Lui Cottage And Timber Wee House, 35 Chapel Brae, Braemar

Lui Cottage and Timber Wee House, 35 Chapel Brae, Braemar

Built in 1905, Lui Cottage is a single-storey cottage with attic accommodation, arranged in three bays. It is constructed of squared and pinned granite rubble. The principal (south) elevation is symmetrical, featuring a central glazed four-leaf timber panelled door flanked by timber four-pane sash and case windows. The attic storey is lit by a pair of piended and canted dormers. The roof is covered in grey slate with bracketed eaves, and gable stacks rise at either end. A lean-to addition with a cat slide roof extends to the north elevation.

The interior, though modernised, retains its original room plan. The cottage contains two rooms over two, with a central staircase aligned along the length of the building. The kitchen is located in the lean-to to the rear.

Associated with the cottage is a timber wee house, positioned perpendicular to the main building to the south-east. This single-storey structure with attic accommodation is built of weatherboarded timber across five bays. The asymmetrical design comprises a three-bay section to the north with a central two-leaf door and flanking windows, and a southern section containing a small window and door. A rubble stack with pipe flue rises at the north gable. The roof is covered in corrugated iron.

The timber wee house retains original timber panelling in its interior. The ground floor contains two rooms, one of which now houses a modern kitchen. Two additional rooms occupy the roof space, accessed by a ladder staircase.

Lui Cottage represents an unusual survival of the distinctive Braemar tradition of paired buildings—a main cottage accompanied by a small 'wee house'. Local granite, timber, and slate were used throughout, following materials traditional to the area. The cottage displays characteristic features of the locality, including its symmetrical principal elevation, attic dormers, and gable stacks. The timber wee house is a particularly significant survival, as it remains in habitable condition.

Unusually, the timber house was constructed and occupied by the family before the main cottage was built. This pairing reflects Braemar's nineteenth-century development as a tourism destination. Following the Royal Family's visits from the 1840s onwards and the arrival of the railway to Ballater in the 1850s, Deeside gained reputation as a health resort, with its Alpine character attracting comparison to Switzerland. Residents of Braemar built wee houses in their gardens, allowing them to live in the smaller building during summer while letting the main cottage to visitors. Lui Cottage reversed this pattern, though it followed the same principle of paired accommodation.

According to the current owner, the land was given to his grandfather by the Duke of Fife as a reward for service as a gamekeeper on the Mar Estate. The cottage is named after Luibeg, where the grandfather had previously lived on the estate.