What Have We Dunoon

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What Have We Dunoon

We're a young couple taking on a BIG restoration project. Follow us for updates as we restore Jameswood Villa, in the beautiful town of Dunoon.
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25/06/2025

Well the pictures of the front garden went down well, so I thought I'd share some of the back. Plus Claire riding in like a hurricane for good measure. (the scooter isn't road legal yet so we were giving it a quick test in the garden).

rider

19/06/2025

Really appreciating some sunshine and the garden starting to come together. Luckily we both like the wild garden look which conveniently requires less maintenance. This has always been a special part of the project for us and one that will never end.

Wildflowers or weeds???

14/11/2024

Our TV Show "Accidental Renovators" is now available outside the UK!

We know many of you have supported us through our reno from around the world. We wanted to share an update for those of you who have been waiting to see our TV show from abroad.

Accidental Renovators is now available on

Amazon Prime in the United States
Tubi in Canada

It's hard for us to know where it's being shown outside the UK, so if you've found our show in your country, comment below!

Please like and share our eps, if you've enjoyed!

We will share a life uldate shortly, and hopefully be ready to share our next adventure soon!

In the meantime, our holiday rentals are open for bookings for 2025 😊
You can book a Stay at jameswoodvilla.co.uk

14/03/2024

Some more before an afters, because they're my favourite thing to flick through on Instagram!

This pink room is full of reclaimed materials we managed to use for our project. A friend was taking down a shed, that had perfectly good Kingspan in it - so we managed to use it in this lean-to. We also put all the salvageable original floorboards from the house into this room - which really paints a picture of how bad the rot was in Jameswood! Out of 180 sqm of house, we only managed to get 9sqm and some change of original floorboards!

This warm, cozy room is now a part of Flat one - book your stay at jameswoodvilla.co.uk

05/03/2024

This mattress has completely transformed our sleep!

Cal runs hot. On our old synthetic mattress, we would overheat, and have an uncomfortable, sweaty night's sleep.

The natural materials that make up this mattress help regulate your temperature and wick away moisture to keep you dry and comfortable.

It works in the same way that our sheep's wool insulation does for our home! Regulating temperature, and absorbing excess moisture, to keep our house dry and comfortable.

As an added bonus, the linen and h**p used to create these mattresses is grown right on Harrison Spinks farm, and they use traceable British sheep's wool, so that we can rest easy, knowing our mattress has been responsibly sourced.

01/03/2024

My favourite part of Instagram are the before and afters - so here's one from us! Complete with five years of aging 😂 we've gone from two kids in their mid-twenties to a set of adults(???) in their thirties! And with us, Jameswood has grown into a beautiful home - something that was very hard to imagine when we set out to restore her!

📷 Flat 1 of Jameswood Villa, you can now book a stay at jameswoodvilla.co.uk

08/01/2024

Finding our feet after a long, all encompassing renovation.

When we set out to restore Jameswood, we really did put our everything into this renovation. Over the past few years, it has been a big part of our life, and identity.

As the dust settles, it's time to figure out what life looks like after our renovation.

I had always been a bit afraid completion would create a massive void in our life. What would we do with all our time?! It turns out, this has not been a problem for us - life is busier than ever!

These past few months, we've been learning how to run our holiday rentals. Despite launching in off-season, we have had a surprising, very fortunate and welcome influx of bookings, and a positive response from guests!

We've started taking on paid contracts - our first being a knock-through and kitchen build at our good friends' new place. Though the sweat equity involved in building your own home is rewarding, it feels very good to be paid for work, and even nicer to be able to save, rather than have our cash swallowed up by Jameswood!

After a few t***s of a trombone at a party, Cal realised the instrument "spoke to him", and he has passionately taken up learning to play.

I have been finding immense joy in playing football with the local team. When joining, I immediately became part of a family, and this group has been an integral part of growing my sense of community and home here in Dunoon.

Lastly, we've taken some time for fun, rest and family. While I was hanging up my construction hat, my sister was throwing her graduation hat and landing her dream job. We finally had time to go on an adventure together and celebrate a new phase in life. We had the privilege of travelling to celebrate Cal's sister's wedding, as well as meeting our gorgeous baby nephew for the first time.

This next year, we are excited to explore more of Scotland, & to learn from some talented carpenters & builders! Oh... And I'm sure we will get round to those final tasks here at Jameswood... She isn't REALLY finished I suppose!

Right now, we are cherishing this peak in life. We feel so grateful and fortunate for the life and home we have here in Dunoon.

