Things don’t stand still for long at Daisy Joy…

Following the completion of our development project at, what is now, Edgar House, we couldn’t wait to start the next one (or in fact, two!)

We have currently got these exciting projects in build, one in beautiful Cumbria and one in Anglesey. We find the process fascinating, so we thought we would share some of our progress with you – who doesn’t love a before, (during) and after comparison?!

We are passionate about creating amazing spaces that people love spending time in, and this starts from the ground up, by establishing a top-class team that produce the highest quality product – and we are fortunate to have this in place.

This article focuses on our Cumbrian development project to date, Anglesey will follow in the coming weeks…

The History of Eskdale Vicarage & the Proposal for it’s Future

Located in Beckfoot, at the heart of Eskdale Valley, the former Eskdale Vicarage was once at the heart of this Lake District community. The property was sadly allowed to fall into disrepair over the years, but we are delighted to be breathing new life into the old walls! The new design, with the help of Richard Foster Architects, incorporates a full restoration and renovation of the original Vicarage and the adjacent coach house, with a modern two storey side extension and single storey extension to the rear, bringing the property into the 21st century.

Insights from ‘On The Ground’

We spoke to Mark, owner of Daisy Joy, as well as Richard Foster, our architect, to find out more about more about the progress to date – what has gone well, what has been challenging, and visions for the future. It is fascinating to hear these two different perspectives, and the differences (and many similarities) in their experiences of the project.

What is your vision for the project?

Mark: To create a wonderful Lakeland home. A property that respects its history as Eskdale Vicarage but also has a Scandi-chic feel that effortlessly fits in with the magnificent landscape in which it sits. I want the house to feel luxurious, calming and natural – creating an environment perfectly suited for relaxing and laughing with family and friends after days of adventures – hiking, cycling, wild swimming, fishing and exploring.  The house will be fully equipped for luxury modern living and relaxing – including a ski style boot room to dry clothes after those exhilarating days on the fells. I hope that people who stay won’t want to leave – but when they do, they’ll go home recharged, weather beaten, relaxed, happy and with great memories. 

Richard: The fundamental principal behind the scheme is to provide a luxury, high-end, home from home experience, in the heart of the Lake District. It is situated away from the tourist hotspots, but sits at the base of some of the best walks in the Lake District, (Harter Fell, Cringle Crags, Bow Fell, Scafell Pike etc). Geared towards lovers of the outdoors, it has been designed to accommodate serious fell walkers and mountain bikers, with drying rooms, kit rooms, wet and dry entrances, secure bike stores with wash down facilities etc, as well as hotel style luxuries such as a cinema room, sauna, steam room, jacuzzi, and immaculately presented ensuite bedrooms, all with spectacular 360-degree views of the surrounding valley. 

What’s happened so far – how far have you got? And how long until completion?

Mark: We successfully obtained planning permission and have our builder on site, with work well under way. Both the house and coach house have been completely stripped back to original stone walls. The roof on the house has been taken off and put back on again and entire back walls of the house has been removed. New foundations have been laid and steels are going in, to create our huge glazed kitchen, lounge and dining space. We had hoped that works would be complete by end April 2023. However, to be expected, with a large and complicated building project like this, there have been many delays, with an updated (projected!) completion date of July 2023.

Richard: In order to bring the property up to modern standards, in terms of heating, insulation, and level of finish, the entire property is being taken back to stone. Full thermally insulated, with new roof, floors, windows, heating system, etc, and put back together again to an extremely high standard. As part of the design, there will be a modern full width extension to the rear (to the open plan kitchen dining, living area, largely consisting of huge sliding glass doors, that can be pulled all the way back to bring the outside in during the summer months). We have finished all the strip out and demolition works, and have just started putting the roof back on/the whole building back together again.

What has been easier than you expected?

Mark: I think the only thing that has been easier than expected is the planning process. My excellent architect, Rich Foster, produced a great design and put together an excellent design and access statement. The local planners were supportive and I think pleased with the plan to breathe new life into old vicarage that had been empty and derelict for many years. Aside from that, nothing else has been easy!

Richard: Design and planning yes, construction no! More on that below…

What hasn’t gone so smoothly?

Mark: Being in the remote (but beautiful) Western side of the Lake District, Eskdale is not an easy place to access, which of course is one of its great strengths! However, it was hard to find a builder and many suppliers seem to hike up the cost to reach the property. Some builders and suppliers just weren’t interested in the project at all because of its location. However, we have been lucky to find and to be working with an excellent local builder, Simon Mawson. Like everybody else, we have suffered and continue to suffer with shortages of materials, delays in delivery and huge price increases caused by the triple whammy of Brexit, Coronavirus and now the terrible war in Ukraine.

Richard: As mentioned about, delays in early phase of construction. There have been lot of issues that presented themselves early on, which pushed the process back a bit, including the entire rear section of the building having to come down and be re-built, due to the existing structure being too dangerous to prop up. However, everything that could have been uncovered along the way now has been, so the process of putting the building back together again should accelerate from here. 

Any interesting/funny/unusual anecdote to report from the project so far?

Mark: It’s been interesting to discover a little more about the history of Eskdale vicarage, with plenty more research still to do. I understand that the Eskdale Parish was created in 1747 but the first church at Eskdale is thought to have been founded around 1125 by William Le Meschines of Egremont Castle. The font, with its distinctive St Catherine’s Wheel and pagan marigold motifs and the East Window date from the 14th century, while one of the bells, the treble, was originally cast in 1445. I’ve seen Bishop’s transcripts for baptisms, marriages and burials at Eskdale dating back to 1689. I’ve still not worked out how old the original vicarage is. However, I think we can reasonably assume that there has been a building on the site for over 250 years. We think the old vicarage was rebuilt in about 1884 – 1896. When removing old walls, we found what we think are the original stone walls of the old vicarage, which was fascinating. We also found an engraving of the name “W Gunson” on the lead on one of the chimneys, dated 1896 – which suggests that the house was rebuilt then – it will be fascinating to see what else we might uncover!

Richard: We found an old circus bicycle in the coach house. If you turn the handlebars one way the front wheel turns the other, making it really hard to ride! I imagine that there must have been a vicar with a great sense of fun who would get the bike out from time for church garden parties and fetes!

In Conclusion, for now…

We hope you have enjoyed some more detailed insights and imagery from this exciting project, and that this brings the story to life. Watch this space for further updates as we get closer to revealing the finished property, and opening for bookings too.

We are excited to bring our vision for large group accommodation and quality family time to Cumbria, as we have already done in Chester – we can’t wait to share it with you!