Building projects are not normally renowned for being ‘joyous adventures’ but David and Suzanne say their experience in Fife has been exactly that
TEXT Nik Hunter IMAGES Robert Perry
The couple’s self-build adventures commenced in August 2021 when the couple purchased a bungalow in the coastal town of Anstruther in Fife. “Covid made us realise we could live somewhere other than London,” David recalls. The couple had been thinking about retiring and while they loved the sea, had already discounted Cornwall or Devon as being too touristy. “We have friends who live in Cellardyke, and we’d been coming up here a couple of times a year for about 10 years; we thought why not buy a house by the sea?”
However, finding a home by the sea wasn’t as straightforward as David and Suzanne anticipated. In 2021 David did a motorbike recce around the Fife coastline and quickly realised that there weren’t that many properties by the sea or that fitted their wish list, which included having some sort of garden. “I think we always thought we’d buy an old fisherman’s cottage but as we started viewing them, we realised that they’re located right on the street with no parking and no garden,” Suzanne remembers. “They also have very beautiful, thick walls, small rooms, crazy staircases and limited scope to renovate.”
Limited scope wasn’t what this couple were looking for, they wanted a project and when a traditional-style, 60s bungalow came on the market in Anstruther it seemed to tick all the boxes. David and Suzanne sent friends to have a look and the feedback was that it was all about the view. The couple didn’t see their new home in the flesh until after they had purchased it. “It was clear from the outset that we had bought a view with a not very attractive little bungalow attached to it. However, we thought it had the potential to be a beautiful house with a view,” says Suzanne.
Before the ugly duckling could become a swan, there was a lot of dirty work to be done. Initially the couple had thought they would stay in London while the renovations were carried out, but the excitement proved too much, and they moved into a rental property across the road from their new home. In December 2022 the builders moved in.
The couple had interviewed a couple of builders and settled with Robert Moncrieff of RM Contractors. “We just really liked him,” says Suzanne. “He has a small team of about four, he knows all his subcontractors really well and the finish was fantastic.”
For the bungalow redesign, David and Suzanne worked with Fermín Beltrán Dos Santos at Fife Architects and their brief was relatively straightforward, as Suzanne explains: “As light as possible, maximise the views, space for all our paintings and let’s try and do it as environmentally friendly as possible.”
While the builder and architect hadn’t worked together previously, all three parties quickly established a good relationship as Suzanne recalls: “We were totally swayed by the feeling that you can trust and relate to someone. When we spoke to Fermín, I had that feeling and it was the same with the builders. I felt very trusting of all the people that worked with us.”
To get the ball rolling, the couple provided Fermín with some sketches of their own and while they were in agreement about a large open plan living space, they had located the kitchen at the front of the house. “Fermín told us that everywhere we were going to live during the day should be at the back to enjoy the views,” says Suzanne. “‘Put the bathroom at the front – you don’t need a view from the bathroom.’ However, I did have a romantic notion of putting the bath at the window so I could look out to sea – and then I remembered we also overlook a golf course!”
David continues: “We wanted to give Fermín a chance to design something with some scope, and that was what he wanted too. We didn’t push him, but he quickly realised what we liked.” Some of Fermín’s suggestions included the overhang over the deck, the sheltered outdoor space outside the bedroom and the Crittal-esque windows. “So many new builds along the coast have balconies and they never get used because it’s too windy. As Fermín lives locally, he was accustomed to the wind direction, and he knew precisely where to give us shelter.”
Fermín’s redesign also included extending and converting the original garage into a kitchen, pantry and utility space and adding an extension along the back of the house to incorporate a large dining area and outdoor terrace. The spare room is also located to the rear of the property and dolphins have already been spotted from the window. At the front of the house is the main bathroom and a TV room.
On the upper storey is the principal bedroom with that all important view out to sea and a second spare bedroom.
While the aim was to be as environmentally friendly as possible there have been a few concessions as David explains: “There’s still a lot of steel and concrete in the building but we’ve eliminated gas by installing an air source heat pump and solar panels.” Triple glazing has been fitted throughout and the house is now efficiently insulated. A wood burning stove and underfloor heating ensure that the ground floor is kept to a pleasant, ambient temperature.
While the couple were happy to take on Fermín’s ideas about the location of the rooms, David and Suzanne had clear ideas about how their new open plan kitchen and dining space would come together, as Suzanne explains: “In our house in London (a three storey townhouse) the kitchen and dining room were separate. David does all the cooking, and I would drag a chair through to the kitchen and get in his way.” Suzanne’s vision for the new space was for a large dining table where she could sit and keep David company while he cooked and with lots of space for entertaining. “This is exactly what I envisaged. The living room is a more formal space, but the dining area is where everyone comes and sits around the table.” The dining table is also a rather special focal point as the wood to make it came from The Smuggler’s Inn in Anstruther. A friend’s son who is a furniture maker made the table out of it.
As head chef, David took the opportunity to design a generously proportioned kitchen, with a large cooker, lots of workspace and low-level storage. “Initially, I worried there wouldn’t be enough storage without wall units, but we also have a walk-in larder with sliding doors along with a utility room, so space hasn’t been an issue.”
Before David even made it to Anstruther he had started planning and researching his kitchen and he was keen to try a plywood version. “I discovered there were many companies that work with IKEA kitchen carcasses and customise plywood doors to fit them.” David narrowed his search to ThreeFourFive Furniture in Glasgow which comprised a group of former art students who were now building their own kitchens. “We visited their workshop and chatted to them for a couple of hours, and we came away knowing that we were going to get our kitchen hand-built.”
The finished kitchen is a combination of oak veneer and ply with laminate and composite worktops. “ThreeFourFive were so flexible. They bought the orange pieces when they were doing another kitchen and said we’ll just build yours when you’re ready and that’s exactly what they did.”
With an aversion to traditional corner cupboards and a large collection of ceramic dishes that deserve to be on display, the quirky corner detailing and shelving is the perfect solution. Surprisingly, this hand-crafted design didn’t break the bank either, as Suzanne explains. “It was very competitively priced – and it’s great quality as well,” she enthuses.
Suzanne continues: “It’s quite funny when people ask us about the project, and we say that the house was finished before it was meant to be because we had the best builders in the world.” However, although the build came in on time, unlike the kitchen it didn’t come in exactly on budget as Suzanne explains: “The budget was blown but that was entirely up to us. Every single time there was a choice, we’d look at what was specified, start shopping around and find something three times the price!”
It has been worth it however, as Suzanne describes the move as “life changing.” After taking up residence in July 2023, Suzanne decided to take her retirement a couple of
years earlier than planned and finally left London in December. Since then, she’s been taking full advantage of her seaside location. “The light has been a revelation! We’ve been up at 5 am, because it’s so light, and the light is different here; it’s lovely. The other great thing is jumping over the wall and going for a swim.” Her social life is also expanding as she explains: “David has already started making a good circle of friends but mine is understandably smaller because I haven’t been here as much, but that’s changing now. You have to make
the commitment.”
David is also enjoying his new life and his new home as he explains: “I really enjoyed the project; however, we thought it was going to be a relatively small job but essentially it’s been a rebuild.” says David. “Living across the road, I was very involved. There were a few stressful moments but overall, it’s been really enjoyable.” Suzanne adds: “We are so lucky to have had great architects, so lucky to have found a great builder and have great neighbours – all in all it really was a joyous adventure.”