Inside incredible clifftop home that took nine years to build but was totally worth the stress
Sometimes a property from your past can spring up and force its way into your life again – occasionally with astonishing consequences. As a child Jane Ramsay, originally from Ystrad Mynach, used to enjoy her family holiday in Aberporth as a trip to west Wales was always a source of great excitement either camping or in a caravan at one of the parks.
Jane said: "There used to be a café and restaurant in a property at the top of the cliff and when we used to walk up the massive steps from the beach at the end of the day, if we were lucky, we would get an ice cream." As a girl Jane could never have imagined that she would one day not just own that property but do something extraordinary with the site that has won it an award and totally changed her family's life both for now and for the future.
Now aged 44 Jane explained she was looking for a property in this area of Ceredigion, so connected to her childhood and so special to her, as a family home – somewhere for everyone to enjoy and a place where her dad could retire and live full-time. The idea was a traditional Welsh cottage or farmhouse but the reality became a contemporary home perched on the top of the cliff where the café and ice cream shop that was a part of her childhood holidays used to be but it took nine stressful years to finally get to the finish line of this remarkable property story.
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Looking back to the very beginning of this saga that started in 2012 Jane said she thinks she was always meant to become the owner of the former café because it wasn't even for sale. "It came up in a really serendipitous way – I was having a random conversation with somebody about Aberporth and that we were looking for a property and this lady said her friend had a house there. She must have spoken to her friend because I was then contacted with the proposition of buying it and when they explained where it was I couldn't believe that it used to be the ice cream café."
The initial idea was to renovate the original house, which nestles into the clifftop at the end of a no-through road with the beach on one side and cliffs sweeping down the cliffs to the ocean on the other side. But almost immediately that plan hit a problem.
Jane said: "When we looked into it more the site had asbestos and just wasn’t fit to be renovated so the plan changed. We found Hyde + Hyde architects and were blown away by their work and the next thing we know we’re doing some sort of Grand Designs house – gone was the little west Wales cottage."
Starting a build from the very beginning did have its advantages – Jane and her partner Neil could specify what they required not just in the design but also for future-proofing it as a home for Jane's father and the rest of the family to use including three bedrooms on the ground floor and a master suite on the first floor. Jane said: "We did a list of essential and desired criteria but what we really liked about the design they came up with was that from the road it is quite discreet and private, not many windows, and then the main sheets of glass are at the back – it’s quite private. But the main brief was to make the most of the views of the beach and then, at the back and within a metre of a sheer drop, views to the ocean – you can see the sea from almost every room in the house."
The build began with an expert concrete company constructing the house to the first floor but then all work stopped as they moved onto another project. And so began nine stressful years of slowly bringing the complete design to life. Jane said: "Neil drove back and forth from Cardiff for nine years – it was so hard. There have been times when there have been tears – we’ve wanted to walk away from it and not having any money to do the next stage of it so we had to work more to save more money. I guess it's the usual story for projects like this. When we got to the end I felt so proud of what we’ve achieved and now I just love it."
When times got hard over the last nine years Jane said it was their architects, husband and wife team Kristian and Kay Hyde, who supported them through the periods when the couple had to pause through lack of funds. She also credited them for supporting the build – however long it took – to deliver their vision that was based on a high specification and attention to detail throughout.
Jane said: "We would pause for a bit rather than compromise on the design because we needed to stick to the plan. For example in one of the bathrooms there’s a corrugated metal wall and at one point, when I was strapped for cash, I said: 'Couldn’t that just be made of MDF?' and Kristian said to me: 'What do you think the first thing that people are going to do when they open the bathroom door? They are going to touch it and if it looks like metal but it’s not then it’s not authentic – it wouldn’t feel right.'"
It's one piece of advice that Jane would pass on to anyone who is doing a stressful Grand Designs-style build – if you are able to, and if you are lucky enough to be able to pause, then do it so you can follow the plan and trust your architects as if you've chosen well, they will be supporting you to the end. But don't think that this new build is a contemporary white box inside with stark, cold walls and minimal interior design. This is a house that begins with a bold bronze shade for the huge front door and keeps delivering surprises within each space as you delight in wandering around.
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The attention to detail, from hidden sockets to placement of secret lighting, flows through the design, but it's what you can see that makes the interior feel homely and atmospheric while not detracting from the breathtaking views the massive windows perfectly frame. Jane said: "It’s really cosy, which people find hard to believe because of the concrete and the entire black interiors – black floor, black walls, black ceiling – but the thinking behind that is when you walk up the stairs all you see is the view you’re not distracted by anything else. But if you drop a black sock on the black floor in the night good luck finding it.
"That was something we were unsure of – everything black – but we trusted Kristian and it now looks amazing. The black makes the most of all times of year – we can be down there in summer and be sat on the balcony but equally it’s just as nice this time of year with the fires going and watching storms out over the sea."
Each space in the home is special but if Jane had to decide on favourites it would be two rooms that offer different experiences. She said: "It depends on what mood you’re in – the snug overlooks the beach and is perfect for people-watching and seeing the world go by but the big open-plan living space at rear is amazing. You can watch the waves, see dolphins in Cardigan Bay and the sparrowhawks nesting on the cliffs.
"The house is so homely, it’s so peaceful. You can open up the doors and all you hear is the swoosh of the sea and when you’re lying in bed at night the house is so well insulated you can open the doors and that’s all you can hear – the waves down in the cove."
Called Edge House, the property gives you an idea of why the views are so incredible and uninterrupted – the house sits at the top of the cliff of this peninsula above Aberporth beach and, as well as the property's design, can sometimes create some interesting comments. Jane said: "Lots of people either love it or hate it and some think it’s going to fall off the cliff but it’s 100% not going to fall off the cliff – the footings are so deep, down into the bedrock underneath. It’s so well drilled in so even if the cliff fell away the house wouldn’t.
"Of course we did all our research and had all the studies done and we’re well protected from the weather and we’re also so well-rooted into that rock we don’t worry about erosion. When people look at it they do ask those questions but the design of it means this house is not going anywhere."
It's the location combined with the design and the fact that the couple have invested nine years of their lives and lavished this property with their love and care that makes it special enough to have won a highly commended award at the 2024 British Homes Awards. And it's a legacy that Jane is determined will always continue into the future.
Jane said: "The kids will be told they are never allowed to sell Edge House. It will be handed down from generation to generation and stay in our family forever – that’s what it’s all been about."
When the house is not being used by the family and until Jane's father moves in full-time there are periods of time when you can stay at Edge House and experience this amazing location and stunning contemporary design yourself. You can find out more here.
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