THE RENOVATION WORK BEGINS

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We're looking forward to the builders starting work on the farmhouse next week. All the months of planning and waiting are nearly over and it will be great to see things swing into action. If you would like to contact us with any comments as the work progresses, we have put a special form on the site in the contact section. You can always email us at  thefrenchfarmhouseproject@gmail.com if you prefer. The work is due to be completed by next April (2016) so there are several months of hard work ahead.

On a different note I thought that I would post a few pictures of Hillary's walk this week. This is a lovely short  walk at all times of the year. The bushes and trees arch over the pathway creating a "roof" above the path. At the end of the path there are beautiful views into the distance, we plan to put some seating there eventually, it would be a lovely spot to enjoy a sundowner! 

The walk was named by the previous owners of the farmhouse. They had a friend called Hillary and it was her favourite walk after dinner in the evening. We were told about this on the day we bought the house. Sticking to the french way, we arrived at the farmhouse on the morning of the house sale, one is supposed to tour the property you are buying in order to check that everything is okay before you go to the notaire to sign the documents. On this morning we met the owners' daughter and she walked around with us telling us about the house and explaining where essential stop taps were and all that jazz. She also told us anecdotes about the house that delighted and added  warmth and charm to our new home. It was obvious that the house had been a very happy place for them and I know it will be the same for us too.

Hillary's Walk

Hillary's Walk

Hillary's Walk


Lauzerte

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One of my favourite bedrooms at the farmhouse is "Lauzerte", I think it is because it has a door directly onto the lawn. It's just wonderful to wake up in the morning, open the door  and let the sunshine in. Sometimes I wander straight outside, cup of tea in hand and wake up slowly, walking and taking in the morning views. The bathroom for this bedroom also has a door with the same aspect so it's easy to dash from the swimming pool right to your bathroom after an early morning swim or a busy day by the pool.

As I said in a previous blog, the bedrooms at the farmhouse are named after local villages and towns, so what can I tell you about Lauzerte.

Lauzerte is listed as one of the most beautiful villages of France. It's located at the top of a hill and the views of the surrounding countryside are stunning. The name is derived from the latin "lucerna" meaning lamp and this village stands tall on its hill like a lamp shining out. The village streets display examples of medieval architecture, there is the church of Saint Barthelemy and several art galleries. The square, "Place des Cornieres" is the central meeting place surrounded by cafes and restaurants. We had a great steak at  "La Table des Tois Cheveliers"  and have had chance to listened to live music in the local bar on a Friday night.

There seem to be lots of different events throughout the year, we saw a 2CV rally here in July and  looked around a "Vide Granier" in August. "Vide Graniers" are popular throughout the summer, many communities take it in turns to give local people the chance to "empty their attics". These are interesting and intriguing markets because you never know what you will find to buy.

The village is a must for any visits to the area and it's already proving to be a popular place with all our friends and family.

Lauzerte July 2015.

Lauzerte July 2015.

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Quercy

During our house hunting expeditions we fell in love with the white houses and barns of what was the ancient province of Quercy, in the South West of France.  The white limestone buildings typify the region and the stone is just beautiful. I hadn't realised that limestone was used to build the pyramids in Egypt, so it's been used as a construction material for a long time and seems to have lasted the tests of time. Our farmhouse was built of limestone in 1832, a little later than the pyramids!  

The white outer wall does tend to suffer from a build up of mould if an area of wall is subject to a lot of water. This can be due to leaky guttering or in our case where old stone sinks have their outlets onto the walls below. Be reassured, we don't use these old sinks but they are are a wonderful piece of architectural history and make a great talking point in several of our rooms. On the outside of the wall the stone drain of the sink protrudes and the whole area around it seems to collect any rain, overtime the mould grows. You can just about see the area I am referring to on this less seen, east side picture of the house. The sink outlet is just to the left and down a bit from the bolly (the open window area).

Having spoken to several people, we now have an action plan to remove the mould. Someone suggested using bleach to clean it as I guess the mould is similar to the build up you sometimes get in showers. Our first plan however is to use the Stihl pressure washer, bought in the summer for this very reason and tested with great success on the patio! It was a wedding anniversary present to ourselves and we couldn't resist a bit of removable graffiti for our facebook page!

 

OCTOBER

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Roquecor

I think that I have probably always had a thing about giving rooms in a house a name. It seems obvious but it means you can refer to them and everyone knows the space you are talking about. So when we brought the Farmhouse I was really keen to organise the names. The communal spaces were easy but it was the bedrooms that seemed more challenging. To begin with they were named according to whose room it was, or who was staying in it at the time. I then wondered about numbers but felt it was a little hotel like, so we explored the idea of using colours, The Blue Room, The Green Room and so on. Nothing quite seemed right until we came up with the idea of calling them after local towns and villages. We chose places that people might like to visit if they were staying at the Farmhouse and one of the bedrooms is called Roquecor.

Roquecor is a lovely hilltop village with stunning vistas of the surrounding countryside. There is a vantage point where you can stand to see the view framed in all its glory, this is behind the tourist information centre where this summer they had a local crafts exhibition.  The owner of  "La Savonnerie Sapodouce" creates hand-made natural organic soaps and cosmetics and there is a wonderful art shop to browse around, further down the hill. There are two restaurants, a general stores and on a Sunday morning, a small market to enjoy. If you feel you would like to drive away in a classic car then you can hire a Citroen 2CV , a Morgan or another dream car from a range on offer at a local specialist garage.

So if you find yourself staying at the Farmhouse and you're sleeping in Roquecor, you now know a little bit more about the village that it was named after and maybe you'll go there.

At Roquecor

At Roquecor


OCTOBER

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Wood For The Winter

Cutting the wood in the barn.

Cutting the wood in the barn.

Stacked wood in the wood barn.

Stacked wood in the wood barn.

Three dead trees on the field have been taken down and cut up ready to help to keep the log stoves in the house burning throughout the winter. Most of it is old wood so we feel that we can use it this year. Some of the logs will have to be kept to "season" and need to be stored for a year or so. It's a long job with plenty of chain saw activity, thanks Steve and Cheryl, the logs are beautifully stacked and sorted too!

 

OCTOBER

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The Swimming Pool

The pool closes for winter.

We closed the pool this week, having had our last swim of the season. It has been our first year with the pool heater and what a difference it has made to our enjoyment of the pool. The heater has kept the pool at 28 degrees centigrade so we have been able to swim from April to October this year. A pool cleaning robot was purchased in August and that too made a significant improvement to the effort made sweeping and fishing on the bottom of the pool floor! The security cover is now closed over the pool and we look forward to opening it again next spring. 

A picture of the house from Autumn 2014 showing the security cover.

A picture of the house from Autumn 2014 showing the security cover.

OCTOBER 2015

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The Playing Field

     The Playing Field. Top picture autumn 2015, bottom picture autumn 2014.

     The Playing Field. Top picture autumn 2015, bottom picture autumn 2014.

We have been working hard to make the playing field ready for summer 2016 and imagine being able to enjoy football, cricket or rounders on this space, a real run around zone. Many thanks to Steve, on the grounds maintenance team, for all his blood, sweat and probably tears in getting the field to this stage.