Pennod 4 04 Wal

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-Tonight, a traditional cottage

-in Rhostryfan...

-..a chapel in the Beacons which is

-being converted into a home...

-..and, first, a luxury flat

-which overlooks Langland Bay.

-Welcome to 04Wal.

-This is the story of husband

-and wife, Jan and Howard Clarke.

-They owned neighbouring flats

-overlooking Langland Bay...

-..and they fell in love.

-Howard is an architect and he bought

-the freehold rights to the block.

-Living in a flat overlooking the bay

-was romantic, when it was sunny...

-..but the building's flat roof

-leaked in the rain.

-Erecting a sloping roof

-was expensive.

-To make the project feasible...

-..he built a penthouse for

-him and his wife, at the same time.

-After a seven-year battle with the

-council for planning permission...

-..he built a luxury flat

-with a waterproof roof!

-We rarely visit a home

-which has its own private lift.

-Building a penthouse while the other

-residents still lived beneath it...

-..was quite a feat.

-The work took 18 months

-but the result is very striking.

-Few properties in Wales enjoy

-more natural light than this flat.

-There's a good reason for that.

-There are huge windows

-in all the main rooms of the flat...

-..and they let light flood in.

-I wouldn't need an electric light to

-read in here at 10pm in the winter.

-The colour of this classical room

-adds to its light feeling.

-There are hardly any colours

-in this flat, other than cream.

-This is the master bedroom.

-It's the only room

-they use as a bedroom.

-There's a long window here, leading

-to a balcony overlooking the bay.

-Like the rest of the house, there

-are no square corners in this room.

-The angles

-draw us to this side of the room.

-This is an enormous bed

-and it has a suede headboard.

-It's a four-poster bed.

-The en-suite is over here.

-The term 'en suite'

-doesn't do this room justice.

-It's enormous and it's

-full of interesting objects.

-"What's that? Is it another room?"

-I hear you ask.

-Yes, but it's also a shower!

-The door is surrounded

-by magazines and books.

-There's a gigantic bath over here.

-The air is filled

-with wonderful aromas.

-There's a huge mirror over here and

-the ceiling height is astounding.

-It's very rare in a bathroom.

-This is the piece de resistance.

-A luxurious armchair

-covered in a towelling material.

-You can jump out of the bath

-and into the chair...

-..reach for a magazine,

-put your feet up...

-..and give the teddy bear a cuddle.

-It's massive.

-It's huge!

-The bedroom is a symphony of cream

-and colours which complement cream.

-This is a comfortable chaise longue.

-You can lie there and read

-'Country Life', bathed in sunshine.

-You can write letters at this desk,

-just as they did in the old days.

-People spent much more time

-in their bedrooms, in days gone by.

-There's plenty of room for hats

-up there...

-..and there's plenty of room

-in the wardrobes.

-If you think there was enough room

-for all your clothes in there...

-..you'd be wrong!

-This is

-the Imelda Marcos collection!

-There's a pair of shoes

-for every day of the month in here.

-That's astonishing!

-This is the second bedroom.

-It isn't used as a bedroom.

-This is a second lounge, in essence.

-The items in this room reflect the

-taste and interests of the owners.

-There are lots of pictures in here.

-They're art lovers.

-There are pieces by local artists.

-These two painting of the Gower

-are the work of Will Evans.

-I think every travel guide

-ever published is on that shelf!

-What colour is this room?

-Well, I'd say

-it was a shade of cream.

-The great cream tour

-comes to an end right here.

-Isn't it wonderful?

-Having converted an old mill

-into a house...

-..John Couch

-was bitten by the renovation bug.

-He has bought Seion chapel

-and he plans to turn it into a home.

-He does the work himself and some

-people don't share his enthusiasm.

-Some people think I'm crazy and they

-think this project's too big for me.

-Someone said

-he didn't think I could finish it.

-It's a chapel. Does that bother you?

-No, not at all.

-It's an added attraction.

-It's a beautiful building.

-Tell me about its history.

-Hywel Harris was in this area

-during the Reformation...

-..and he established a Wesleyan

-Methodist Society in Llansadwrn.

-Work commenced on this building

-in 1797.

-That was years before

-the Reformation.

-I see the project as a job.

-I start work

-at 9 o'clock in the morning...

