Extraordinary Extensions viewers slammed a pair who spent £1.1 million connecting three derelict buildings with £179,000 panels of glass to construct their dream dwelling final evening.
Simon and Amy, from Hampshire, purchased a water mill, cottage and coach home for £830,000 in 2017 and spent a yr renovating the derelict buildings earlier than embarking on an bold glass extension.
Although the couple’s preliminary price range was £1 million, skilled gambler Simon and his college instructor spouse confessed to presenter Tinie Tempah on the finish of the programme they’d gone over price range by £100,000.
Lots of these watching had been left surprised by their admission, and questioned how they’d been capable of afford the mega-extension within the first place. One wrote: ‘So £800k to purchase it then £1 million to do it up, some individuals have an excessive amount of cash to waste.’
Extraordinary Extensions viewers slammed Simon and Amy, from Hampshire, who spent £1.1 million connecting three derelict buildings with £179,000 panels of glass to construct their dream dwelling final evening
Skilled gambler Simon and his college instructor spouse confessed to presenter Tinie Tempah on the finish of the programme they’d gone over price range by £100,000 – however many viewers questioned how they’d been capable of afford the challenge
The couple purchased the derelict buildings, compromising of a water mill, a miller’s cottage and a coach home, set in 4 and a half acres, in Milford-on-Sea for £830,000.
That they had fallen in love with the property after seeing it on-line, with Amy saying: ‘I received midway down the drive and I may simply really feel this magic.
The Grade-II listed buildings totalling 4,000 sq. ft had been left deserted for over a decade and required the couple to work ‘daybreak until nightfall’ on their challenge.
A yr into the construct they usually had restored the house, however they needed to do a big extension.
Of their huge extension, the couple needed a shocking cutting-edge black kitchen with minimalist furnishings and detailing (pictured)
In the meantime the majority of the house within the £1.1 million extension was taken up by the ‘front room’, which featured three huge glass partitions
A hall related the couple’s huge residing space to different rooms constructed onto the perimeters of the three properties, together with a backyard room
Simon confessed: ‘All of our cash goes into this. It’s a cash pit.
‘I at all times needed to construct our own residence and Amy discovered this place on the web. The extension was the important thing and the one manner we may deliver all of the buildings again into use.’
The modern design helped achieve planning permission and crucially for planning, it gave the positioning a brand new function – one huge household dwelling.
The couple hoped the extremely fashionable glass hyperlink would join every of the buildings collectively, together with a swimming pool, a backyard room and a spacious kitchen diner and lounge.
Simon and Amy spent a yr renovating the derelict buildings earlier than embarking on their bold extension challenge (pictured)
Simon confessed one of many largest bills had been the glass panels, which they ordered from Portugal, costing ‘roughly £179,000’.
He admitted: ‘The general price range is roughly £1 million. That is us doing it ourselves, being very hands-on by way of this course of.
‘I do not get a whole lot of time to sit down down and have a look at all of the figures. However at this stage we’re on price range. I imply the price range can exit the window whenever you begin trying on the finishes.
‘Funds may nonetheless exit the window however I believe we’re on monitor.’
The skilled gambler mentioned he had at all times dreamed of constructing his own residence, and hoped to attach the three older interval buildings with the ultra-modern glass extension
Simon confessed one of many largest bills had been the glass panels, which they ordered from Portugal, costing ‘roughly £179,000’ (pictured earlier than the panels had been put in)
When the 19 panes of glass arrived in June 2021 it was a momentous day, with Simon saying: ‘It is good to see it right here in a single piece.’
The primary process was the straightforward job of lifting over 5 tonnes of glass off the truck and onto the constructing website. Then a spider crane exactly maneuvered every pane into place. Any sudden actions may harm the glass, costing hundreds and delaying the construct.
After a nervous watch and 6 hours later, a lot of the glass was in, and Amy was left in floods of tears.
She mentioned: ‘Now it is nearly all glazed it is simply so thrilling. It looks like a room, impulsively, and it feels actual. I can not wait to get all of it completed now.’
After eighteen months, the couple had completed the challenge and accomplished their huge glass wrap round extension (pictured)
However a couple of weeks later, the unthinkable occurred, with Simon confessing: ‘We had an enormous downpour of rain over the previous month which highlighted a couple of issues to us.’
There was a problem with the glass and frames which brought about the home windows to leak. In consequence, all 19 panes of glass needed to come out.
Simon mentioned: ‘All of that is fairly difficult, I am not going to lie, it does have an effect on you mentally. I believe it’ll hit us in a while how a lot we have got to do nonetheless.’
With the glass eliminated, the construction was again to sq. one.
Among the many rooms inside the large construction had been a residing and eating house, a solar room in addition to a resistance pool (pictured)
By July 2021, the couple had been decided to get the construct again on monitor by mendacity underfloor pipe for heating.
However Simon mentioned he was feeling the stress from the challenge, including: ‘If it was very easy to do that then everybody would do it. Nevertheless it is not simple and it isn’t for everybody and it actually has put a whole lot of pressure on us.’
Eighteen months after building started, Tinie arrived to see the extension in all it is glazed glory.
Amy and Simon mentioned they felt ‘drained’ and had been ‘working actually arduous however had been ‘excited to see the progress.’
After Tinie requested concerning the timeline, Simon mentioned: ‘It hasn’t been as seamless as we would like. It is hit us with a six week delay, which implies we have not been capable of get on with different issues. Labour has been one of many greater issues for us and the costs have been loopy.
By the top of the summer time, the couple had completed their huge minimalist extension with a geometrical kitchen and an enormous sitting room with minimal furnishings
‘For instance, to tile this extension, labour smart it is often £3,000 however now we’re listening to £8,000. No marvel I am considering of doing it myself.’
By the top of the summer time, the couple had completed their huge minimalist extension with a geometrical kitchen and an enormous sitting room with minimal furnishings.
Simon mentioned: ‘We have had a couple of late nights, we have been working actually arduous. We will begin to see the imaginative and prescient we had all these years in the past beginning to come to actuality.
‘It has been very arduous. We have each performed property earlier than, however nothing on this scale. Nevertheless it’s an actual labour of affection.’
Nonetheless many viewers had been left surprised by the couple’s angle in the direction of the costly spend and questioned the standard of the craftsmanship
Past the kitchen was the sun-lit backyard room, in addition to the resistance pool.
When Tinie requested if they’d do it once more, the couple advised him: ‘No, by no means once more. That is our dwelling and that’s it now.’
In the meantime they admitted they’d over spent by £100,000, with Simon including: ‘The price range goes to be fairly near that. Supplies have gone up not too long ago massively which has affected our price range. I believe we will are available round £1.1 million.
‘However to do the quantity of labor we have performed for that amount of cash is unbelievable.’
Nonetheless many viewers had been left surprised by the couple’s angle in the direction of the costly spend, with one writing: ‘£1.1 million extension. Wanted a greater brickie, that pointing was surprising.’
One other commented: ‘Watching these sort of programmes, all of them will need to have a cash tree within the backyard, ones I’ve received by no means appear to develop. With budgets at half 1,000,000 and 1,000,000 pound for the opposite.’
A 3rd wrote: ‘All that cash, I’d have sacked the bricky on the wrap round extension.’