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Jan 15, 2025 | 
greatbritishlife.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
At first sight, the old cottage looked very unattractive. ‘It was completely derelict,’ says Norman Carter. ‘You couldn’t even get upstairs as all the timber – on the stairs and floors – was quite rotten.’ At some point, the cottage – which was timber framed with brick infill on a Cotswold stone plinth – had acquired ‘a horrible’ single-skin extension. There was no mains water, and the electricity supply was just cables going overhead.
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Nov 26, 2024 | 
greatbritishlife.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
Angela and James Colley’s house in Cheltenham could have been designed for Christmas. The early 1900s townhouse has three floors, so there is plenty of space for Angela to be creative. ‘Christmas is my favourite time of the year,’ she says. ’I love putting up the decorations to make it look festive and beautiful.
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Nov 6, 2024 | 
greatbritishlife.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
In the property world, we know it’s all about location, so Carolyn and Sean found the perfect spot – just look at that view! – and then set about designing the dream home to inhabit it In 2015, Carolyn and her husband Sean spotted a neglected chalet bungalow for sale just outside Cheltenham. So, they posted a note through the door expressing interest – and a year later they were handed the keys! ‘It hadn’t been occupied for two years,’ says Carolyn who, with Sean, runs their own business.
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Nov 6, 2024 | 
self-build.co.uk | Debbie Jeffery |Caroline Ednie |Jen Grimble |Victoria Jenkins
Krystelle and Ed Floyd-Wass have sympathetically renovated and extended their 1930s detached house, breathing life back into it with bold colour and texture “We’d never tackled any kind of building work before buying this house, so taking on such a major renovation was daunting, but we were convinced of the potential to create something special,” says Krystelle Floyd-Wass, who purchased a run-down detached 1930s house in 2020 with her husband, Ed. At first sight, the mock Tudor four-bedroom...
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Oct 20, 2024 | 
oxfordmail.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
New Kitchen-dining room: The builders put in a skylight then fitted a handmade kitchen from Davonport Kitchens of Colchester with worktops of marble, silestone and timber (Image: Fraser Marr) Karin had not been looking for a project but the Victorian semi in Oxford had such a tranquil feeling she bought the house anyway. “It had such a lovely vibe.
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Oct 15, 2024 | 
greatbritishlife.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
Manuela Hamilford met her husband in 2005 while on holiday in the Caribbean. ‘I’m from Vicenza in Italy but had been working in New York for 15 years,’ she says. ‘Mark is British but was then working in Russia. We found we were both ready to leave our respective countries and start a new life together.
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Oct 1, 2024 | 
worcesternews.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
Lounge: The sofa is from sofa.com and the ottoman from OKA. (Image: Heather Gunn) The Old School House in Birlingham near Pershore opened in 1855 with just a hall and a classroom plus living space for the single lady teacher. It lasted until 1963 but after the pupils had left, the then teacher was allowed to stay on for her remaining days. 'Then a couple bought it and lived there for 46 years,' says Pollyanna Green who with her husband Nick became the new owners in January 2017.
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Sep 5, 2024 | 
self-build.co.uk | Caroline Ednie |Jen Grimble |Victoria Jenkins |Louise Parkin
A kitchen extension and refurbishment was the next step in Fiona McMunnigal’s home renovation, which her architect designed in tandem with the neighbouring project to achieve planning success Fiona McMunnigal’s home improvement journey began 10 years ago when she bought her two-storey Victorian terraced townhouse in Glasgow’s Southside. “When I bought the house, it had no kitchen or plumbing and the boiler was condemned,” says Fiona. “So, the first thing I did was put a kitchen in.” A few...
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Aug 13, 2024 | 
greatbritishlife.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
Karin had not been looking for a project but the Victorian semi in Oxford had such a tranquil feeling she bought the house anyway. “It had such a lovely vibe. Then I found out it had been a convent! You’d never have thought it.” A tiny clue was that two of the three bedrooms had been sub-divided into four with a wash basin in each and built-in cupboards. The beautiful peaceful feeling overrode Karin’s intentions. “I’d already done three house makeovers before,” she says. “I didn’t want another.
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Jul 23, 2024 | 
greatbritishlife.co.uk | Victoria Jenkins
Their home used to be an old pub – The Woolpack - ’and when I’m gardening the neighbours will often lean over the wall to tell me its history,’ says Alyson. She and her husband Alistair bought their four bedroom home near Stroud in 2001 as a home for their three daughters. Since then they’ve acquired a lurcher called Caspar (rescued from Spain via SOS Animals) and many ex-battery farm chickens. ‘By the time we arrived The Woolpack had already been converted into a dwelling,’ says Alyson.
