An Interview with Greg Penn
Words by Michaela Quinn
September 11, 2022
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9m
“It’s the most satisfying thing I’ve ever done” – Meet Man with a Hammer, Greg Penn
He’s three years into renovating his ‘forever home’ but as a self-confessed amateur, we wanted to find out what inspired Yorkshireman and interiors influencer Greg Penn – or @manwithahammer as he’s best known among his 160,000+ Instagram followers – to take on the restoration of a 30-bedroom ex naval residence in Plymouth…
Where are you from originally?
I’m from Yorkshire. I was actually born in Beverley and then moved to York as a child. Funnily enough the house before Admirals, and the first house I owned, was in Darlington – not far from where Barker and Stonehouse originated! I moved to Devon about four years ago.
What did you do before you took on Admirals as a full-time job?
I’ve done all sorts, but I’ve always been marketing, mainly for an organic vegetable company working on a farm in Northallerton.
What can you tell us about the history of Admirals House? How did the renovation of Admirals house come about?
It was built in 1804, on the site of the Royal Naval Hospital, Stonehouse. The site was built 50 years previous, but got a new governor, Captain Richard Creyke. He obviously decided he wanted a bigger house, so had this built, by the architect Daniel Alexander Asher, most famous for Dartmoor prison. It’s also the site where ‘up the creek without a paddle’ comes from – well, the less polite version of that anyway…
I bought the house from a trusted online agent, and as expected – it was very, very dilapidated!
How much experience in renovations did you have?
Well… I’m very much an amateur. Admirals is the second house I’ve owned, but the first one was where I cut my teeth on a total renovation project – but I am learning all the time!
What stage of the renovation are you at? What’s next on your ‘to do’ list?
I’m about 14 rooms in now… but then there’s years of work still to be planned for the exterior of the house and in the surrounding gardens. A lot of the remaining spaces are going to take a very long time – like the two, side by side, five storey staircases!
What’s the most interesting or unique thing you’ve unearthed?
Well, I’m still searching for the hidden Admirals treasure however I think the most interesting thing is actually part of the living history, rather than a physical thing… and that was, thanks to Instagram, getting a letter from someone that worked with a chap called Albert. It turns out, he’d been the private chef at Admirals House for more than 30 years, serving many of the different officers stationed here.
I invited him around for afternoon tea and despite being in his mid-80s and having Alzheimer’s, he was full of the most incredible stories about the place. His daughters came too, and they all had amazing memories as well as photos of them all here. His daughters, now in their 60s used to play in the house and gardens as children.
What has been your proudest moment in the renovation journey so far?
Gosh, there’s been so many – Instagram is an incredibly supportive space and through that, my little DIY renovation has been picked up by all sorts of press like The Times. I even made it into the ‘Wall St Journal’! It’s so hard to pick just one. I am also very proud of the oval room… it was a massive undertaking, but really is the crowning glory of the house.
What had been the biggest challenge so far?
That will be the aforementioned oval room, I think. It was a monster – so many curved doors, all with umpteen layers of paint that I painstakingly removed.
If you weren’t renovating Admirals House, what would you be doing?
Blimey – well… I’m not good at sitting still, but beyond the restoration (which is all consuming) my passions include travel (India and Vietnam are particular favourites), cooking, music (I’m a rusty, but enthusiastic drummer) and motorbiking.
Any advice for people about to start a renovation, big or small?
So long as you’re willing to work hard, can cope with being dusty, cold and quite often poor… do it! It’s easily the best and most satisfying thing I’ve ever done.
When did you become interested in interiors?
Really, only when I’d bought my first home. Before then, I had a love of big old buildings, but it didn’t go much beyond that. When doing my first place – which was a total wreck and needed a lot of work – I realised painting it magnolia would be just as much work as using interesting colours and thinking about the design. As soon as I started learning and reading about it, it was like an epiphany… and it has since become such a huge passion of mine!
