Tag Archives: french

Looking slightly less like a hovel

Posted on July 22, 2019 by coteetcampagne

I now treat you to an image viewed many times before by long suffering followers; the front of our French house in 2006. Although we still have some tidying up work to do and the walls to paint, it is … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged french, house, paint | 3 Comments

Onward and upward

Posted on October 9, 2018 by coteetcampagne

After a summer of stasis when nothing got done around the French house, we have finally started to address the final work. Everything stopped for a number of reasons: Trev’s new French doctor put him back on a drug cocktail … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used | Tagged builder, french, house, pipes, plumber, village, work | 9 Comments

Orange Alert

Posted on August 17, 2018 by coteetcampagne

So, we can now announce that Trevor is deemed to be legitimately resident in France and is recognised by the basic French health insurance system. We had fun getting the necssary photos in the booth in the supermarket. The first … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged Carte Vitale, france, french, health insurance | 11 Comments

slub silk – dupion v shantung

Posted on July 10, 2018 by coteetcampagne

OK, this post is a bit “niche”, but I had to share the thrill of unpacking more bargain buys from French ebay. These vintage curtains are made from silk dupion (dupioni) in a typically subtle ivory cream with cream and … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged bedroom, curtains, doors, dupion, french, shantung, silk, terrace, vintage | 6 Comments

Bedroom decoration and refurbishment

Posted on May 12, 2018 by coteetcampagne

Still no luck finding a new changeover person for the Argeles apartment, so doing that ourselves right now. As the apartment has not been decorated for a while, and the bedroom was just a white box, we decided to bite … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog, What we did, how we did it and what we used | Tagged apartment, appliques, argeles, brocante, dressing table, french, lace, lampshades, painted | 6 Comments

Bedroom rugs- Indian and Indiennes motifs

Posted on March 1, 2018 by coteetcampagne

Following the installation of the window seat storage in the terrace bedroom, I have unwrapped another of the rugs that have been sitting in the workshop for eons. This one was hand made in India. The short looped ground is … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged bedroom, cotton, france, french, hand made, house, Indian, Indienne, indiennes, jute, rug, silk, terrace bedroom, wool | 11 Comments

A different Thursday Three- Painted walls, ceilings and beams

Posted on February 15, 2018 by coteetcampagne

Super busy today, but in the middle of a restoring a handpainted piece my mind slips to the wall and ceiling paintings that I plan to execute here at the French village house. Look at this one –left-JP! painted ceiling … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged beams, ceilings, design, french, house, painted, renovation, restoration, stone, tree of life, village, walls | 12 Comments

Hiding an eyesore. The surface mounted debate

Posted on February 10, 2018 by coteetcampagne

I know why old French houses have surface mounted pipes and wires. It’s far easier and therefore cheaper to install your plumbing, electrics, drainage etc if you don’t chase out those thick stone walls to conceal these modern “neccessities”. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged french, houses, pipes, recycled, restoration, surface mounted, wiring, wood | 13 Comments

Deliberating on the details

Posted on January 26, 2018 by coteetcampagne

So, proof that a little simple attention to detail can be effective? More from this pinterest site here, where I found this photo- Lovely Pinterest Link I have a number of inset cupboards like this in the house. Cut into … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged cupboards, dog, france, french, house, stone, walking, wallpaper | 17 Comments

Episode 163- In which some things become clearer and some things that were once clear turn to mud

Posted on January 23, 2018 by coteetcampagne

I have returned to the UK, albeit briefly, four times since we moved to France. So I have spent much time on a certain budget airline contemplating my destiny. BTW- If the airline in question would like to purchase this … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged adventures, france, french, retired, rural idyll, UK, village English | 7 Comments

The Restoration Rescue Dog update

Posted on January 10, 2018 by coteetcampagne

In response to kind enquiries, we will update the fur-baby diary. We have had a spot of backsliding (behaviour wise) over the last few days. I am quite sure that this is a manifestation of her growing confidence with us … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged Bronte, dog, french, rescue | 16 Comments

The Os de Mouton chair gets it’s new cover

Posted on January 2, 2018 by coteetcampagne

Remember this vide- grenier buy from August 2016? An ode to the os de mouton chair The frame was great, though we did treat it for woodworm just in case. It wasn’t safe to sit on, only two working springs … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged chair, crewelwork, embroidery, french, Jacobean, loose cover, Od de Mouton, upholstery, vide-grenier, woolwork | 19 Comments

Reclaimed materials. Some thoughts

Posted on December 29, 2017 by coteetcampagne

The views expressed in this post may be deemed provocative. I stand by them. To avoid any inference that I am pointing the finger, I will use the original shot of our French house. Well, about 2/3rds of it as … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged architectural, french, materials, original, property, reclaimed, renovation, restoration, village | 30 Comments