-..and I finish work

-at five o'clock in the evening.

-Where has this door led us?

-There are two doors - one there

-and one on the opposite side.

-The pulpit was in the middle.

-The 'set fawr' was here.

-I'm standing in the 'set fawr'!

-Yes - the elders sat here,

-facing the preacher.

-Have you raised the floor level?

-Yes, I raised it about a yard.

-I did it to ensure the ground floor

-windows are in the right position.

-We want to be able to see out,

-through the windows!

-Chapel windows were high to stop

-people gazing out through them!

-We must move with the times...

-..and give the building

-a new purpose.

-I want to preserve as much of the

-building as possible...

-..but I must adapt it

-to modern life.

-This stained glass is wonderful.

-Did you find suppliers easily?

-No, it took a year to find a company

-who manufactured that pattern.

-It's a Gothic cross.

-The kitchen will be here

-won't it, John?

-Yes, that's right.

-It's a large room.

-It's a large room.

-

-Yes, that's right.

-The units will be over here.

-They'll be against that wall.

-Will you have

-a dining table in here?

-Yes, the dining table

-will go over here.

-We'll look out of the window

-as we eat.

-Up we go to the first floor,

-past the lovely windows.

-Light floods in through here

-and it's wonderful.

-This is the bathroom.

-The original ceiling is still here,

-on the landing.

-This is the opening created by John.

-We'll go up there in a minute.

-All the rooms on this floor

-have wood on the ceilings.

-It's the old chapel ceiling,

-of course.

-I've never stood this close to

-a chapel's ceiling in my life!

-The third floor is over here.

-This floor is higher than

-the chapel's original ceiling.

-We're getting even closer to God

-and even closer to Heaven!

-There are two large rooms up here.

-This room

-is half the size of the chapel.

-There are windows

-on both sides of this room.

-You can see the mountain on one side

-and Talley on the other.

-I'm not a huge fan

-of open-plan living.

-It isn't practical for families

-because privacy is important.

-There are only two of you.

-There are only two of you.

-

-We'll see!

-How many rooms are there,

-in this house?

-There are five bedrooms.

-We have three daughters and they'll

-visit us, especially at Christmas.

-The question most people ask me is,

-"When will it be finished?"

-It's like Michelangelo

-when he painted the Sistine Chapel.

-The Pope kept asking

-when he'd finish.

-Sometime next year, hopefully.

-Will you finish this

-and move on to another property?

-We'll see.

-I think it's in your blood.

-I think it's in your blood.

-

-You may be right.

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-I scoured the area in search

-of something suitable for us.

-The view struck us, didn't it?

-The first thing that struck us when

-we came down here at night...

-..was the view.

-Elinor Gwynn, Richard Farmer

-and Steffan, their son...

-..we thrilled to find Cae Coch,

-Rhostryfan.

-They fell in love

-with the cottage...

-..and its location is also

-close to their hearts.

-Walking and the open air

-is our passion and our work.

-Nothing gives you more pleasure than

-seeing nature on your own doorstep.

-This cottage was typical

-of all the houses of its era.

-It had one large room

-and two small rooms.

-A ladder led from the ground floor

-to the bedrooms.

-The cottage's previous owners...

-..added extensions

-to the side and to the rear.

-It still looks like a stone cottage,

-from the front.

-It's like the Tardis -

-there are lots of small rooms here.

-It was great

-to be able to do different things...

-..with all the different spaces.

-I think the extensions

-are a triumph.

-They could easily have turned out

-to be small, dark extensions.

-There are 13 different shades

-of white in this house?

-Yes, something like that.

-I'm not sure why we used

-so many different shades of white.

-Some of them have a hint of pink

-and some have a hint of yellow.

-They're all different.

-Minutely different!

-I'm not convinced about that!

-We're now leaving

-the old part of the house.

-This is the old external wall.

-The house now forms

-a kind of T-shape.

-The old house

-forms the top of the T...

-..and this is the stem of the T.

-This part of the house is new.

-That's the bathroom.

-There are examples

-of Elinor's artwork there.

-This is Steffan's room.

-Hiya, Steff.

-Hiya, Steff.

-

-Hello.

-There's a cosy study in here.

-There's a laptop on the desk.

-This room is very calming.

-You can see the garden from here.

