The Difficulties with Villa Ermo Pt. 2
The background problems were discussed in some detail here, but having had ample experience in design/furniture/art over the past 24 years, I wanted to talk about the things people don’t … Continue reading
Mid-March in Mazamet. Sold, sold, and please don’t sell that!
It seems we’ve arrived at the hot-cakes stage of the market. The Reynes house sold for asking price, approximately one million US$. I don’t know who bought it. The park … Continue reading
Late Summer 2019 at Nº 42
Summer girls have come and gone – and their company was utterly wonderful, as always. This year they brought along with them a pair of glorious Victorian cut crystal claret … Continue reading
Early February in Mazamet. A little bit of wonderful.
First things first, I’ve been doing the interiors of the cabinets in the scullery. They were plain and boring – completely unrefined. So I thought I’d add a bit of … Continue reading
Let’s talk about good stuff. Mazamet, August 22nd, 2018
The wallpaper is up and I’m thrilled. The effect is even better in person than in the pictures. The room is alive. The dark table will anchor the whole thing, give … Continue reading
Autumnal
‘Tis the season to be raking – which is tiresome; but at least I like looking at the red ivy. It gives me a chance to exercise silencing my mind, … Continue reading
Nearly there
We’re still waiting for the moulding that tops off the wainscoting (aka chair rail), and then it’s mostly details. In all I’m pleased. It’s got great light and a welcoming … Continue reading
Progress in the bathroom
We’re halfway there. The tub is in place, the shower cubicle is being tiled, the cabinet thingy arrived, the loo is installed (and it works, which is always a good … Continue reading
Faux-Bonsai
This is a Beaucarnea Recurvata (aka Nolina). You get the effect of a miniature palm/coconut tree for very little money (between €5 and €10) and even less work. It’ll do … Continue reading
Life at no. 42, month 16. The good and the not quite
So it’s been sixteen months. I’ve more or less lost my sense of time. Some days I feel like I’ve been here forever, others I wake up and still … Continue reading
Doodling Floor Plans
Okay- I’ve been doodling and doodling to see what I could actually come up with for the currently unused atelier area. If you don’t recall, it looks like this: The … Continue reading
Apt. #3, the floorplan
There it is, although not exactly to scale. Apartment 3 is on the same level as apt. 4 (what we call in France & Britain the 1st floor, or in … Continue reading
Work on apartment #3; Two bed, two bath
Work has begun. This is one of the apartments I prefer, which means it’s more fun. It’s got an interesting L shaped layout with a bedroom at each extremity (each with … Continue reading
A finished one bedroom apartment
The kid moves in tomorrow at noon, so as you can imagine we’ve been running around to get everything done in time. It looks quite decent. Still need to set … Continue reading
Work at the 1 bedroom
A ton going on this week. The double glazing is in place in the 1 bedroom flat. Big, lots of light. Showing off the bedroom window is Ted Thatcher, our friend … Continue reading
To gild or not to gild
This week’s conundrum: to gild details of the wrought iron balustrade (as they were in the hall’s original decor) or to leave them black as they are now (and have been … Continue reading
Work at building #II, week II
A ton has been done already. Walls have been stripped, then insulated, then covered in plasterboard. And the walls that had to be moved have been moved. I don’t have … Continue reading
Light at the end of the… scraping.
The dining room: My floor scraping activities are going well. A bit hard on the hands, but there you go. The chandelier arrived and I couldn’t be more pleased. The … Continue reading
A Master Bedroom Is Born (Almost)
I’ll take pictures next week once everything is in place. The only thing not yet chosen is the fabric for the curtains. It was all looking a bit too dur … Continue reading
Work and then more work. Months of work ahead.
I did ask for it. Now I’ve got a total of six serious reforms on my hands. Six kitchens to be redone, six bathrooms- goodness knows how many square metres of … Continue reading
Life at Nº 42: Floor scraping, day I
Calling the job tedious is an understatement. White spirits, wait 15 minutes, scrape, white spirits, wait 10 minutes, scrub, mop, wipe. It has to be done in small sections so … Continue reading
The Dining Room: Upping my game
We had our first dinner party a few days ago. Small but exceedingly lively. It lasted eight hours, which I suppose means it went well. It was all very casual … Continue reading
New camera. Testing, 1,2,3
Playing with the camera. My old little red camera is broken. The same person who doesn’t let me use his camera because I’m allegedly not careful enough, dropped mine. … Continue reading
The distribution (for those interested in design)
When I talk about the house it’s probably confusing, so here’s a not quite to scale sketch of the distribution: The green salon, grey salon and dining room face the … Continue reading
An Almost Kitchen
We’re nearly there. Three of the curved bits are delayed: The tall curved door and two pieces of the curved skirting. The Zimbabwean brushed granite is installed. It has a lovely … Continue reading
Schizophrenic Weather
We’re slowly trying to get accustomed to this completely different sort of weather. The temperature changes from day to night are drastic. Sometimes up to a 20 degree difference. Although … Continue reading
A Big Week
A lot going on. Work has begun on the future floating terrace. A bit over 30m2, so there’s enough room for outdoor seating and a dining table and chairs. It’s … Continue reading
Roof-work, kitchens and sculleries
Now there’s a good picture for proportion! Doesn’t he look tiny? He’s replaced eight broken roof tiles and repaired cracks on the chimneys. Fortunately the roof is in quite good condition. … Continue reading
Pattern, Colour and Progress
Working with such an intense pattern is not easy. It takes tremendous skill. To be honest I think it’s only brilliantly done in England and in India. Henrietta Spencer Churchill comes to … Continue reading
Pictures of week one
Still no internet. We’re supposed to be connected this Friday. That means we’ve been internet free from December 9th to March 27th. Strange, but it wasn’t the end of the … Continue reading
Just another mini-update. Of furniture and new homes.
Home alone, as Mike is off to Burgundy to see a double dresser on stretcher legs in Burgundy. Nearly identical to the one above except instead of three drawers it has … Continue reading
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