The ribbon of terraced housing that characterizes the South Wales valleys is one of the enduring images of Wales – bringing to mind all of the stereotypes of coal-mining, "How Green was My Valley?" and male-voice choirs. The coal mines have gone and the choirs are in decline, but the houses are still there and providing cosy homes for Welsh families.

But despite being our most common housing type, trying to find an untouched Victorian home complete with cast iron cooking range and original fittings is like trying to find a needle in the haystack of modernized houses. Council renovation grants in particular have radically altered the look and feel of valleys towns where uniform red brick and sash windows have been replaced by uniform brown pebbledash and plastic replacements.

But Y Ty Cymreig successfully found in Llwynypia a traditional home that looks and feels like it should, a welcoming Victorian family home. Built for the chief engineer of the local mines this double-fronted house with adjoining ‘laboratory’ was always one of the more impressive in town. The previous occupant had refused grant aid renovation, leaving his the only untouched house in the town. This left a time capsule for David and Pat Roberts to discover when they bought the house and started sympathetic improvements.

"The house was in a real state when we bought it…it was quite spooky" admits Pat. "There were plants growing in through the broken windows. But I loved the old doors and fireplaces, and the sense that this was a house with a lot of history."

The sash windows had been left to rot, so exact replicas were made with proper double-hung sashes. Original fireplaces had modern paints stripped off them to reveal the cast iron below. Soon neighbours began to hear about the project and people began donating bits and pieces from their own homes, or letting them know about architectural salvage.

The Victorian laboratory (for testing coal) was converted into a modern kitchen where the large windows were put to good use. A huge cast iron cooking range was restored to become the heart of the home once more, and as a final touch there’s a gramophone in the corner which is still regularly played by the owners.