Penny Slain Vintage

Penny Slain Vintage Specialising in reimagining existing spaces, Penny Slain offers interior design and styling support alongside highly skilled furniture refinishing.

Contact me for perfectly-tailored interior design and furniture.

24/03/2026

Please, if you love what we’re doing here, show some love with likes and comments! The stonemason is off to get himself a dickie bow for a photoshoot between the columns 😂 worth some Guinness for him, I reckon! And a big shout out to Peter Whoop whoop at Plas despite this crazy weather!

23/03/2026

It has been a long time coming- this reel as well as the resurrection of a portico at Plas! My fall at the New Year has me going for an MRI today 🫣 and we’re finding a new normal following our youngest having a 5 hour long major surgery so forgive the break. At last, after several decades without, Plasydderwen HAS her portico back! We cannot wait to see it in all its glory when the scaffold descends this week. The has been loads going on inside too- not all of it great, but all of it very necessary. Before I explain that, what do you think of this stone masterpiece, carved in Cheddar and single-handedly built by our stone artisan, Martin! Absolute legend from Barry and he’s a diamond! If you ever need stonework, Martin Williams Stonecraft. He’s not big on social media but with 40 years of life on the tools, he doesn’t really need it, does he?! We’re not letting him leave just yet- we’ve got another job for him 😜

17/01/2026

Like a phoenix out of the ashes, she rises! Stonemasonry is an absolute craft! We’ve absolutely found a diamond in the rough getting Martin of William’s Stonecraft single-handedly bringing this beauty to life with the very competent Wells Cathedral Stonemasons having supported us with the details of the design and cutting/carving the components from bathstone, the very distinctive limestone used for the original building. The stone has been quarried and the next phase is the beam across the top of the columns. I’ve more to share but if ever there was a way to start the year for this neglected house, this is it!

12/01/2026

A quick Monday morning update and we’re delighted to see a break from the frost here at Plasydderwen. I’m propped up with some steroids and an inhaler and doing a short shift here, and I really do love a busy site! Happy Monday x

07/01/2026

I ache! I had an accident on site over the weekend which I may include here on another occasion… for now, take a look at the work in readiness for the new portico! My pain and discomfort following a nasty fall through a ground floor room (long story) while still nursing a chest infection is being softened by beautiful things coming to fruition for the house. There’s been a lot of preparation pre-Xmas to ready the front steps and make them truly secure for the decades to come. The portico, long lost to decay and disregard for many years, was a tumble of eroded bathstone chunks with much of the original lost. I’ll soon be sharing the plans and progress for a new stone portico to be knitted back and worthy of the house and its history. For now, here’s a glimpse of the new raft footing and we’ve salvaged and relaid the amazing stone steps. Some of them are broken but I’ve got an amazing product using Forest of Dean pennant dust to point the joints when it’s milder. And please please stay tuned to watch the porch rise like a phoenix! At least one of us is. Wish the house good luck and share the love with a little beep or shout out as you pass x

Whoop whoop, onward and upwards for 2026!
02/01/2026

Whoop whoop, onward and upwards for 2026!

02/01/2026

Happy, sunshine laden, dry cellar kind of start to 2026!! Here’s a little update from the cellar dry rot and infestation issues which were heavily tackled and treated prior to the Xmas break! The team have been ill over the shutdown period (which is typical) but we’re back on site today and there’s more to come next week which we’re really excited to share. Happy New Year to you all, and from an unwashed Plasydderwen, happy Friday- hello 2026!

21/12/2025

There are some steep learning curves that are exhilarating and rewarding; then there are others that are expensive and not to be repeated! Dry rot was new for us! We also discovered what appeared to be a bizarre cocktail of dry rot, bleeding tooth fungus and mealyworm 😨🤢! If the fungus world had super villains, dry rot would surely be one of them! The brown pancake on the wall is the main fruiting body, and the white fluff and cobweb structures are the mycelium, frond-like growth seeking out moisture in timber. It is so dastardly, the fronds can track through the mortar of the old walls to seek out damp timber metres away! It can be devastating to the structure of period homes- and worse still, the previous owners poured screed floors on top of joists for the 1st and second floor- so all that weight, held up by damp and susceptible timber, has been a concern we didn’t foresee at all!!!!! The dry rot is certainly in the right house for wet timber with the volume of water ingress from the roof and decayed stonework! We’ve been working top down externally and are still prioritising lots of external work to save this house and bring it back to its glory. Meanwhile, inside we’re busy discovering and unpicking painful issues. It’s certainly not for the faint -hearted but we’re determined to do her justice so this particular issue is being tackled head on… and we’ve something wonderful in the pipeline for the New Year to help us stay motivated. Can you guess what’s on its way???

This little top corner of the house has had a big switch upwards today, courtesy of .southwales! SWIPE away for the pics...
23/09/2025

This little top corner of the house has had a big switch upwards today, courtesy of .southwales! SWIPE away for the pics. The BEFORES show the space as it was left - a massive, off-centred overhang with underfloor heating exposed to the outside… (if you’ve seen previous posts regarding the rot this caused, then you’ll know some of the issues we faced). Another problem has been the fact the balcony roof had a sloped channel all the way around which would forever be a weak point, tracking all the rain water from the front roof around the perimeter of the bay. I’ll share our solution with you all in another post because so many are asking. In the meantime, check this beautiful change to the light and usable space…. No more open ended gas pipe for a rooftop BBQ! And no more rot! We’ve installed new leadwork, entirely shrouding the rear face of the carved bathstone to protect it from some of the weather.
Scroll to see the difference in light within this space now! World’s apart 🥰

19/09/2025

Ever sacrificed or entirely changed the purpose of a room? We’re@going from dated and damp to spacious and light-filled. It can seem counter-intuitive to sacrifice bedrooms… but the house has an entire floor of open space where there were no bedrooms on the second floor. That’s set to change which means we’re planning for 3 ensuite bedrooms to the first floor. The master suite is seeing BIG changes. People have asked me what I do and the process. I craft various floorplans with ideas and notes that lean towards my clients’ needs and tastes (throwing in some things they may not have considered too) and then, when the floorplans are done - I’ll set about creating schemes that resonate and set the mood for the house. The work is underway now to reimagine the floorplans to realise the house’s potential. We’re unearthing real challenges as we go because this house has seen some significant water ingress left unchecked (and all the loveliness that literally grows from it….)

09/09/2025

We’re delighted to give this update! Plasydderwen is rightly back to her shining self… tantalisingly close to being fully repaired to the exterior (still minus the portico). There’s still quite a lot of repair to be done to the ground floor but the DOFF cleaning on the ground level is booked in for Friday and then we can be suitably revved up to identify more of the repairs. Thanks so much to all who commented and have been rooting for this special home to be loved back to life! It means a lot to have the support of community and friends, near and far! I’m sure if the house had a voice, she’d be thanking you all too and she’s unashamedly delighted to get dolled up and bathe in the light that’s been shrouded for year! I’m awash with exhaustion and gratitude (and some pride too) that we get to love her into life. X

Address

Pontypridd

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Penny Slain Vintage posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category