From city life to country comfort: A catch up with Chapelton couple

By Jacqueline Wake Young

October 5 2022, 11:45 am

Julie and Cameron Hughes bought their new home at Chapelton last year and have never looked back.

After living in a flat in Aberdeen’s west end for six years, Julie and Cameron Hughes switched city living for the countryside as they moved into their brand new home at Chapelton in November 2021.

Julie has watched Chapelton grow from the beginning, having worked in media and marketing for the town until recently.

Julie said she loves country living and Chapelton offers the best of both worlds as the city is within easy reach.

From the early stages of initial ideas and drawings to watching the first residents move in, Julie played a key role in the Chapelton journey and has now decided to call it home.

Chapelton is located between Portlethen and Newtonhill, south of Aberdeen, which Julie believes is the ideal location.

“I have always loved country living, however, Cameron wasn’t quite ready to leave the city and Chapelton offered us the best of both worlds,” said Julie.

Julie and Cameron Hughes made the move to Chapelton, just south of Aberdeen almost a year ago.

“There’s just something different about Chapelton.

“We’ve always loved older period homes and have never been drawn to new build houses, but Chapelton offers a bit of everything.

“We love that it’s only a 10-minute drive from the city, has plenty of character and gives us the benefits of modern living.

AJC Homes blend traditional architectural features, such as cornicing, with the benefits of a new-build property.

“We’d been looking for a house for around a year. We swithered between many but Chapelton just made the most sense to us.

“We love that we can still walk to a coffee shop but also wake up and see the countryside every day.

“We’re lucky that our garden is right at the edge of the town so our bedroom looks out on to plenty of fields, where there are cows and sheep and also often rabbits and deer.”

The vision for Chapelton has been to create a place with a strong sense of community and a self-sufficient town where residents can live, work and play.

Julie enjoys the kitchen in her new home and it was the room they focused on first.

Julie said: “Being part of the local community is important to us and Chapelton has a great sense of community spirit – there is always something going on.”

She said people need to “spend a bit of time to see all of the benefits” of Chapelton.

“A visit to a showhome is great but attending a farmers’ market, walking the Chapelton Trail or visiting one of the local businesses brings everything to life.”

They chose an AJC Homes property because they balance traditional architectural features with the benefits of new-build.

Neutral decor enhances the light and airy feel of their home.

Julie said: “We’ve always admired AJC Homes properties – we love the traditional details included throughout their homes such as the high ceilings, coving and traditional wooden doors.

“All of these impressive small details make their homes beautiful and unique, something you can’t find in standard new builds.”

The kitchen/living area is a sociable space perfect for entertaining or just relaxing.

Julie’s favourite room is the kitchen. “It’s the room we focused on first and poured the most love into,” she said.

“We’re currently decorating one room at a time which means some of the house is still empty, but given the kitchen/living area is where we spend the most time we thought it made sense to focus on this room first.

“It’s such a social space and the blue range cooker that we added is an absolute favourite.”

For more information visit www.chapeltonnewtown.co.uk.