THE very first time Grace Cotter set eyes on Rockhouse in Kilmacsimon overlooking the River Bandon, she knew it was going to be home.
To most people it would have been nothing more than a rotting farm house, with a ’90s extension that was in dire need of a complete renovation, or demolition, but to Grace and her husband John it was love at first sight.
At the time the couple, who featured in the most recent series of RTÉ’s The Great Home Revival had been planning to build a family home in John’s native East Cork; and while Grace admitted to being a West Cork person in her heart of hearts, she felt it was the right move for them.
Grace owned a house on the South Douglas Road and the couple had worked out a plan which meant they could build, and still keep this house.
‘I remember being almost laughed at by the auctioneer when I went to buy the Douglas house, he said I’d never manage to do it on my own. I was so proud of myself that I proved him wrong. I was completely set on keeping it and having it as a retirement fund,’ she recalled.
That was the plan, but like all good plans, it got scrapped entirely when Grace’s phone pinged with a text on February 8th, 2022 during her lunchbreak in St Brogan’s in Bandon where she teaches Irish.
‘John is addicted to looking at properties on Daft.ie on his lunch break, and one day he sent me a link to Rockhouse. My instant reply, and I still have it on my phone, was “I’ll sell my house for that.” I was prepared to do anything to get that house, I knew straight away that I had to have it.’
Part of the attraction was that she grew up near Innishannon on the other side of the valley.
‘Rockhouse was near my parents, it was near the woods where I’d roamed with friends as a child. I was happy to go to East Cork but I knew my heart was here. This was my dream.’
They viewed the property that month, and they placed an offer shortly afterwards.
‘We were told that the sellers wanted to keep the house on the market for 12 weeks, and on the 11th week, another bid was made. We had always said our limit was €200,000 but when it reached that we had to ask ourselves what our dream was worth so we sold two properties, including Douglas, and went sale agreed in December ’22 on the house and two acres for €240,000.’
Grace and John, who runs his own landscaping business, are kindred spirits when it comes to seeing the bigger picture.
‘We never panicked about the amount of work that needed to be done – the wood work, the rewiring, replumbing, new heating needed etc. We backed each other – I knew he could do it, he’s a finisher, he sees things through, and he knew I could do my part. We trusted each other.’
John immediately embarked on the epic job of clearing the site which took months and months.
‘There were mountains of rubble and rubbish. He’d clear a layer, only to discover another layer,’ said Grace.
The couple got married in July ’22 and in her naivety, or perhaps trademark optimism, Grace had thought they’d have signed on the dotted line by then.
‘We hadn’t, but Rockhouse was very much part of our ceremony and got many mentions throughout the day which shows how much it was part of our lives from the very beginning,’ said Grace.
After the wedding, the couple, and their daughters Sophia (now 12) and Everly (now three) moved into a €7,500 mobile home in her parents’ garden to save on rent.
‘We sold pretty much all our furniture and initially had one camping chair for six weeks which we all fought over!’
For the coming weeks and months John worked around the clock on clearing the site, while Grace covered all childcare.
‘We went on holidays to Spain for nine days but John didn’t come as he was so focused on the work. He forfeited a lot but we had our eye on the end all the time.’
There was never a time the couple felt like quitting, but when Grace suffered a miscarriage at 13 weeks it was a difficult time for them both.
‘In some ways I blamed the house for what happened, but once I came to terms with the loss, the house gave us both great focus. When I had visions of the house, I had visions of the five of us in it, and for a time it felt like that was never going to happen, and that we’d never be happy again, but I suppose it was part of our journey, a chapter in the house’s journey, and we’ve really had a huge amount of success and happiness,’ she said.
With John completing a huge amount of work, after a challenge they finally secured a roofer in October 2023.
‘We weren’t able to get any work done for most of that summer which was very disheartening as we tried in vain to find a roofer, but we eventually found a brilliant one in Gavin O’Flynn, and work steam rolled after that.’
The couple added baby Samuel (14 months) to the family in January ’24, and Grace used the uninterrupted time during night feeds to browse for house items. She had in fact been squirelling furniture away for years and describes herself as a ‘thrift shopper.’
‘I was buying things for years at auctions and on Done Deal and on Facebook Marketplace. My parents have a container in the back and I’ve been sneaking things in there for ages!’
