Byline: Laura Davidson
You'd be hard pushed to find a home healthier than Amanda Hamilton's. From the box of tempting organic veg to the mood-improving, infra-red sauna, it's a haven for the clear mind and the body beautiful.
But then, you would expect nothing less of the Scots nutritionist who's a TV healthy living expert on programmes such as GMTV, UKTV's Spa of Embarrassing Illnesses and BBC's Something For The Weekend.
Amanda said: 'I'm away with work for about a quarter of the year so it's important for me to feel I can really relax when I'm at home. I lived in Spain until two years ago and I enjoyed it, but now I've moved back to Scotland I'm really appreciating the place.
'This is a great house, it's a very sociable house. We're close to the city centre but far enough out of town for it to be really quiet.'
Amanda, 32, shares her pad in south Edinburgh with her partner Sandy Newbigging, 27, a life and business coach, daughter Jana, two, and Mogs the rescue cat.
She and Sandy rent their four-bed Victorian villa, which doubles as a work space.
Amanda added: 'We feel really lucky to have enough room at home to split the house into specific work and home areas.
'On the ground floor, we've made one of the bedrooms a client consultation room.
'If we wanted to buy this place, the cost would be astronomical, so we rent instead.
Prices in Edinburgh have gone through the roof since I moved away from Scotland.
'I do own a place in Scotland, a wee holiday cottage in the Borders, but for now it doesn't make sense for me to buy in Edinburgh.'
Amanda says she and Sandy fell in love with the house the second they came to view it.
She said: 'If I owned it I wouldn't decorate it much differently. I love older-style properties. They have such character and the period features here, like old fireplaces and gorgeous sash windows, are just fantastic. I love the stripped wooden floors as well.
'The furniture is a mix of pieces that were here and pieces of our own that we've brought with us, and they all work together well because they're mainly antiques.
'I love browsing in antique shops and I'll even pick up bits and pieces in charity shops if something in the window takes my fancy.
'I've held health retreats all over the world and I get ideas from some of the places I've visited as well. I've got tapestries, tea sets and wall hangings from places like Thailand, Mexico and Spain. If something is too big to bring on the plane home, I'll have it shipped.
'It's not as expensive as you might think and you end up with something unique.'
The couple's main living accommodation is on the first floor of the house and is dominated by a grand drawing room.
There's a coal fire with ornate surround and an eclectic mix of wooden furniture including an oak dresser, desk and sturdy sideboard.
Amanda loves original artwork and there's a colourful contemporary piece showing Adam and Eve above the fireplace by a Spanish artist she knows from her time living in Andalucia.
Next door, there's a traditional dining room painted in a sedate shade of dark green from trendy paint maker Farrow & Ball. The colour looks like dramatic black in a certain light.
Amanda said: 'To me, this is a like an oldfashioned card-playing room with the fringed lampshade over the table. We've had friends round for a few card nights.'
Leading off the dining room is the bright kitchen with an open-plan larder against one wall and plenty of worktop space for Amanda's most-used kitchen gadget, her juicer.' She explained: 'I couldn't live without it. I have all my clients drinking fresh juices and I definitely practise what I preach.
'Even I'll admit that the wheatgrass one doesn't taste very good but it's just so good for you, so I'll put up with it. I'd feel like something was missing in my day if I didn't have my juices.
'Even Jana's having them now. She wants to be just like Sandy and I, having her juice. It's very sweet. I try to be healthy at home, to practise what I preach. Our home is a healthy home but it's also a happy one.'
Amanda will be giving talks at the Vitality Show Scotland at Glasgow's SECC from this Friday to Sunday. For tickets see www.the vitalityshowscotland.co.uk or call 0870 220 3939.
Amanda and Sandy hold mind and body detox retreats in the UK, Spain and Turkey. See www.amandahamilton.co.uk and www.lifedetox.co.uk. The couple's new book, Life Detox, is out now, priced pounds 12.99.
'I love older homes. They have such character and the period features are just fantastic'
HOUSEFILE
Victorian villa in south Edinburgh
I love: The space. It's good that we can confine our working area to the downstairs so the upstairs feels like our own little haven.
I'd change: The kitchen and drawing room are on the first floor. It would be better if they were on the ground floor, with doors from the kitchen to the garden so it was easier for Jana to get out to play.
Next house: I'd love to build my own eco-friendly house beside the sea or a loch.
CAPTION(S):
Amanda's kitchen is a healthy haven; Traditional dining room is great place to eat - and play cards; Amanda's attractive four-bedroom Victorian villa in Edinburgh; Pictures: Alan Simpson
