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| Glenleigh Estate |
| The owners of this magnificent estate have been renovating for fifteen years and counting. |
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This is a story which will cure any cases of the renovating blues. The owners of Glenleigh Estate have been restoring their home for fifteen years and counting. Granted, Glenleigh is not your average home. It is a 19th century Scottish Baronial mansion located at Mulgoa, at the foot of the Blue Mountains and just one-hour from Sydney.
Fred Grotto, his wife and business partner, Graham, bought Glenleigh Estate fifteen years ago. Since then, they have been restoring the property to its former glory. However, it has been a slow and tedious process, and Fred doubts they will ever finish.
Glenleigh Estate was originally built as a country residence for a shipping merchant named James Ewan. It is divided into two wings and includes servants quarters, formal reception rooms and upstairs bedrooms. Entry to the house is through a pretty square courtyard into the old scullery. Here you find a large coal burning stove, blackened from years of loyal service, that was originally used to cook meals and heat water for the entire household.
It is believed Ewan brought two Italian painters to Australia to decorate the ornate homestead. Fred has scraped years of accumulate paint and paper off the walls to reveal beautiful stencils. While the end result is magnificent, the restoration process is time consuming. Many of the stencils and frescoes were painted over with a drab cream distemper, which is an old-fashioned chalk-based paint and removed with a razor blade or rough towel. Luckily, the distemper has preserved the work underneath.
Fred has maintained many features of the home, including an old-fashioned intercom system. This is a set of bells, which would have shown the servants who needed attention. Each room is authentically furnished with antique furniture.
The stunning homestead has grounds to match. It sits on twenty-two hectares and has beautiful gardens. There is also an aviary, caretaker's cottage, tennis court and stables. When Fred took over, the grounds were neglected but years of nurturing have seen a magnificent transformation. In fact, to propagate the huge number of plants required for the garden, Fred has established his own nursery.
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More Info
Glenleigh Estate will be open for a house and garden inspection from 24-27 June. Opening hours will be 10am to sunset.
Glenleigh Estate
427 Mulgoa Rd, Regentville, NSW
(1½ km from the M4 motorway)
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Disclaimer
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