One source of stress during the restoration and renovation was the deadline that had to be met to avail of the Vacant Property grant. ‘You only get 13 months to make a home liveable, and that’s regardless of the size of the project which was tricky but we were delighted to avail of €70,000 for this home grant, €14,000 through the SEAI grant and €6,000 for a grant for a new well to be dug,’ said Grace.
The couple applied to be in ‘The Great House Revival’ when they were still in the process of buying Rockhouse.
‘That’s how convinced we were that it would be ours!’ said Grace.
Initially the couple had planned to include the renovation of a huge barn in the project, but architect and presenter Hugh Wallace persuaded them otherwise, as he felt it would gobble up too much of the budget. The couple agreed and focused their efforts on the main house, allowing them to finish the house to a much higher standard than they would have, had they pursued renovations of the barn as well.
Final filming for the show took place on September 23rd and 24th, 2024, and the family moved in on Sept 24th as filming wrapped and after John landscaped the property and planted 700 trees in an area lovingly called ‘The Grace Wood’, which is now maturing nicely with thousands of blue bells dotted all around.
Not surprisingly they’ve already embarked on renovating the barn, which is a former Coach House (pictured bottom right). In fact the main house itself was a former ‘gentleman’s’ residence, making Grace a ‘lady of the manor!’
The Coach House is taking shape now, slowly but surely. They have had conservation stone masons working there for a number of weeks and John has been busy digging out many layers of thick concrete. They have not decided what the building will become just yet but they knew they had to make the decision to get to work on it to make it safe.
In total the project cost them €283,000, of which €220,000 was spent on the house, which was further reduced to €130,000 with the help of grants. The rest of the budget was spent on external works and landscaping. If they had outsourced the work, the couple feel that figure would be closer to €600,000.
Rockhouse felt like home as soon as Grace stepped into its derelict hallway ‘I remember I looked out the door across the valley and I don’t know how, but I could just see myself and the family here, I knew this was home. It was the best decision we ever made.’
You can follow along their journey as they renovate the Coach House on their Instagram page @thecotters_rockhous
Grace’s top tips for renovating a property
Start a mood board
Begin by creating a mood board for each room. Use a notes app on your phone or a Word document on your laptop to gather ideas as you shop and look around.
Collect colour swatches and images that resonate with you, drawing inspiration from platforms like Pinterest, interior magazines, and local shops.
Frequent home decor shops
Regular visits to home decor shops can streamline your decision-making process. When it’s time to finalise tiles, flooring, or lighting, you’ll appreciate having made these choices in advance. By planning ahead, you can take advantage of sales and avoid rushed decisions.
Consider starting a ‘bottom drawer’ for essentials like bed sheets, towels, pots and pans to ease your financial burden when you move in – continue adding to this for the duration of the renovation and that way you won’t have such a big outlay when it comes time to move in.
Invest in key pieces
Prioritise spending on essential items that need to be durable, such as your bed or couch. While bargain finds can enhance your space, remember the adage ‘buy cheap, buy twice.’
Explore second-hand marketplaces and online auctions for unique statement pieces that will add character to your home.
Stay true to your vision
Avoid being swayed by trends or others’ opinions. For instance, when I painted our sitting room, including the ceiling, dark green, I faced scepticism. However, once completed, others appreciated the vision. Trust your instincts; it’s your home, after all.
Shop local
Don’t overlook local suppliers. I made most of my significant purchases in nearby towns like Kinsale, Bantry and Enniskeane where local businesses offered great deals and support. Their pride in their work made my experience even more rewarding.
Seek professional advice
While it’s your home, professionals can offer valuable insights. For example, moving our utility to the front of the house seemed odd, but it improved natural light in our kitchen and dining room and the overall functionality of our home. This change, suggested by Hugh Wallace, significantly enhanced our living space.
Take on DIY projects
Handle as much of the unskilled work as you can manage to reduce costs. If you believe you can tackle a project, give it a try. We saved a lot of money by doing a lot of the unskilled labour ourselves. Things like removing plaster, digging, stripping wallpaper etc can add to the cost for a professional to complete a job but these extra costs can easily be avoided if you have the time and the wherewithal to do it.
I will also add a caveat here, don’t hesitate to get multiple quotes for such work too. Sometimes, hiring a professional may save time and ensure quality results. You must weigh up where your time is best spent.
Preserve unique features
During renovations, keep any unique architectural elements that add character to your home. We salvaged old doors that had seen better days, and after restoration, they became cherished features. Their history enhances the charm of our space.
