and bus ride but it does take around 30/40 mins to get into town. Our nearest bus routes are the 10 and 16 so have a wee look to see if that would be convenient and sustainable for you. The cycle along the water of Leith and canal is lovely too and my preferred method of getting in and out of Edi. The night busses are few and far between so not suitable for someone who has a lot of late nights in town as you’d end up spending a fortune on cabs!

The room has a single bed that comes with it but my current housemate fitted in their double bed that they are not taking with them so you would have the option of either (although the double bed does need a new mattress).

Our nearest big shop is a massive tescos that’s a fifteen min cycle or a thirty min walk. Otherwise there is a local shop five mins walk away or a co-op about fifteen mins down the road. To me this is the biggest drawback so I get heavy groceries delivered and an organic, local veg box when I’m feeling flush! I’d love to continue to have shared, communal groceries as I think it makes more sense money wise and fridge-space wise.

Warmth (or lack of)- It’s a castle! Thermal underwear and a good set of jumpers required in winter. The biggest problem with this is the bills so I am very committed to keeping them as low as possible and prefer to only have the heating on for a few hours in the morning. But in the summer you would have a beautifully cool place to sleep even if it gets crazy hot outside!

The wifi is not the best but it doesn’t bother me too much!

This is another one that pains me to put in the cons category as I adore the kitchen but it is titchy! It is very much a one person at a time kitchen but I have never felt constricted as to what I could create within it. It has been the most joyful place to make homemade pasta, cakes and whatever delicious veggie recipe has just been in the Guardian. I love cooking for friends and housemates so would like someone who is happy to do communal meals.

My last flatmate found it quite isolating so it is not a good fit for someone who doesn’t love their own company and who would feel that the commute would get in the way of them filling their social cup! I personally feel that it is such a sanctuary and don’t mind the solitude in the slightest but some may need the hustle and bustle and convenience of the city.

This may be a con for some or a pro for others, who knows, but I’ve lived here for a wee while and intend to be here for a lot longer so this is really an established home. I’d love to find someone who was happy to take the place as it is. I am always open to hearing suggestions on how the space could be improved or made more comfortable but I really do love it how it is and so would be hesitant to change very much.

So if you’ve made it this far thank you! I know that was a lot of info but I just wanted to be very clear about what is on offer to ensure that I find someone who will be really happy here. Because it is such a unique and wonderful place I would really love to find the right fit so here are some of my housemate preferences-

- I’d prefer to live with someone who is in a calm and grounded phase of life. This space is a sanctuary and I would love to share it with someone who is already feeling balanced and fairly positive. For me a calm and peaceful home means an environment where chaos is not invited in and that those inhabiting the space uphold healthy boundaries.
- It would be great to live with someone who lives similarly to me- healthily, joyfully and simply.
- A fellow nature lover or gardener would be amazing as I intend to get really stuck in once the spring rolls around and would love the help! Plus free veg!
- Kind, clear and honest communication. Vital in all relationships but particularly when cohabiting! I so appreciate people who are open to resolving things if they arise without reactivity and with understanding.

Anyways, those are my criteria! Please be honest with yourself and with me about whether you think this would be a good fit. And if so I hope to hear from you soon! Apologies if I don’t get back to you quickly, there has already been a lot of interest and I am probably just sifting through, mulling and considering! If you do not send a personalised message that shows you have read the ad I am unlikely to respond. Ta very much!