-Elinor designed that door.

-It's a comfortable room.

-The first floor

-is also an extension.

-Here, we see two of the 13 shades

-of white in this house.

-This is where Richard

-does his typesetting work.

-He also

-does some printing of his own.

-There are creative havens

-in every corner of this house.

-This is the master bedroom.

-There are several colours in here,

-including some which aren't white!

-There are hints of green and grey

-here and there.

-It's a very calming

-colour combination.

-That's just what you need

-in a bedroom.

-What do we have here?

-A third rocking chair.

-I think you'll find this material

-was designed by Kevin Burgess.

-What a comfortable chair.

-Are you keen collectors?

-Yes - we collect junk!

-We go to auctions and we buy things

-at the last minute...

-..when the dealers' vans are full!

-It's easier to grab 5 bargains,

-at that time of day.

-We enjoy renovating things

-and rebuilding things.

-Yes, we collect things

-and bring out their potential.

-We collect paper and cardboard.

-We make use of it in our art.

-We recycle it and turn it into art.

-This came from the shed we had

-when we lived near Newtown.

-We resurrected it and recycled it.

-It has now become a combination

-of clocks and a collectors' box.

-A few items here hold memories

-and family connections.

-There's a special pencil over here,

-for example.

-This came from

-my grandfather's dairy business.

-His name was T R Jones

-and he was a dairy farmer.

-His farm was in Corwen.

-"Ty Newydd Dairy, Corwen,

-for butter, eggs, milk and cream."

-His logo was...

-.."You can whip our cream

-but you cannot beat our milk."

-That's fantastic!

-The sheets of music you can see

-are actually hymns.

-My other grandfather

-lived in Fishguard...

-..and he loved music.

-He was a renowned singer.

-The clock face also came from

-my grandparents' home, in Fishguard.

-The majority of the pieces

-remind us of people and places.

-Yes, places we've visited

-and places where we've lived in.

-There's a personal story

-behind each one.

-There's no real theme

-to the collection.

-They're all relevant

-to some part of our lives.

-There are more boxes

-and very personal trinkets in here.

-This is a handy box for collecting

-stones and birds' skulls.

-We pick up birds' skulls

-when we're out walking.

-Yes, I'm forever picking up

-birds' skulls!

-You've really pushed the boat out...

-..and painted this room

-a bluey shade of green.

-Yes, we live on the edge!

-Yes, we live on the edge!

-

-Compared to the rest of the house,

-this was a brainstorm!

-Yes, but it's a calming colour.

-This is a lovely room

-in which to sit at night.

-This is one of the cottage's

-two original rooms.

-It's cosy but we can't have

-a real fire in here.

-We use candles to create

-the right ambience in here.

-The stairs lead to a kind of hall.

-We use that as storage space

-for arts and crafts materials.

-That's a simple, plain bedroom.

-We all love that bedroom

-because of its simplicity.

-There's a hint of red here.

-Was the house painted red?

-It's a possibility.

-I don't know what's on these walls.

-It's certainly been whitewashed

-time and time again.

-I'm fond of the patterns.

-I don't want to get rid of them.

-It's nice.

-There are some huge gaps here.

-Yes,

-I should do something about it...

-..but birds nest there in the summer

-and shelter there in the winter.

-Birds use these walls as their home

-but I'll fill the gaps, one day.

-It's hard to see

-where the extension begins.

-The stonework was matched up well.

-Yes, you can't tell

-it's been extended.

-You added this part, Richard.

-Yes. We added this porch

-to the house.

-Will you hang a door there?

-Will you hang a door there?

-

-No, we like it just the way it is.

-It's a room

-that isn't inside or outside.

-I understand you're a winemaker.

-I understand you're a winemaker.

-

-Yes, that's true.

-This is last year's blackberry wine.

-You can try it, if you like.

-It's slightly cloudy.

-It's slightly cloudy.

-

-It hasn't settled.

-It smells like sherry.

-That's good.

-It's better than I expected.

-That's intriguing.

-What did you expect?

-Are you happy with the house

-or are you itching to make changes?

-No, it's fine as it is.

-Life's too short -

-we want to do other things.

-We want to make the most

-of our surroundings.

-You can work on a house for ever.

-The house is fine, as it is.

-S4C subtitles by

-Eirlys A Jones