The two exceptions to my desire to see it all chucked in the wee Loch Lomond are the bedstead and armoire in Pic 15. Gorgeous. In a bigger room, and without all the accompanying distractions, these would be even more stunning. I half expect Narnia to be out the back of the armoire. (Perhaps another potential storage location for said plethora?)

However, if you mentally strip down the walls and floors and remove 2/3 of the furniture, this is quite a fun place. Pointy arches, sunken rooms, both wood and stone flooring, a medieval door with medieval hardware (Pic 14), and a great (though desperately in need of scrubbing) stone fireplace. And to top it all off – again literally – a four story spiral staircase.

The one place the stripping won’t work, though, is the kitchen. As with the rest of the decor, it is both fascinating and repulsive, all at the same time. The wood-working skill is impressive, but I’m reminded of the Jurassic Park quote – You were so busy figuring out “could you” you forgot to ask “should you.” In another context it might be fun indeed, without all the competing trinkets, that is. But in a kitchen, well… IMO distractions, sharp knives, and hot surfaces are a bad combination. Oh, and more loose area rugs? Um, yeah… no.

A perfectly nice towered castle overcome by visual overload, with nary a nod to highlighting individual artistic achievement through focused attention. But damn if $1.5M in Chevy Chase a steal!!