Tell us about your interior style at home
I’d say a slightly modern twist on a classically English style… relaxed, comfortable, but with nods to the age and grandeur of the building – and colourful!
Where do you look for inspiration?
Instagram is amazing. We now have access to accounts from amazing designers and can see into the most incredible homes!
How do you approach the interior design of each room?
I usually start with a wallpaper, or paint colour and build slowly from there. The joy of doing it myself, slowly, is that I can take time making decisions – so I can get the wallpaper up and see it in situ, before choosing curtain fabric etc. which is a real luxury.
Do you have a favourite era or period of design?
I think the Georgian era, the same as the house, is my favourite. Simple, elegant proportions and symmetry, beautiful craftsmanship and superb function.
Where do you tend to shop for furniture and accessories?
Ah it’s a real mishmash here… which again I think helps lend a lived in, relaxed feel to the rooms – and it’s always evolving too! But I’m very busy so usually online!
Are there any interiors trends that have caught your eye over the last year?
I can’t say I’m the trendiest sort of chap in the world, but I love that people seem to really be embracing colour and pattern – especially in fabrics and wallpaper. It’s transformational when you introduce it into a space and often much easier to live with than you’d think.
What do make of the current Regencycore trend?
Ah well, it’s just so classic… again it’s the same era as my home, so might be biased, but it’s so comfortable, elegant and likely to look just as good 10 or 50 years down the line....
Tell us about your Instagram and how it came about
Well… I had no idea what I was doing and joined just as my last house was nearing an end, but it seemed like a really lovely and supportive community. I must confess, I was initially a little embarrassed… I didn’t even tell friends and family at first!
How do you feel knowing more than 160,000 people follow your renovation journey?
Immensely honoured and humbled. They are the most supportive group you could possibly hope for!
What do you love most about your Instagram community?
Just the overwhelming support people have for what I’m doing. Renovating is often hard… sometimes really hard, and in those lower moments, I feel like I’ve a crowd of cheerleaders raising me up!
Why do you think people are so invested in your renovation?
Ah haha well, I’m not sure… I try not to take myself too seriously and I hope we have a few giggles along the way. I’m also honest about the work I do, and the mistakes I make, and I think that helps… and hopefully inspires people to give it a whirl. Before my last house, both from a DIY/renovating perspective and a design perspective, I was totally useless and didn’t know one end of the screwdriver from the other… and knew even less about interior design so I genuinely believe it's very much a case of – if I can do it, nearly anyone can.
Just a few more questions Greg… tell us about your relationship with Barker and Stonehouse
Well, I actually remember getting dragged around the stores as a youngster by my dear Ma… but in more recent times, being able to work with the brand to help spread the word about its collaboration with Drew Pritchard was a dream (and even better, I got to meet him and host a talk with him – he’s everything you would expect and even gave me a hat which has seen a lot of use!). The pieces from that collection work beautifully here at Admirals.
What do you think sets Barker and Stonehouse apart from other retailers/brands?
I got to speak with James Barker at the event with Drew and the way it’s still family run, and the pride that comes through both from James, and through all the staff is really lovely to see. I was hugely impressed by the environmental initiatives the Barker and Stonehouse has taken too, being the first UK furniture retailer of scale to be a Carbon Neutral Plus company!
Finally, tell us about the room you designed with pieces from the Drew Pritchard collection – how did you juggle all the patterns to bring everything together?
Ah well, like I say – I’m no designer so sometimes think I might just get lucky haha… but I do think it’s remarkable how well patterns can hang together if the colours all sing in harmony together. It’s a bedroom on the top floor and as I was stripping it back, I realised the fireplace had been painted in layer after layer of white gloss. I carefully stripped that off and underneath found the most incredible surround, made from local Ashburton marble. I used that as the starting point for the rest of the room.
Fallen in love with the renovation of Admirals House just as much as us? You can follow Greg’s renovation journey on Instagram @manwithahammer.