A renovation of a Valleys terrace from a dated to a modern home is pretty standard, maybe involving a wall being removed, a neutralising of colours and patterns and a new kitchen and bathroom.
But there's absolutely nothing standard about this renovation of a tired Valleys terrace - this update has luxury at its core that includes a curved kitchen island, a double-height staircase, five-star hotel standard bathrooms, an effortless connection to the incredible view via a bank of bifold doors, and even a bonus freestanding bath in the converted loft.
The mid-terrace in Trelewis was once a much-loved family home untouched for over 40 years and well remembered from the childhood days of first-time renovator, 38 year-old Ian Davies.
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Ian says: "The house has been in my family for 65 years. It was quite an emotional journey for myself due to having spent my childhood at the house and having so many memories of my grandparents and father. The house was inherited three years ago and we set to work on it 18 months ago following being let down by a builder we initially employed."
Ian and his wife Laurie, both from Bedlinog, bought the house outright from family members and set to work on dragging it into the modern day, and this renovation was going to be a project that the couple would lavish with love and luxury, despite both working full-time, having two children and then, in the middle of the project, having a baby as well.
The vision was clear from the start, despite the extra strain on their time and resources, Ian and Laurie were going to try to make this traditional terrace the best it could possibly be within a budget. Laurie Davies, an educational psychologist, says: "It was a traditional terrace, two reception rooms, small kitchen with a lean to, backroom coal store, just as it was when Ian was growing up.
"It was definitely my fault that we did such a lavish renovation, I like a certain style. I'm a property junkie, I'm constantly looking online for designs, watching interior design and house programmes - I'm not sure where I get the inspiration from, I like a certain look and I thought it would be popular if the finished house was something we would like to live in too.
"Also, from the beginning, we wanted to create something that would allow people to access the market at this level but have something a bit nicer- for a basic four bedroom house you're looking at least £250,000 and upwards - we wanted to create a modern four-bed family home with open-plan spaces.
"We've got children and quite an open-plan house ourselves and we wanted to try and put some of the aspects of our home in there. All the way through the design we've imagined ourselves living in there, what we would like."
So many hours were spent online looking for luxury bargains, the couple hit the sales, and Laurie even fell in love with the glossy, high-end kitchen way before the idea to renovate the house was on the horizon.
She laughs, saying: "The curved island is really beautiful but it wasn't intentional, we bought the kitchen before we bought the house! The kitchen came up online as available and I loved it so much that whatever property we were going to be buying, it was going in it, and just by chance it was the perfect fit."
But not all of Laurie's ideas were met with great enthusiasm by Ian and his step-dad Sidney Pitchford, who was an imperative part of the team after the builders left, using his wealth of engineering and welding experience throughout the whole project to help the couple.
Laurie says: "We weren't really driven by the desire to earn lots of money, we just didn't want to lose any money on it, so I'd bring the design and ideas to them and they brought everything to life, but sometimes they thought I was off my head.
"But I'd promise them it would really look great and then they'd find a way to do it. When I said about the void from the living room down to the kitchen, they were looking at me daft when I said, 'you need to open this up, it will make a massive difference'."
Ian remembers the scenario in a similar way, saying: "Turning the opening in the living room floor to create a void and connect the two storeys was something that made both myself and my step-dad think that Laurie was losing her mind, but it actually created an amazing feature and added so much to the space.
"Laurie's eye for detail and passion for interior design and architecture made sure that every nail, tile, paint stroke was to a high standard. We knew when she walked in that she meant business - we even bought her a bunk hard hat and called her the boss!"
One of the most challenging aspects of the build was the loft conversion made more complicated by the need to drop the ceiling, causing a lot of discussion amongst this trio of terrific renovators.
Laurie says: "I remember half way through the project we were trying to decide if we'd go into the attic or not and it was a bone of contention, but I wanted it as we were trying to create a four bedroom house that was affordable and trying to keep an eye on our budget too.
"So much work had to be done to create it and for it to be signed off by the building inspector, who made regular visits to the site throughout the project."
It might be tricky for property and interiors obsessed Laurie to decide on her favourite design statement and space inside this breathtaking renovation project, but after some thought it is the much-loved curved kitchen island that wins the day.
She says: ""It's the curved island unit when I saw it I thought, 'wow, that's a showstopper' and luckily it fit - the house has been all set up around that kitchen really. I love the view from the kitchen island too; we imagined ourselves there, looking out to the view and watching our children play outside. There's going to be a lovely wildflower meadow in front that the council are developing which will be lovely.
"I also liked the way we have opened up the downstairs floor level to create a more open-plan living space because if I was to buy the house this is where I'd be living most of the time."
But Laurie did angst over every single design decision, especially the addition of the freestanding bath in the loft bedroom, worried that her ideas for the house would not be well-received by anyone else.
She says: "Initially we were hoping to have enough space for an ensuite there but I just felt like it was taking up too much space, and I've always wanted to have a bath at the bottom of the bed.
It can be removed easily if someone wanted to, if it's not their cup of tea. I just thought it was something extra to offer, it's not something you usually get in a terrace house so it was a touch of luxury I hoped people would like."
And people more than like it, house hunters and members of WalesOnline's property Facebook group Amazing Welsh Homes have literally fallen in love with it, posting comments such as 'stunning', 'looks amazing', 'didn't expect that' and 'this is how I want my house to look'. Join the Amazing Welsh Homes Facebook group here.
Laurie feels overwhelmed by people's reaction to the transformation. She says: "We can't believe it, it's been lovely, the feedback. I think we are quite modest people and I don't think we both believed in ourselves.
"We did it as though we wanted to live in it ourselves so we knew it would be nice but I wasn't sure how other people would find it, I worried all along - would people like the curved island, is the style of the house interesting to other people, what about the bath in the attic? Should we have done all of those things? Should we have spent between £60k and £70k on such a high-end renovation?
"All the doubt and now to see people's reactions and all the positive comments has made all the hard work worthwhile, particularly for Ian, trying to find time to do it around his full-time job for Bristol Water when it didn't impact our family life too much, it has been stressful at times to be honest."
The first day the house went on the market for offers in excess of £195,000 with Bayside Estates it got 11 viewings that produced four offers with a sale on the imminent horizon.
And the couple couldn't be happier, because this is the first of hopefully many renovations, and it has been a very personal one. The renovation is very much embedded within the family and friends support structure that surrounds the couple, from the past as well as from the present.
Ian says: "The newspaper cuttings we found were of the 1930s and found under old kitchen flooring, but also a note left by my parents when they first married was found in the DIY chimney breast that my late father had built in the 70s.
"And now, we couldn't have done it without incredibly supportive friends and family. We were lucky to have trades people as friends who were very good at what they do and were able to work with us to bring our ideas to life and also provide lots of technical advice."
Laurie says they have been bitten by the property renovation bug and are keen to do another one but she says: "When we get more time, we're not in a rush, I think we'll have a bit of a rest first."
The luxury terrace in Trelewis is on the market for offers in excess of £195,000 with Bayside Estates, Treharris call 01443 809836 to find out more.
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