It looks like a very ordinary end-of-terrace house from the outside, but inside it’s kitted out like a royal palace
It looks like a seemingly ordinary terraced house from the outsdie(Image: John Myers)
A couple has spent 27 years transforming their normal-looking terraced house into a stunning stately-style home. Royston Jones and Fiona Gray bought their property near to Swansea, Wales almost three decades ago and set out to turn it into their dream home.
Since then, the pair have been creating a unique interior that transports visitors into what feels like a royal palace.
Hidden behind its unassuming exterior lies years of artistic work carried out by the couple to create their beloved abode, which Royston describes as doing ‘just for fun and to bring joy’.
Reflecting on their home’s transformation, Royston explains: “When we arrived many original features were ripped out but there were some of the interior features left, like the panel doors and the just one or two sort of decorative things so I just thought, ‘well, come on, let’s decorate it, because it’s so dull’.”
Sign up to our Manchester property newsletter here
The pair have certainly achieved that goal in spectacular fashion – using countless buckets of plaster and PVA, reports Wales Online.
Upon entering and witnessing the elaborate plasterwork detailing and artistic creations adorning the ceilings and walls throughout much of the house, visitors are struck by sheer amazement.
Their desire to craft a miniature stately home within their Welsh terrace stems from Royston’s ancestry and their artistic careers.
However, their residence proves that the couple aren’t just ordinary artists, but extraordinary model makers as well, having crafted room and home models in 1:8 scale for royalty and the rich and famous.
Royston Jones and Fiona Gray inside their abode that has stately home decor(Image: John Myers)
Royston explains: “I’ve always loved stately homes. I was an unwanted child, I didn’t know anything about my background until much later on in my life. And then I discovered that the people I came from were avid builders in the 18th century.
“They built a whole load of mansions and stuff up in Cardiganshire, which is where I hail from originally, and I think you just inherit stuff like that. And I’ve always loved architecture and I’ve always loved the interiors of particularly neoclassical late Georgian stately homes from 1760 to 1800, I think that’s how it started.”
The duo’s expertise in creating exquisitely detailed models has attracted clients including Lord Rothschild and the Spencers, Princess Diana’s family, with many projects demanding years rather than months of painstaking labour.
Fiona explains: “I am patient in nature, but there was one particular part of a room with a dome, which we had to cast in fibreglass, and it was a complete nightmare. We did it about three or four times, and it just took so much time.
“But we had to get it right, for our own satisfaction and also, and most importantly, for the client we were working for. It’s just something that is just part of us, you know, if something needs to be unpicked and redone, we’ll just do it.”
The ceilings have crafted with meticulous detail(Image: John Myers)
Within their own home, one of the most captivating features is the stunning ceilings and walls.
Fiona reveals that creativity stems from various sources, as she explains: “We’ve made a great study into the works of 18th century architect James Wyatt, plus the contemporary architects of the 18th century, so we’ve got a very large photographic archive covering all of that period. For inspiration for a design that’s where we go; to our archive.”
The ceilings command your gaze, featuring panels and ceiling roses, from decorative moulding to artwork within the composition crafted by Royston.
“We do it standing on chairs and ladders and stuff. So when we did the staircase, which is an enormously high space, we got a builder to put some planks and ladders up so we could reach the ceiling, and that was terrible because I’m not very good at heights,” he explains.
“But overall it’s such fun and it’s such a lovely thing to make and you just get carried away, you don’t worry about your stiff neck, you just get on with it.”
Both artists acknowledge that the most demanding aspect of creating each design and bringing it to life is the extremely precise measuring needed.
The front room decorative ceiling(Image: John Myers)
“It’s got to be accurately measured out, and it’s got to be symmetrically placed on the ceiling, in the space that you have. You can’t be an inch out, really, you can’t, it has to be very, very symmetrically placed,” Royston explains.
“And when the design joins different elements together you’ve got to make sure that you try to make the join as invisible as possible. It’s all about mathematical accuracy, as much as you can achieve, really.”
The creations are crafted from a mixture of plaster, moulded pieces and even cardboard, with Royston blending the paint to achieve the precise colour they’re after, and each ceiling or wall can require between three to five weeks, depending on the layers of detail incorporated into the design. The majority of the sections within a design are then fixed using either PVA glue or UHU glue.
“The cornicing and the friezes are the worst, they’re always long winded because of all the intricacy of the beading and the details such as leaves and urns – all those ornaments have to be cast and dried and stuck on,” continues Royston.
“The ceilings are fairly straightforward, as long as you measure it up correctly – if you don’t measure it out and you just stick things on, you realise that it’s in the wrong place, then it’s all got to come off and you’ve got to start again.”
Royston explains that Fiona handles more of the detailed work, saying: “She does the casting. She’s very good at casting, she’s a bit of a genius. I don’t do any of the casting, I just model the ornaments and she creates them. And that takes as long as it takes. And then you’ve got to let it dry. That’s the boring bit. It takes a couple of days, two or three days sometimes.”
Decorative ceiling and chandelier at Royston Jones and Fiona Gray’s Swansea home(Image: John Myers)
Fiona adds: “I’m just sitting there making these ornaments, in some cases hundreds of these things, and you get to thinking, ‘well, when will I ever finish this’? But, you know, the finished result is always very much worth all the repetitive effort, and it’s all just part of the project.”
The duo have one final room left to complete to their satisfaction but are determined that the kitchen and bathroom won’t be following the grand manor style that flows through the rest of their property.
When guests arrive and step inside this seemingly ordinary terraced house, Royston explains they’re typically greeted by the same response.
“Well, mostly people don’t say anything – they’re kind of struck dumb. But it’s nice to get a bit of feedback, you know, when people do come and look at it and are captivated,” he says.
“One or two (people) think we’re showing off and that is hurtful. We’re not showing off. We’re not people who do that. We just want to give people joy and pleasure, the pleasure of having a look at it. That’s all. We’ve got nothing to show off about, we’re very modest people.
“It’s done for fun and to give people joy and to show people that the world can be quite a beautiful, magical place in your home. This is about love. It’s not about showing off.”
Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE
