Renovating a rundown old cottage hidden somewhere in the south Wales valleys into a family home almost twice the size would be stressful enough - but add in a pandemic, pregnancy and a Channel 4 film crew and the stress levels must be through the roof, or what's left of it.
Enter Sarah Beeny and the Channel 4 programme Sarah Beeny's Little House, Big Plans which aims to showcase normal homes that have become something special and a 'grand design' without the massive project budget - sometimes a well-thought out extension is the only big plan you need for your little house.
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Becca and Dan were tempted out of the city to Taffs Well, Rhondda Cynon Taf, by a characterful but rundown former railway cottage that they fell in love with as soon as they saw it - they knew it had potential so bought it for £325,000.
The cottage originally had a kitchen and one, small open-plan living area and on the first floor, three tiny bedrooms and a bathroom. Since the purchase in 2018 the couple have totally gutted the property, tearing down almost every wall and have increased the space with a supersized extension.
The couple have thrown everything and more at the renovation project to expand their home for their soon to be expanding brood, from a small cottage into a food sized family home with four bedrooms, and from one child to two. At the time of the renovation and Sarah's first filming visit the three members of the family were living on site in a one-bed cabin - not the classic rusty caravan during the 'wettest/coldest/windiest winter on record' as regularly happens on other property renovation programmes, but cramped and stressful nonetheless.
Add in the pandemic and working from home as well as a growing baby bump and a toddler running around and it is a project that can soon bring enormous amounts of stress to the site.
Sarah visits and is concerned, saying: "It's a lot on their plate! I really sympathise with Becca, who seems to be juggling so much at the moment. Her and Dan have clearly spent years dreaming of their open-plan living space but with any design it's worth remembering considering function as well as form, day-to-day family life can be almost impossible if you don't get the balance right."
So far the project has taken over a year and time is not on their side, with Dan working from home in the cabin and Becca doing the dual role of mum and project manager. Every single wall on the ground floor has come down, but now they are left with a shell that they need to fill to complete the quaint cottage transformation into hybrid contemporary and characterful home.
At the time Sarah first visited the couple, the plan was a central staircase with utility and cloakroom below, a snug to one side and an open-plan living space on the other incorporating kitchen, dining and lounging that then, through two walls of glass, leads out onto the garden terrace.
Upstairs the plan was for a master bedroom with ensuite and balcony, two children's bedrooms and a family bathroom; that was until Sarah turned up.
Her first golden nugget of advice is valuable: design for 10 years time, for when the children are becoming teenagers and the space needs to work for them and the whole family. So doors that fold are worth considering, so you can separate off some of the space.
Another Beeny brainwave was to move the door in the utility room directly opposite the front door so the family don't have to traipse through the kitchen with a buggy, wet shoes and shopping. Lastly, four bedrooms rather then three upstairs would be the ideal, adding value as well as flexibility for the future.
The stairs are already in place and to get to them needs navigating behind the sofa so Sarah suggests turning them around - eight weeks too late for Becca and the builders but Sarah is still keen that they should be turned so they can be accessed directly from the front door. Sarah is worried for the family, as forward planning for design and layout of a renovation, as well as project managing is a lot to juggle, with everything else going on too.
Becca is now calm about the situation, having had a panic about two months before Sarah turned up, realising the baby was going to win the house race and then there was no point in stressing too much because they had come to terms with the fact that they were not going to be in the cottage before the baby arrives.
Sarah describes the project as 'one epic build', a massive build using an amazing amount of steel beams for the size of the house, but that could not have even come anywhere near completion if it wasn't for Dan's bricklayer dad getting onsite and moving it forward. But steel costs money and with the Covid-19 pandemic, the spiralling costs of materials due to the pandemic and with the baby on its way they have no choice but to hire a team of contractors to get them over the line and this totally blows the budget. Becca says: "When you see the spreadsheet and the numbers going up and up it is quite stressful and worrying!"
The initial renovation budget was £80,000 and Sarah looks amazed and so she should be as Becca admits they probably spent that before a wall was even put up. Now she estimates the cost could be anywhere between £200,000 and £300,000 once they have finished.
Sarah says: "We're talking some serious money but there's no guarantee the house will be worth the £600k they've spent when they finish. Becca and Dan's hopes and dreams for their family are all tied up in these unplastered walls, they may have gone over budget but you can't but a price on creating your perfect home if you can afford it."
Eighteen months on and it's been a tough journey in so many ways, so when Sarah returns it's not a surprise to find out that the couple haven't finished, although the kitchen is in and the walls are up including all four bedrooms. The couple now have a son but he was ill after he was born with a chest infection and was in intensive care in hospital at just five weeks old. Thankfully he overcame the infection. and after a terrifying few weeks for the family, it put the house project into perspective. Becca understandably says: "I couldn't have cared less about it at that time - does it really matter what skirting boards I've got - as long as it's warm and comfortable, it doesn't matter!"
Sarah is impressed and relieved, saying: "Well done for getting through that, sounds as though it was pretty gruelling. Upstairs in particular is a triumph - you should pat yourself on the back, you've done really well, and made another baby too!
Dan and Becca took on a massive building project and I think it's fair to say that they have been drowning in it but they're not unlike lots of other people who over the last year have found it incredibly difficult. They're not far off now from the end result, which will be a beautiful home for them all to enjoy. I've seen enough homes to know that when this house is finished, all their hard work will be worth it.
All episodes of Sarah Beeny's Little House Big Plans are now available to watch on All 4. And don't miss the best dream homes in Wales, renovation stories and interiors, join the Amazing Welsh Homes newsletter which is sent to your inbox twice a week.
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