MARTIN Lodge and Sam Dyson freely admit they prefer to spend their time going on exotic holidays than slaving over DIY projects at home.
But they've done a lot of work to their eighteenth century home at 53 Scarhouse Lane, Golcar, since they moved in eight years ago.
Martin, a telemetry technician at Holset, and Sam, a personal advisor for Calderdale and Kirklees Careers Service, are getting married in Goa in November.
And they're keen to sell their house before then.
The couple, both 29, say the house was very traditional when they bought it.
"All the wood and the beams had been painted white," says Sam.
"We put a window seat in the lounge and stripped the woodwork back to natural shades."
They added extra panelling to help partition the kitchen more effectively and created cute, wood stairs.
One of the best selling-points is the house's south-facing hillside position.
It dates back to the 1780s and has great views across the Colne Valley.
Martin says: "It's very secluded and private at the front. My brother is a builder and he laid the flags and built the walls."
The gated garden is also home to Steven the guinea pig and rabbit, Mooky.
The lounge has an inglenook fireplace, beams and mullion windows.
Sam and Martin only recently revamped the bathroom using funky glass block tiles from B&Q as a shower screen. Slates around the basin were a lucky find when they went to Wales and stayed at a holiday cottage.
The slates were gratefully salvaged from a farmer who decided he didn't need them!
There are two bedrooms and a parking space. Sam and Martin planned to build a garage but their ultimate, long-term goal is to emigrate.
Sam says: "We're marrying in Goa and it'll be our seventh visit. We also like Thailand.
"But we want to emigrate to Australia, even though we have never been. We know our work skills are transferrable."
Though they still have a long way to go before they make their dream a reality, they say they will miss Golcar, where Martin has lived all his life.
Sam says: "I come from Calderdale but I like Golcar, even though there are lots of houses around, you don't feel closed in.
"Our house is full of character and it gets the sun all day."
* Interested? The house is on the market with William H Brown, at £119,950.