14/10/2023

Before & After of "The Board Room" stills - because as fun as Reels are, I like being able to see photos at my own pace!

And though this space is no longer dominated by the boardroom table - it will forever be remembered as the spot where we first started tackling this project. With morning meetings, whiteboard lists, workaway debriefs, and a few drinks on those dark, cold evenings - this was our first little pocket of home at Jameswood - before running water, electricity, or an outdoor kitchen.

It was also the first spot we gingerly took HUGE floor joists down from, and the first spot to have new joists take their place. I remember how daunting the ceiling in this space was to plaster - but with Cal as my plasterers mate, we took on the challenge, and I think it's one of the best ceilings in the house!

I love the way this space has turned out. With its neutral background and fun pops of colour. It's pattern in the kitchen tile, bold red door and fun lights. A big comfy sofa, to watch movies from the projector screen (that appears from the ceiling void with the click of a button!)

Sponsored items and design notes:
Walls: Pale Walnut
Red Door: Cinnabar
Green Kitchen: Olive
All from

Country Rustic tiles in China blue and cream by

Ardle Ripple Shade in yellow and red by

Curtains in Shani Olive by

Big comfy sofa by

10/09/2023

We're open for business! Visit jameswoodvilla.co.uk to book a stay 😀

Link can be found in our profile description!

This is what Cal and I have been working towards for years. We can't thank you all enough for your support throughout our journey. Jameswood would be nowhere near as special a space, had it not been for you joining us on our adventure.

We can't wait to share Jameswood with all of you, and for you to see how special this quiet corner of Scotland is. We have wholeheartedly fallen in love with this area, and we know you will too.

It's time to fill these walls with new memories - and we'd love for you to join us in doing so.

Each apartment has two bedrooms, and accommodates 4 guests. We've created a personal guide to the area, and will be making inflatable kayaks available for free, to all our guests, so that you can make the most of the stay.

We've had a photographer come and take photos of our two holiday rentals - we just couldn't do the space justice ourselves. We are looking forward to sharing them with you, when they become available!

Thank you again, for joining us in restoring Jameswood Villa. We can't wait to share our next adventure with you!

06/09/2023

With a bright, sunny and warm September rolling in, we're taking full advantage by getting some landscaping done!

This task was successful in neatening up the area between these two patio tiers, while also making the pile of joists we salvaged, that currently take up a lot of space in our backyard's "corner of doom", a little bit smaller.

It was nice to be able to reuse a piece of our home that could no longer really be structural timbers, but still has a bit of life left in them!

And I'm very glad this section of the yard is looking a little nicer!

13/07/2023

The Inspectors have SIGNED US OFF!!!

We can officially - legally - live in Jameswood and call her our home 😀😀

We have had many moments of joy throughout this project, and likely an equal amount tears - but these have been my first tears of joy. It was such an overwhelming and exciting moment for us.

With this sign-off, we can also, soon, welcome you to our home. We will be opening up our holiday rentals' booking website on Sunday, with availability starting mid-August!

We have loads to do to get everything ready for visitors, but we're excited to share with you our furnishing and finishing process over the next few weeks.

When we started this journey, I had no idea of the immensity of the task we were about to take on (that naivety was probably for the best, in some ways!) I had no idea of how powerful and life changing this journey would be for us. We have learned so much, about each other, ourselves.. And restoring houses. We've grown up in this time, we've learned how to problem solve, face challenges and just get on with it. We have made lifelong friendships, and become a part of amazing communities, both locally, and globally, online.

From the bottom of our hearts, and with our deepest sincerity, thank you. Thank you for joining us on our adventure, for supporting us at every step of the way. For every "well done" that has kept us going. Your support has made an immense difference to us, and it has been a privilege to share this journey with you all.

This isn't the end - we will share as we tackle our garden projects, and finish our our apartment, which has taken a seat on the back burner in the name of our holiday rentals. And though we dont know what lies beyond this journey, I am sure we will soon have new exciting adventures unfold, of which we welcome you to join us on.

Thank you.

26/06/2023

Adding a pop of colour to this bedroom, in this wall press which will have a clothes tail and a act as the perfect place to store a suitcase when you come and stay at our Holiday home!

Things are really starting to come together, and it's all a bit surreal.

This colour is Sienna, by

It provides a durable finish that's suitable for wood finishes in your home, without the headache-inducing smells caused by other VOC-heavy paints on the market.

Address

Jameswood Villa, High Road
Dunoon
PA23 8PN

Website

http://whathavewedunoon.weebly.com/

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