Wreck of the Week

A little bit of a different post today - in part because several of you have asked for updates on some of the properties I've featured. I'm going to start  with this one, because I had a lovely email from the couple who took on the gorgeous Mount Pleasant (above), in the Cotswold village of Painswick, after seeing it on 'Wreck' three years ago ("Many thanks for leading us to what has been a magical place to live", wrote Alice). Here's my original post . I wrote at the time about how this pretty two-bed cottage had bobbed in and out of estate agent's lists, despite its lovely location and views. Alice and John-Paul who took Mount Pleasant on, did a LOT of work and pretty much all of it themselves. Stripping out three-inch thick concrete plaster from the living room and replacing it with massively superior lime; exposing an original fireplace found behind stud walls; installing an upstairs bathroom and raising ceilings to expose beams and create ...

I thought I'd stick with the English country homes theme for a little longer and show you two beautiful big and neglected homes. Both are pricier than my usual picks but both are in lovely locations - and there's nothing wrong with a bit of fantasy house planning ; ) The first, sent to me by regular reader Paul, is just outside the little village of Dunnington, in Warwickshire. Five bedrooms, Grade II listed, edge of village location and a decent chunk of land to play with - what's not to want? Lovely light rooms and lots of original features. I particularly love these cupboards, though I suspect they'll end up being replaced with bi-fold doors or a shiny kitchen island and some macramé plant holders : ( However, I have NO any objections to the next owner replacing this fireplace with a wood burner and chunky stone mantel. And ditching that glass door. Or that green paint. Bags of space but clearly a fair bit of work ahead. Four reception rooms, ...

My last few posts have all been about amazing "wrecks" in Scotland or Wales, so I thought I'd balance things out with three very English properties today. At the top of the finances-needed tree is this farm on the Staffordshire/Derbyshire border , just around the corner from me and a property I've been driving past for 12 years. There are two houses - a three bedroom farmhouse and adjoined two bedroom cottage. Clearly scope for creating one big home. Plus masses of farm buildings, particularly these lovely, if ivy-supported, brick buildings around the farmhouse and its yard. As well as the large yard and (small) gardens, the property brings with it over three acres of land. It sits off a fairly busy bypass (I did say I drive past it a lot) but there are decent motorway and train links from its location on the edge of Tutbury . On the market through Fisher German at offers over £500k. Details and more pictures here and here . This next p...