Inside A Place in the Sun's Ben Hillman's home with two daughters

Ben Hillman is a home designer and property expert who renovated his own family home in West Sussex.

By Katie Palmer, Senior TV Reporter

A Place in the Sun: Ben Hillman paints pebbles with guests

A Place in the Sun is back on Channel 4 and host Ben Hillman is used to travelling to stunning locations to find buyers their perfect home. His background is in property design having renovated, designed and self-built a number of properties in his home town.

He spends his time away from the cameras designing and creating and if he is not sketching out new designs, he will often be found with his sleeves rolled up and turning his hand to carpentry, landscaping and gardening. He studied product and furniture design before launching his TV career.

One of his favourite passions is spending time at home with his NHS worker wife Gaby and their two daughters, Hope Blossom and Honour Willow. In 2016 they bought a 1934 four-bed home in Shoreham-By-Sea.

Ben was central in transforming it into their dream home, which includes a wraparound extension and a stunning kitchen. He made savvy decisions on the decor which saved them a lot of money after the initial spend on the house.

Here is all you need to know about the star's home life away from the cameras.

Ben Hillman has renovated his home in Shoreham-By-Sea

Ben Hillman has renovated his home in Shoreham-By-Sea (Image: BEN HILLMAN INSTAGRAM )

Sharing his cost-cutting secrets with the Metro, Ben said: "I had spent so much money on the house [in the past] but lockdown made me reassess what money I'm chucking at it.

"We went from spending £15,000 on a bathroom to £500. But even though it's super-budget, it's great and just as pleasing. Lockdown has taught me to be more inventive."

He said his daughters have picked up a lot of skills from him and they are keen on DIY themselves.

Ben Hillman is keen on DIY and home design

Ben Hillman is keen on DIY and home design (Image: BEN HILLMAN INSTAGRAM )

The star shared: "They are my DIY girls and join me on my adventures. During the build I did the A Place In The Sun walk round with them, saying, 'Imagine how it's going to look like when it's finished.'"

Ben said he cherished the time spent at home with his family considering he spends many a day travelling the globe for work.

He tied the knot with Gaby in 2011 and Hope Blossom was born shortly after the wedding, followed by Honour Willow.

He told Express.co.uk previously: "I'm a real home bod, I love being around my family and being around my kids, they're the number one thing in my life."

A Place in the Sun airs on Channel 4 at 4pm

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