
Pencil cottage is a thatched roof house in Shanklin Old Village on the Isle of Wight, UK that dates back to the 17th Century.
Old photo circa 1960:

Pencil Cottage is now used as a gift shop and tea room.
The village where it is located – Shanklin Old Village – contains some of the oldest dwellings in the region. It has long been a popular tourist destination and as such is home to several inns, pubs, and tea houses – most of which have thatched roofs.
Here’s an historic postcard image of Shanklin Old Village that showcases the many thatched roofs:

Thatched roofs are literally built from dry vegetation such as straw, reeds, rushes, large leaves, or twigs. The material is layered on a slope to shed water away from the building. This style of roofing goes back a long way but the outer layers actually need to be replaced every 8-14 years, according to Wikipedia.
There’s nothing quite like a thatched roof on a bona fide fairytale English stone cottage.
At Pencil Cottage, you can have your tea and drink it too!

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For further information about Pencil Cottage, see the following links:
http://www.pencilcottage.co.uk/
http://www.isleofwightattractions.co.uk/ShanklinOldVillage1.htm
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