For the second instalment of our ’10 questions’ series, we caught up with ‘Accidental Renovators’ Cal & Claire, better known amongst their 300k-strong Instagram community as @whathavewedunoon.


When the ambitious couple bid on the wrong property at auction and ended up with a derelict Scottish mansion instead of the apartment they’d originally planned to purchase, they embraced the immense renovation project as an adventure! 4 years, an incredible amount of work, and a TV show later, the duo finally moved into their home, also opening two holiday rentals so their dedicated online community could book to enjoy a piece of Jameswood Villa themselves.


Recently, we sat down with Claire to talk all things sustainable renovation, their biggest mistakes, standout moments, and most excitingly what the future has in store for Jameswood…


It’s so great to catch up with you guys! Tell us a little about yourselves…

We’re Cal and Claire. We met in the French Alps while working on ski season and have been enjoying life’s adventures together ever since. Our most recent being the completion of the major restoration to Jameswood Villa, a Victorian mansion that had been abandoned for about 25 years. Together, with the help of family and friends, we’ve spent four years bringing this building back to life.



You’re known as the ‘accidental renovators’ but how exactly did you come to accidentally buying Jameswood Villa?

Cal went to a property auction to bid on a fire-damaged apartment in Glasgow. Jameswood Villa was the lot before the apartment we had wanted to bid on, and the auction house added an extra apartment from the property to the auction last-minute. They had not updated the auction brochure, and Cal managed to raise his hand too soon, becoming the sole bidder for the unit that had been slipped in!



What was the ambition when taking on this mammoth project?

We hoped that we would be able to create an energy efficient home for ourselves, and to share with our friends and family – as well as create two holiday rentals. We were on a very tight budget and wanted to complete our restoration in as sustainable a way as possible.



We know you’re both passionate about sustainability. What are some of the environmental considerations you’ve made at Jameswood?

Our structural engineer told us to knock the building down and build a new – so I suppose our first sustainably-minded choice was to restore. From there, we chose to reclaim and refurbish as many materials as possible – including bathtubs, radiators, kitchen units and appliances, our flooring, and many period details throughout. We also chose to insulate to a very high standard, using sheep wool insulation and reclaimed insulation throughout. We chose natural materials in our interiors, including responsibly sourced fabrics from The Pure Edit and natural paints. We tried to create timeless interiors, using high-quality finishes that would last a lifetime.



Is there anything about the project you would’ve done differently?

We took all the cement render off our exterior walls so that the building could breathe and dry out. Our mistake was bulk buying our lime too early in the project. Some of the lime had gone off by the time we got round to repoint the building, and a whole gable end-worth of pointing crumbled off in the Winter! We had to redo a lot of the pointing the next Summer – it was a time-consuming mistake to make.



What’s been your favourite/stand out moment of the reno?

My favourite moment in our renovation was putting the last slate on our roof. When we had arrived at Jameswood, it rained just as hard inside the building as it did outside. It was very hard to store tools and materials, and work on rainy days until we re-roofed the building – and getting our building watertight was a huge milestone. We celebrated with a bottle of bubbly!



How does your home make you feel?

We are just so grateful to have a warm and dry home to call our own. It makes me especially happy when Jameswood is filled with family and friends – it’s such a special place to enjoy with everyone, and its extra meaningful, knowing the people that we love were all an important part of bringing our home back to life.



We love that you’ve incorporated our fabrics and cushions throughout your home. What made you choose The Pure Edit?

The Pure Edit was a natural choice for us. Our goal has always been to restore Jameswood in as sustainable a way as possible, and that goal extended to the interior finishes of our home. The Pure Edit made it so easy to create an environmentally friendly living space, with their carefully curated collection of fabrics that use responsibly sourced natural fibres, as well as recycled materials.



What can we expect from Cal & Claire, and Jameswood in the future?

We absolutely love Sandbank, and the surrounding area. It’s stunning scenery offers endless opportunities for outdoor adventure, and we have been lucky enough to find ourselves in a friendly and supportive community. Jameswood really feels like home. Although our own apartment still has a checklist of jobs that need finishing, we are so happy to have opened our two holiday rentals to guests this past Autumn. It is such a nice feeling to be able to share our home, and the gorgeous surrounding area with visitors from all over the world.
We also have an exciting new project on the horizon – so stay tuned!



Finally, what advice would you give to someone who is about to embark on their own renovation journey?

Whether you’re taking on a large-scale restoration or giving your interiors a refresh – renovations of any scale can be overwhelming. Especially at the beginning! Take things on bit by bit. If you just get one manageable task finished, then move onto the next, you’ll get there in the end!



If you are as inspired as we are and eager to know more about Claire & Cal’s exciting new project, you can keep up to date over on their Instagram @whathavewedunoon.