The £100k House: Tricks of the Trade. Big home renovation ideas on micro budgets

From a disastrous extension that's turned a house into building site, to the dilapidated London flat of a family who crave space and serenity - seven architects work to transform the homes of cash-strapped owners, in the latest BBC2 home improvement series...

For inspiration, couple Suzanne and Antonia are taken to a compact city flat owned by Ewald Van Der Straeten and Agathe Barbier, where the use of clever design has opened up every inch of precious living space.

Lizzie Rivera4 February 2016

No home is beyond hope - no matter what the budget, is the idea behind the new BBC2 series of 'The £100k house: Tricks of the Trade'.

A spin-off of the BBC's hugely popular 'The House That £100K Built' programme, where people attempt to build their own home for £100,000, the lastest series offers viewers budget-friendly tips and tricks, from choosing the right paint to designing furniture made out of scaffolding boards.

The six-part series kicks off by featuring a scenario that will be familiar to many Londoners. Civil servant Suzanne's north-west London flat was perfect when she lived alone, but now husband Antonio, a sales adviser, 38, has moved in and they have two-year-old Sophia, the awkward layout needs rethinking.

How do you make a home seem bigger when you can’t extend out? The show's lead architect Piers Taylor works with fellow architect Gurmeet Sian, using design tricks to turn the gloomy flat into a light-filled, spacious-feeling family home.

The projects in The £100K House: Tricks of the Trade

1/7

The show also features mum Jaimelee, 29, and her partner Lee, 33, who bought a three-bedroom semi-detached home in the West Midlands town of Sutton Coldfield with the ambition to extend.

Lee, a builder, started work two years ago but when architect Piers Taylor arrives the downstairs is still a building site. "We didn't have a vision, we're improvising as we're going along," admits Lee. With a budget of only £10,000, Taylor teaches them the trick of creating a successful "open-plan" space and how clever choices with furniture, wallcoverings and even colours can radically improve a space.

Other ambitious renovation projects to be featured in later episodes include turning a three-bedroom terrace house into a comfortable home for a family of seven with a budget of £30,000, and creating a dream kitchen in a decrepit shop for £8,000.
Starts Wednesday 3 February, BBC2, 8pm.