HIGH POINT


“Sharing the house with our family and friends. Everybody who could has rolled their sleeves up and helped us.”  Christina Horspool


was being broadcast live to thousands and I was sat on our bed with my laptop on a chest of drawers. I’d put a map up behind me to make it look ore like an ofice and not a storage room!” However, this bizarre situation did spur on the couple’s plans as Christina remembers: “It was an adventure with real highs and real lows. However, there’s nothing like living somewhere to make you want to make it better!” With that in mind, once the house was watertight, the couple had to decide what to do next as Christina explains: “We were aware from the outset that it was too big for a family of four. ug Gordon te first owner ad  cildren so it worked for him but not for us. We knew it needed to be loved by more than just our family, so it had to be a home and a business.” The initial plan was to renovate the family’s living accommodation and then work on the business aspect which originally had been an event venue with accommodation in the wing of the property. However, with the uptake in staycations after Covid, Christina and ean decided to create tree fiestar apartments in the wing which would in turn, provide the income needed to renovate the rest of the house. Fortunately, the apartment wing didn’t require any structural renovations, but it was suffering ro serious dr rot issing oors and walls in a severe state of dilapidation. “Luckily the walls that were really badly damaged were partition walls not the lathe and plaster ones; we think they were probably additions from the 70s and the wing was probably the worst in that sense.” As no-one was allowed into the property during the pandemic, the couple had to apply


jul/aug 2024


for retrospective planning permission for the renovations. “We’ve never renovated a listing uilding eore and  definitel would not recommend going down the retrospective route  it was incredil stressul. Fortunately, Dean had done his homework as Christina explains: “Dean had done a bit of a research before we offered on the house and before the lead had been stolen so we knew roughly what work might be required and what sort of costs we’d be taking on.” Dean also looked into what contractors were recommended for this type of work and had received quotes and availability schedules. With this knowledge the couple chose a builder and contractor who were recognised by Aberdeenshire Council for their work on listed buildings. “Having the advice of the contractors was so important. That was why everything we had done was done to what was expected by the planners. Our builder and contractor advised us on everything from the harling (rough cast wall finis to ow we treated te inside. While Covid provided the couple with lots of additional challenges, one upside was that their DIY skill set improved immeasurably! “Covid did force us to do more of the work ourselves. Anything we could do that wasn’t skilled or that we could learn quickly online meant donning our dust asks and getting fired in.  actuall think Dean could offer a painting and decorating service now!”


A combination of YouTube tutorials and guidance from Graeme the builder meant that Dean was able to do the pointing on the exposed stonework throughout the house which was handy, as there’s a lot of it. “The stonework


www.sbhonline.co.uk 51


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