What I Own: My £230,000 home offends boring people — what’s not to love?

Welcome back to What I Own – Metro’s property series where we speak to homeowners about getting on the ladder.

When Daniel Bland started hunting for his first home eight years ago, location didn’t matter. As a self-employed creative he could live almost anywhere. Instead of a hot postcode, he was looking for creative potential. And boy, did he find it.

The 31-year-old now lives in Wisbech in Cambridgeshire — an area of the UK he’d previously never heard of — in a five-bedroom home with personality in every corner.

Taking inspiration from its Victorian setting, Daniel has turned the property into a Gothic dream, with dark ceilings, copper-leaf walls and a surprise ‘cartoon’ room for him and his two fluffy tenants to enjoy.

Documenting his DIY journey online won him the accolade for Best Interior Instagram at the 2025 Ufurnish Awards, in partnership with Metro.

Here’s what Daniel had to say about his property journey…

Tell us about yourself!

I’m 31, an artist and specialist decorator working all over the UK and internationally. I specialise in mural painting and gold leaf ceilings, and I have my own foil wallpaper collection.

I have my two cats, Tallulah and Lord Mittens, and I love to decorate my house, which has grown a large audience on social media. I have more than 1.5 million followers across platforms.

Whereabouts is your property? What do you think of the area?

Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. It’s a Georgian town that was once grander but has been a little forgotten because it doesn’t have the best transport connections (there isn’t a train station here anymore), but the remaining architecture and history are beautiful, which is why I moved here.

When did you move in?

2017.

How much does your property cost?

I bought it for £230,000.

How much was your deposit?

£12,000. It took two years to save while I rented a cheap room at a friend’s house.

What is the monthly cost of living here now, both mortgage and bills?

£1,500 per month. The mortgage interest rate is 4.2%, and the term is 35 years.

What was the process of getting a mortgage like for you? Did you find any parts challenging?

It was fairly straightforward when I did, as I was working in retail at the time (PAYE), but I have since gone self-employed.

How did you find this property? What made you choose it?

I was just looking on Rightmove to see what I could afford and kept widening the search location as I wasn’t having much luck. I hadn’t heard of Wisbech. It was over an hour away from me, but I could work from anywhere, so I wasn’t particularly tied to a location.

How have you made the property feel like home? What’s the inspiration for your interior decor style?

I’ve decorated every room at least two times since I’ve been here. I’ve been developing my sense of style and learning new skills.

I’m fortunate enough to work with brands to create content for my DIY projects, which helps encourage me to go bold.

The property is Victorian and a bit dark naturally, so I’ve been leaning into the gothic style, doing things like painting all the woodwork glossy black, and using rich, deep colours and gold ornamentation.

This house has seen the growth of me as a designer and as a person, and acts as a portfolio for my work.

You have a very distinctive style — how do people usually react?

Visitors are usually complimentary. There’s a lot to take in, so people are constantly noticing new things as they look around. Online comments can be a lot less complimentary.

Turns out that enjoying my own home is highly offensive to some people, but part of me is fueled by it, to see how many boring people I can irritate by letting loose with my design and DIY.

Good for you! The cartoon room is amazing, how did you create it?

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-hO9F5KjtN/

The cartoon room was a boredom project gone wild back in 2020. With lockdown and limited resources, I used a 10-litre tub of brilliant white and black acrylic paint.

I spent three days painting the black lines everywhere, and then a whole afternoon painting myself for my Instagram post. I filmed a stop motion of myself turning black and white, painting a small section at a time and taking photos with a timer.

What’s your favourite room and why?

The music room. It’s dark but calming, and having a living space with no TV is unusual, but I love it.

I play the piano and accordion, which I find is a great way to switch off when I’m overwhelmed, and I have other instruments on the walls and a huge glass parrot chandelier that I’m obsessed with.

Do you have any DIY bits that have gone wrong that you’ve learnt from?

The cartoon room and red room are next to each other, and both had built-in wardrobes at the time. When removing them, I discovered there was actually no wall between them, and half of the ceiling fell down.

I took it all down and kept the vaulted ceiling without removing the joists, so there was no structural work to do.

My motto is, if in doubt, rip it out (or paint over it).

What’s your favourite piece of furniture in the house?

My green Chesterfield porter’s chair in the green bedroom. The paint may have changed in that room three times, but it’s always been designed around that chair!

Do you have plans to change the property?

Not much! There’s a false ceiling in the kitchen I’d like to remove, and it would be fun to convert the attic, but I don’t need the extra space.

Are there any problems with the property that you have to deal with?

Just some sketchy electrical work from the previous owners, and the usual restoration that comes with old properties: replacing the roof one section at a time, upgrading the boiler and replacing rotting joists/floors.

What do you want people to know about buying a home?

Think about what you actually want and what you could live without in a home to make your life happy. Do you want something because you feel like you should, or do you actually want it?

I moved to a town without much nightlife, and it’s a bit out of the way, but I don’t really go out much, so I’d much rather have a nice home in a less ideal place personally.

What are your plans for the future, in terms of housing? Do you plan to stay here long-term?

I’ve just purchased a renovation project in northern Italy, an absolute bargain with amazing potential that’s going to be my project for several years to come.

Shall we take a look around?

Do you have a story to share?

Get in touch by emailing [email protected].

Comments Add as preferred source