This beautifully finished family home was destined to be the culmination of an ambition to create his perfect home by owner Joshua Dunbar, but it simply set the spark for a new ambition, and the putting in place of plans to bring it to fruition.
‘The house was a three-bed detached when I bought it,’ Joshua says, ‘and I had planned for it to be my forever home, but making all the changes and putting my ideas into place has inspired me to go a step further and undertake a new build, so I can build want I want from the ground up.’
Having commenced the project with the firm belief that this would be his lifetime residence, Joshua has chosen to finish his property to the highest of standards, and his attention to detail ensures every room is beautiful.
‘I’m not a property developer,’ he says. ‘I did this for me. I bought my first home a few years ago and did that up to my own high standards and design tastes, and loved it, so quite quickly moved on to this one. I own my own mechanical installation company, and it’s going from strength to strength, so I’m now in the position to take my dream home on to the next stage.
‘I’ve really enjoyed working on this house. I’m a very hands-on type of guy – no matter what I do, I give it my all. I brought in the trades to do the work, and while I don’t micromanage, I’m definitely all over it. More so perhaps at the later stages though, when we get to the interior and interior design.’
Joshua didn’t use an interior designer in his home, but instead turned to social media – Instagram and Pinterest – to provide inspiration and help him marshal his thoughts.
‘I have quite firm views on how I like things,’ he says. ‘I like everything to be beautifully made and to have its place, and with attention to detail.
‘The only interior designer I worked with was from Stuart Frazer Kitchens. I saw this kitchen years ago, before I even bought this house and said to my then partner – I'm going to get that kitchen in the house that I buy. I showed them the kitchen I’d seen and then they designed it into the space, adding their own attention to detail.
‘I downloaded Instagram specifically to use for inspiration, to help focus my mind on what I wanted as the overall look and then the specifics for each space. With Pinterest you can see something and think, that’s what I want, but then you keep scrolling and get distracted, so you have to be very firm about what you want and just select images that meet your criteria. I screenshot all the photos on Instagram that I like, and then use these to find suppliers or direct joiners, for example.
‘The office and the downstairs bathroom, for example, I shared the screenshots and then fine-tuned them when briefing the teams. The huge headboard I’d seen on Instagram and then found a company through Google who could do it. I always wanted a floor-to-ceiling headboard, they just break the room up really well.’
It looks stunning, as does the fireplace, the wrought iron balustrade, the dressing room...
‘I found some excellent companies to work with, and they’ll definitely be a part of the team on my next property. The office, the media unit and the dressing room were all built for me by Stirling Furniture Design, who do bespoke, handcrafted fitted furniture and could therefore deliver the vision I had for each of those rooms. I’d seen the media wall on their Instagram and asked them to then do the other rooms. They’d send me their plans and I would have the chance to make my changes, adding the detail important to me.
‘The banister railings I found on Instagram as well and invited them over to design one for me.
Joshua admits to the guilty pleasure many of us enjoy – scrolling though Rightmove. He doesn’t use it for wishful thinking however, he uses it for visual inspiration.
‘I saw a house in Wilmslow years ago,’ he says, ‘and screenshotted the front elevation. I thought, I want that house. And now this house looks almost exactly like it from the outside. I use Rightmove for inspiration and for motivation.’
The house offers a blend of the open plan living so many of us want, alongside a separate living room and home office, a vital element for those who now work from home for all or part of their week. A glorious kitchen with dining space and relaxing zone spans the entire rear of the house, opening out onto gardens designed by a local landscaping firm. Facing the kitchen and dining zone, a central fireplace acts as a screen to the sofas, creating zoning without barriers.
‘We had to have a column or something there, as a ceiling support,’ Joshua says, ‘I’ve had it finished in polished plaster and it breaks the room up really well.’
Upstairs, there are four bedrooms, one en-suite, and one which Joshua has utilised as a dressing room.
Having created such a beautiful home, does Joshua not want to spend some time enjoying it now?
‘I’m in no hurry to sell,’ he says, ‘but I have already started my next project, so if somebody loves it... It’s this house that has given me the courage to step on to the next. Knowing what I know now, and having found great teams to work with I’m ready to take the next step – and it’s going to be a big one.’
29 Chapel Lane is for sale for offers in the region of £1,895m, thornleygroves.co.uk
