The proud burghers of Totnes like to claim the market town possesses more listed homes per head than any other place in the country. Among this architectural munificence a squat stone garage in a side street close to the walls of its Norman castle barely registered – until Lesley Holmes and Geoffrey Larder got their hands on it.

The couple decided that, despite having no experience of house design or
building, they could transform the mean space into a small but perfectly
formed contemporary holiday home.

The project was a giant risk. They bought the site without knowing whether
they would be permitted to convert it – and even if they could, their budget
was perilously tight.

They drew up the plans themselves and learnt every building trade from
plumbing to electrics in an effort to keep costs down.

The project took an exhausting – and sometimes exhilarating – four years. But
the result is a lesson in how to make the most of a tiny space.

And the couple are now in the happy position of owning a cut-price second home
in sought-after Devon, which they plan to let to holiday makers until they
retire and move in full time. And there is certainly a market.

According to estate agent Knight Frank demand for holiday lets in the
South-west was up 70 per cent in the early months of 2011 compared with the
same period last year. And despite the recession, second-home ownership in
England was still at the second highest level on record in 2010.

“I think that you need a certain amount of naivety to embark on this sort
of journey because if you really knew what you were taking on board you
would have second thoughts,” says Holmes.

“It took a lot of work on every level. It is a exciting thing to do and
when it turns out well, it is thrilling. But the sheer responsibility is
terrifying.”

The couple had moved from the Home Counties to Cornwall in 1990 in search of a
simpler way of life, trading in separate homes in Hertfordshire and Kent for
a stone farmhouse deep in the Looe Valley in Cornwall. Holmes, 55, a
freelance TV make-up artist, and Larder, 68, an actor whose CV includes
stints on The Sweeney and a role in the movie Mona Lisa, had a vague
ambition to build a modern property.

“We wanted to do something creative and we were doing a lot of research
into low-energy houses, primarily for environmental reasons but also because
we were foreseeing that energy bills were going to rise in the future – and
this was 15 years ago,” explains Holmes.

The couple regularly visited the Friday market in Totnes, 40 miles from their
home, and it was on one of these trips that they saw a ‘For Sale’ board
hanging over the garage. Their imaginations were instantly piqued.

The building had originally been a dwelling, later converted variously into
stables, a bakery and a store room. It was being used simply as a parking
space when they snapped it up in 2007, just as the property market had begun
to stutter.

“It had no planning permission so it was a huge risk,” says Holmes. “It
was basically just three old stone walls, and one concrete wall, and a roof
which had to come off.”

Because the garage was in a conservation area, they decided not to demolish it
but to work with what they had. They did not want to create a historical
pastiche and proceeded to break the first law of self-building by not using
an architect. Their only concession to professional qualifications was
hiring a local design firm to transform their sketches into drawings that
they could present to South Hams District Council.

Since the garage was just 30 square metres, maximising space was the key
issue. Fortunately, the council was supportive of doubling their useable
living space by adding an extra floor, plus a mezzanine level in the pitch
of the roof. Almost the only thing planners did insist on was that a garage
space was retained. Parking pressure in Totnes is so great that it wants all
new housing to come with off-street parking.

The ground floor is therefore mews style, with a garage and a shower room.
Stairs lead to the main open-plan living and kitchen area. A sleeping space
in the gallery above is lit by a triangular-shaped window embedded into the
rear gable wall.

The exterior is clad in hard-wearing, sustainable western red cedar, and the
high-spec doors and windows are timber clad in aluminium.

Planning consent was granted in 2007 and work started the following year. The
build cost a slender 95,000, partly because Holmes and Larder have done so
much of the work themselves. “We project-managed it. I was the quantity
surveyor; making all the decisions, such as how much liquid concrete we
would need,” says Holmes. “Making all the decisions was the
hardest thing – I was there checking the height of the eaves or the levels
of the floor, and we didn’t have an architect at the end of the phone for
support.

“We had to learn everything for ourselves. Every single trade, we either
took part in or did ourselves. So we had to do it bit by bit and we did a
lot of research, which is why it has taken us all this time really. It was a
long hard slog.”

Although the couple needed to keep costs under control, they were not,
however, prepared to skimp on design quality or finish. “The thing I
heard every single day from the builders was ‘don’t worry, you’re never
going to see it when it’s done’, but that was not the attitude we had,”
says Holmes. “We wanted it to be the best it could be.”

This sentiment is perhaps most obvious in the bespoke birch-based plywood
stairs. The couple wanted a “proper” staircase, feeling that
space-saving spiral versions would feel “precarious”.

They also desperately needed to maximise storage space and so they turned to
the architect-turned-furniture maker Jonathan Wright
(www.tandemstudio.co.uk). He suggested they make their two flights of stairs
double use, with concealed storage within. “It is brilliant, really,”
says Holmes. “We have got cupboards and drawers, full height hanging
space and, on the first floor, it doubles as kitchen units too.”

Wright designed the stairs and had the individual pieces laser cut off-site.
Then he acted as foreman while Holmes and Larder assembled them in situ,
sanded each section, and applied a hard wax oil finish.

Another crucial decision was over the mezzanine floor. The couple decided
against a traditional attic bedroom, which would have been larger, in favour
of an open gallery which means that, while the bedroom is cosy, part of
their main living space is double height.

“Having all that light and height in a small space is lovely and means it
doesn’t feel small at all,” says Holmes.

Perhaps the only downside is the prospect of one day swapping their roomy
four-bedroomed farmhouse for a one-bedroomed pied–terre, no matter how
smartly designed.

“Our house isn’t actually that big, and we have all the normal storage
you’d need in Totnes,” says Holmes. “The other thing is that it is
almost impossible to be environmentally friendly in an old stone farmhouse
and it is pretty chilly in winter. It will be brilliant to be in a
low-energy light-filled space.”

The Viewing Gallery is available for holiday lets, priced from 580 per
week. For information call 01579 342139 or see www.theviewinggallery.co.uk

Holiday homes with style

Mill House, Stalham, Norfolk – from 1,600 per week

Set on the banks of the River Ant, Mill House couldn’t sound more traditional:
a former mill-keeper’s cottage in the Norfolk Broads. That was until
architects Acme got their hands on it, creating a dark wood-clad extension.
Sleeps nine. www.themodernhouse.net

Pontfaen, Brecon, Wales – from 950 per week

Nicknamed the hovering house this showstopping five-bedroom property is in the
heart of the Brecon Beacons. Designed by architects Featherstone Young, with
distinct undertones of Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece Fallingwater. Sleeps
eight.www.themodernhouse.net

The Beach Haus, Burton Bradstock, Dorset – from 1,680 per week

An environmentally friendly Huf Haus – an open-plan space with acres of huge
windows – once featured on Grand Designs, with panoramic views of Chesil
Beach and room for eight people. Should the weather not hold, there is also
a cinema room and games room.www.uniquehomestays.com

Camel Quarry House, Padstow, Cornwall – from 3,000 per week

Modular house built of local stone and with a stunning roof terrace, plus
living area with 360-degree views of the Camel Estuary. Little luxuries
include a hot tub, barbecue area, private mooring for a boat and gardens
designed by Chelsea Flower Show gold medallist Mary Reynolds. Sleeps 16.
www.holidaylettings.co.uk