Scotland’s Home of the Year is back for its fifth season.
Interior designer Anna Campbell Jones, architect and lecturer Michael Angus and guest judge Banjo Beale – winner of the BBC’s Interior Design Masters – have searched Scotland for outstanding homes.
The new season of the BBC Scotland show kicks off on Monday and will run for seven weeks. Each episode will focus on a different region of Scotland, with the overall home of the year being crowned in a grand finale.
The first episode focuses on the east of Scotland and features two homes in Fife.
Alexandra Apartment is a double-upper flat in Kirkcaldy that’s home to Gary Gourlay and his flatmate Sammy.
Gary bought the flat in mid-2019. “I was on holiday in Cyprus at the time and viewed it as soon as I got back,” he explains. “I moved in two months later but the renovation work took until the following summer and was delayed by the arrival of Covid.”
The flat needed to be fully overhauled. “Very little had been done for many years and what work had gone on was piecemeal and patchy,” Gary continues. “We had to rip it all out and take it back to the bare stone and brick. We rewired, re-plumbed and fitted new windows and a new heating system.”
Renovation budget
The work ate up all of Gary’s resources. “I had a budget but that went on the big ticket items like the windows and heating system.
“After that it was pay cheque to pay cheque. Fortunately because of lockdown there was nothing else to spend money on so I ploughed everything into the refurbishment.”
Gary, 34, brought in tradesmen for the electrics, plumbing and gas, and used a joiner for part of the project.
However he still did a lot of work himself. “I design commercial interiors for a living so I’m in the industry but I don’t usually pick up a hammer or saw.
“I’d helped friends out with work before but this was my first time doing my own renovation so it was a steep learning curve.
“With lockdown I had a lot of time on my hands and it was nice to pick up new skills. I’m really pleased with how it turned out.”
The flat has a lovely semi open-plan layout, with the living room flowing into the kitchen and windows to both front and rear. Upstairs, the master bedroom has a bay window and rooftop views to the sea.
Favourite spaces
“I love the reading area in the window upstairs,” Gary says. “And the views to the church and the sea.”
All the décor was carefully chosen by Gary and is a mixture of old and new bought from local auction houses, nearby shops and online outlets.
Gary decided to put his flat forward for Scotland’s Home of the Year. “It was my sister who convinced me to do it,” he says. “When I applied I was nowhere near finished. The WC wasn’t even installed.
“Fortunately it took a while between applying and the production team coming out. Being accepted for the show definitely gave me a deadline to get the work completed!”
The judges loved the flat, with Michael Angus calling it a “beautiful exercise in composition” and a “pure and easy home.”
Mount Frost
In nearby Markinch, Mount Frost is a detached house dating from the early 1990s. It has been extensively overhauled by Emma and Scott Gillespie who have turned it into their dream home.
Located in quiet cul-de-sac on the edge of Balbirnie Park it’s in a fantastic location. When Emma and Scott bought the house it had barely been touched since it was built.
“We had a real vision for it,” Emma explains. “When we got the keys the house had lots of small rooms. We wanted to knock down some walls and make a much more open space that the whole family could share.”
The house is spread over four levels, with the ground floor featuring a shower room and an office. On the first floor is a fantastic open plan kitchen, dining area and snug. Up another level is the formal living room, while the bedrooms are on the top floor.
The open plan kitchen/living area is the heart of the home and features full length sliding doors to the rear garden.
Emma, 36, and Scott, 41, live at Mount Frost with their children Howie, 7, and Torin, 2. “It’s perfect for children,” Emma says. “It’s a quiet, safe street and a nice neighbourhood. Being able to open up the kitchen to the garden means the kids can easily play outside too.”
Renovation works
The couple lived in while the renovation work took place. “I had our second child at the end of 2020 so that was our deadline for getting it finished and we made it – just,” Emma explains.
There were plenty of setbacks on the way, Emma says: “Tradesmen said they would be here and didn’t turn up. And the glazed doors in the kitchen took three weeks instead of one week, so we had a seven metre hole in our house for longer than expected.”
The end result was worth it though. “We really love our home,” Emma continues. “We’ve done renovations before and always tried to follow what was fashionable at the time, which didn’t really work.
“This time we’ve ignored fashion and gone with what we want for our home. And we absolutely love the result.”
The couple’s work drew praise from the judges, with Banjo Beale calling it a “vibrant home filled with colour and pattern and love.”
Emma and Scott are both big fans of Scotland’s Home of the Year. “We enjoy watching the show,” Emma says. “Homes are always very private places. Only your friends and family see them.
“I’m a really nosey person and I can’t walk by a lit-up window without having a glance inside. We thought it would be nice to be able to share our home with more people.”
Scotland’s Home of the Year is on BBC One Scotland on Monday at 8.30pm.
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