Home renovations: restoring heritage properties The 19th-century building had been abandoned in 1993. Trees were growing out of the tombstones, the roof was leaking and the stained-glass windows were boarded up. Angel was recently divorced. His ex-wife and teenage daughter stayed in the family home in Hadley Wood, Hertfordshire, while Angel moved to Hendon. Of Hispanic descent, he needed something to fire his passion. He had two minor renovations behind him, and was ready for something all-consuming. His prayers were answered when he was shown St John's, an Anglican church built in 1838, by a property developer friend who had just bought it. Angel was smitten. It was completely neglected, but there was a good feeling about the place. I looked at it and thought there was so much I could do. Three weeks and £160,000 later, Angel was the new owner. Initial planning requests, first to turn the church into three houses, and then into flats, were refused by Hillingdon Council. Planning permission was finally granted for a single dwelling in late 2002, by which time Angel was already camping between the pews and altar gate. Today, St John's is a stunning four-bedroom contemporary home. The church has a conservatory with Sistine Chapel-style clouds on the ceiling. A floating platform forms a giant cinema, whose curved steel balustrade with wooden finials looks like a crown of thorns. An open-plan vaulted reception/diner takes up the entire nave, leading to the kitchen. Working mostly on his own over ten years, he raised the floor, bringing the windows to a standard level, and introduced a glass roof above the chancel. He also hid the wine cellar and cold room beneath the altar steps, because he did not want a full-size fridge spoiling the room's symmetry. Angel Guerra is a master of concealment. A console table made from one half of the original pulpit adorns a false wall that hides a storage space. The washing machine and utility sink are secreted behind units made out of the pews. Instead of radiators, he has installed a Danish heat recovery system. I could go on. But how on earth did he do it? Did his faith never waver? "Whenever the project felt too big, I closed my eyes and concentrated on one thing, blocking out everything else," he says. I looked at it as thousands of little projects. The attention to detail would make even an angel weep. Presumably the cost would too. "I don't know how much I spent," says Angel, though he concedes that it was probably about £300,000. It cost what it cost. I bought the property because I loved it and I did the work to enjoy myself. Funding came from two properties that Angel lets out in Wembley, north-west London. One of the reasons the renovations took a while was that I didn't have the funds, at one stage, to finish it off. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise: "It meant the scheme could grow and develop. I didn't have an architect. The highlight was learning how to design or make things myself. I am proud of the final outcome, but I am also proud of some of the hurdles I overcame. Such as? How to get four 12m [39ft] steel beams weighing two tons each through the front door, then hoisting them into position to create the cantilever living room. That was a feat. One of St John's most famous vicars, Father Allan, would certainly have approved. Named "the punk priest" for painting the windows scarlet in 1938, he was a risk-taker, just like Angel. So, too, are Ian and Christa Taylor, boutique hoteliers with a passion for dramatic renovations. In 1999 they bought Cotswold House in Chipping Campden, and transformed it into an award-winning hotel. Then in April 2007, they bought 1 Lansdown Terrace, a £1 million, 6,490 sq ft, Grade II listed Georgian town house in Cheltenham. In less than a year of work, they turned it into a sumptuous family home, at a cost of £1.5m. Admittedly, with a team of architects, designers and builders. They retained the property's period elegance, renovating the sweeping staircase, restoring the exterior stonework and reinstating an 18th-century fireplace from Ireland. There are modern flourishes too, of course. Most bathrooms have mirror televisions. An en suite sauna adjoins the master bedroom, and the steam room has coloured LED lights. Ian is the experimental one. "I don't get involved," says Christa. When the work was being done, I never came to see it. Maybe some things are better done alone. When I ask Angel if his love of renovation was the marriage-breaker, he says it wasn't, but that he couldn't have done St John's with a partner in tow. I could never have expected my wife and daughter to put up with it. I was living in dust. Christa and Ian avoided this problem by renting a separate property nearby. "I couldn't have lived here during the work," says Christa. Even the roof was leaking. But she did get involved where it really mattered. "You came with me on the buying trips," Ian reminds his wife. We went to Venice together and bought the chandeliers. You were involved in the kitchen too. It's from Tuscany," he says, stroking the counter. They certainly know how to brighten things up. The once rather dark kitchen now features a 1.3m (4ft) -high glass-walled extension that extends to a new terrace. The basement, which had been divided into two flooded bedsits, is like an executive pleasure zone, with a gym, sauna and wine cellar. Around the corner, Ian ushers me into the smallest room in the house: a space measuring 2.5m by 1.5m (8ft by 5ft). "It's the control room," he says. Twelve miles of cable are coiled like an intestine, neatly powering the heating and state-of the-art light and sound systems. The whole house has been treated with this kind of thought and attention to detail. On an upper floor is a bronze bath that had to be lifted in by crane through the window. Every bedside table has a light sculpture, rather than a boring old lamp. "Ian's a perfectionist," says Christa, in case I hadn't noticed. "I don't think there's a square inch here I haven't touched," adds Ian. Angel said exactly the same. The men have plenty in common. As well as this meticulous approach, they share a sense of fun and a soft spot for sensuous living made possible by technology. Both create homes that are tasteful, unusual and indulgent. Renovation projects are infectious. Those who take the leap rarely stop at one. And with people such as Angel and Ian, there is still hope for Britain's sad, abandoned buildings. Who knows, perhaps there's one with your name on it? Both properties are for sale through Knight Frank: St John's Church (£1.25m; 01494 675 368),1 Lansdown Terrace (£2.75m; 01242 246 959). Home rules Allow plenty of time for planning. Formulate a clear vision of your overall look. Draw a layout of each room; then ask the questions about electrical and plumbing requirements. Select a good project manager and specialists. They need to be team players. Budget. Allow a 20 to 30 per cent contingency, depending on the size and complexity of the project. Buy the best you can afford. Don't settle for second-best. Speak up if you would like work redone. Invest in a detailed property survey dependent on the works well in advance. See materials in person. Allocate sufficient time for the project and overruns.