Grand Designs Transformations: Feb 15

In the penultimate Grand Designs Transformations a Melbourne couple turn a drab duplex into a spacious Miami-inspired home, while a NSW couple on a shoe-string budget create a tiny guest pavilion for visiting family and friends.

After falling in love in the buzzy beachside metropolis of Miami, Florida, architect Henry and creative director Jemma want to bring some of that colour and romance into a home of their own in St Kilda.

After years of planning, they’re hoping to turn a drab one-up, one down duplex in St Kilda into one giant eclectic space that captures the optimism of downtown Miami. But as interior designer Yasmine Ghoniem suspects, the old building throws up a lot of challenges of its own in a game where time equals money – mountains of it. Add to that a new baby, and there’s plenty of sleepless nights for these first-time parents.

On the central coast of NSW, Ashley and partner Jeanette are also keen to create more space, but for very different reasons. Their dream is to create a luxurious little guest house behind their modest three-bedroom home, to lure Jeanette’s family over from the US for a holiday, and for the Sydney friends they miss to come and stay.

With nothing but back-of-the envelope plans, Anthony Burke fears they may have their head in the clouds. Couple that with a plan to build everything themselves, with second hand windows, flooring and doors, and pre-loved furnishings restored by Jeanette, they’ll need grit and a lot of heart, to create a beachside guesthouse for visiting family and friends.

8:30pm Thursday on ABC.