TV HOUSE EXCLUSIVE

I N B R I E F –L O C A T I O N Near Ely, Cambridgeshire T Y P E O F P R O P E R T Y Detached single-storey house B E D R O O M S 3 P R O J E C T S T A R T E D Autumn 2019 P R O J E C T F I N I S H E D August 2021 S I Z E 187sqm L A N D C O S T £125,000 B U I L D C O S T £450,000

retta Funnell has built her own piece of paradise in the Cambridgeshire Fens. Her new home is a spacious and airy single-storey house called Sayang, which means ‘the most loved’ in Malay.

Gretta, 60, who is a teacher, and her late husband Ray spent almost 20 years living and working in Malaysia. But following Ray’s sudden death in 2019, she returned to the UK at a loss to where she should put down new roots.

Gretta’s elder sister Mary Gris, 63, and her husband Fernando, 64, proffered an invitation to come and live with them

Gin a village near Ely. After the collapse of their business in the 2008 financial crash, they were forced to downsize to a caravan in the garden, renting out their house to pay off their debts. Gretta’s new home was to be an adjoining caravan, and she accepted the offer with gratitude. ‘I’ve known Fernando since I was nine years old,’ she says. ‘He was at school with my brother and used to come and stay with us during the holidays. Mary and Fernando have been together since the age of 14, so we have all grown up together. He’s always been part of the family.’ Shortly before Gretta returned to England, Mary and Fernando had begun

ABOVE The kitchen features charcoalgrey units, built-in appliances and quartz worksurfaces, with slim Chart chandeliers providing task lighting for the island working on plans to build a new house where the two caravans stood. It would then be sold, allowing the couple to pay off their debts and move back into their family home.

‘Soon after my return, I realised Ely would be a good place for me to settle,’ says Gretta. ‘I asked Mary and Fernando whether I could buy the plot myself. And they said that would be amazing.’

The local authority gave permission for a home to be built on the site providing it was no higher than the caravans. Unable to find a prefabricated house design that she liked, Gretta turned to her nephew for help. Mary and Fernando’s son Carlos, 36, has a degree in architecture and is creative director of his own design studio in London.

‘When I told Carlos I wanted the house to be streamlined and contemporary, he was really surprised,’ says Gretta. ‘He thought I would go for something much more traditional.’

Carlos drew up designs for a minimalist, open-plan home. Built on a steel frame, it features lots of glazing and an overhanging roof made from structural insulated panels

ABOVE Gretta’s bedroom has a tropical feel thanks to the jungle-print bed linen and exotic planting in the garden LEFT A freestanding bath with a floor- mounted tap sits in front of the window in the main bathroom. Blinds provide privacy he laughs. ‘Most of the time, my dad was stepping out of his comfort zone and showing me that anything is possible if you put your mind to it. He was back on site only a few days after having knee replacement surgery, which was inspiring.’

Fernando also learnt a lot from the process. ‘My advice for anyone taking on a job like this would be to draw up a careful budget, have it approved by a quantity surveyor and then review it regularly,’ he says. ‘Making a detailed spreadsheet means that you can manage it carefully and be eagle-eyed with suppliers.’

Gretta admits that there were a few stressful moments along the way. There was a mix-up with the windows, which led to extra costs. ‘But the biggest stress was having to cut down Fernando’s beloved old apple tree,’ she says. ‘There was no way we could build the house without felling it, but he was very upset. I did buy him a new one to make up for it.’

Although Sayang sits perfectly in the Cambridgeshire countryside, it has definite echoes of Malaysia. ‘The big windows, the tiled f loor and high ceilings are the main elements that remind me of our home there,’ says Gretta. ‘Then there’s the overhang, which gives shade on a sunny day and, unless you’re very unlucky with the direction of the wind, allows you to sit out and watch the rain too.’

Mary and Fernando are pleased to have settled back in their own house, and Gretta, who is now working part-time at a primary school, is delighted with her new home. ‘Sayang has become everything I dreamed it would be,’ she says. ‘It’s a very happy home where I will create many new memories in the years to come. I feel sure that Ray would have loved it.’

Plans for the roof terrace include raised beds and seating. Gretta planted a soft border between her home and Mary and Fernando’s next door

PROJECT TEAM Design Carlos Gris Studio (carlosgris.studio) Landscaping Grow Gardens (growgardens.co.uk) Architectural detailing support Tony Walton and James Rixon (rixon-architecture.com) Engineer JMS Engineers (jmsengineers.co.uk) Internal decoration Avis Decorators (avisdecorators.co.uk) Electrician Theo Bailey (07973 725150) Roofing Norfolk Flat Roofing Solutions (norfolkflatroofing.co.uk) Plasterer DBH Plastering (dannyhatleyplastering.co.uk)

S U P P L I E R S

STRUCTURE Carpentry and cladding installation Kings Carpentry (07810 743088) Shou sugi ban cladding Exterior Solutions (exterior.supplies) SIPs SIPs Building (sipsbuilding.co.uk) Structural steel Ian Cross Services (iancrossservices.co.uk) Glazing Maxlight (maxlight.co.uk) Block and beam insulation Kingspan (kingspan.com) Internet, alarm system and security cameras BM Aerial & TV Services (01353 863922) Heating Eco Installer (ecoinstaller.co.uk) Drains and septic tank Drainstore (drainstore.com) FIXTURES AND FIT TINGS Kitchen and utility room Wren (wrenkitchens.com) Bathrooms Port Plumbing (portplumbing.co.uk) Floor and wall tiles Checkalow Tiles (checkalow.co.uk) Living room electric fire Ivett & Reed (ivettandreed.co.uk) Internal doors Armada Door Hardware (armadadh.com) Front door Express Bi-Folding Doors (expressbifolds.co.uk) FURNITURE AND ACCESSORIES Sofa, dining table and beds Reeds Furniture and Bed Centre (reedshomestore.co.uk) Kitchen island lights Christopher Wray (christopherwray.com) Blinds Sunrise Blinds (sunriseblinds.co.uk)