Trevor’s limited editions 2017

Posted on December 29, 2017 by coteetcampagne

You may remember this rack that Trev made for our small chopping boards. All recycled wood from the French house, apart from the dowels. The finish is my secret recipe for treating new and old wood to blend both together … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged design, french, house, kitchen, painted, recycled, renovation, restoration, rustic, wood | 15 Comments

Joyeux Noël et bonne année à tous

Posted on December 25, 2017 by coteetcampagne

My daughter is not sure about this particular Christmas design statement. She is accustomed to seeing the Family Baubles draped o’er a big green traditional tree. This is the tree branch Bronte and I dragged home from the riverbank. It’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged annee, Aude, christms, decorations, family, french, Noel, tree | 14 Comments

The cracks are beginning to show…………and I am very happy about this

Posted on December 10, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Lived in and heated full time for the FIRST time in fifteen years, the French house is settling into itself. The old bones and the careful new additions are getting to know each other. It’s a kind of rustic romance … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged Bronte, diner, floor, french, house, kitchen, painted, panelling, renovation, restoration, village, wood | 21 Comments

Lots of small things that make a big difference

Posted on December 5, 2017 by coteetcampagne

I know I haven’t posted much re progress on the village house for a while, but Trev has certainly been working hard on a whole host of small but critical projects. This storage cupboard, left , was created from part … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged aged, chic, french, house, kitchen, renovation, restoration, rustique, village, waxed | 9 Comments

Friday French Property P**n – two and one

Posted on November 25, 2017 by coteetcampagne

These are the three Pinterest photos that I have looked at the most over the last couple of weeks. I love the decorative frieze on what I presume is a stone chimney piece left and the ceiling treatment https://pin.it/thxb3iram3zm5r We … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged antique, authentic, cave, courtyard, design, french, gallery, house, motifs, painted, property, renovation, restoration, stencil, stone, village | 11 Comments

Gluten free Tiramisu – and why you should unpack all your kitchen & dining stuff before you try to play hostess with the mostest

Posted on November 18, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Here is a new Handy Hint for Restoration and Renobuddies who are planning to offer “Restauration” Chez Vous. Check if you’ve got enough serving dishes, serving spoons, glasses and appropriate cutlery unpacked before your lunch or dinner guests arrive. (Note … Continue reading →

Posted in Food and wine, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged coffee, custard, dessert, diner, french, gluten-free, house, kitchen, madeleines, recipe, tiramisu, vintage | 19 Comments

The Thursday Three- cushions for me

Posted on November 2, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Last weekend I took a break from making up cushions to sell and used some pieces from my stash of antique and vintage embroideries to make up cushions for the French house. Left- large needlepoint woolwork panel in Arts & … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged antique, arts and crafts, cushion, embroidered, french, needlepoint, tree of life, vintage, woolwork | 12 Comments

Episode 162- The herringbone kitchen ceiling realised

Posted on October 26, 2017 by coteetcampagne

From this left to this right-photos via these links first stage second stage How? We removed the grotty ceiling tiles (if you are following in our footsteps, PLEASE check that these tiles are not asbestos based!) Clean underside of ceiling … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used | Tagged aged, artist, beams, ceiling, country, effect, french, houses, insulation, joists, kaolin, kitchen, lambris, painted, pant, rustic, vintage, white washed, wood | 11 Comments

Monday, and the weekend’s booty

Posted on October 23, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Saturday saw us trawling the big Vide Grenier that forms part of Espezel’s agricultural and artisan fair Foire Espezel It’s very beautiful up there in the Plateau de Sault, but at nearly 900 m above sea level, the drop in … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged antique, canvas, espezel, foire, french, lace, oil, painted, painting, picture, vide-grenier, vintage | 13 Comments

The Thursday Three- copper, verse and Turkish rugs

Posted on October 19, 2017 by coteetcampagne

I know copper kettles are a bit of a cliché in French country kitchens but I do like the ones with indigo and white folk painted ceramic handles and was very happy to find this one whilst out trawling with … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged antique, copper, country, france, french, kettle, kitchen, Oliver Goldsmith, turkish rug | 14 Comments

An evening in Argeles-sur-Mer

Posted on October 12, 2017 by coteetcampagne

After a late changeover between a French guest and some friends of friends here, we decided to park by the town hall and walk across the bridge into Argeles village for dinner. The Eglise Notre Dame del Prat (our lady … Continue reading →

Posted in Food and wine | Tagged Argeles-sur-Mer, Catatan, dinner, Domaine de Prade Jorda, eglise, france, french, L'Hostalet, La Gamate, La Noisette, lunch, Notre Dame del Prat | 5 Comments

Argeles- and the sun set slowly over the shreds of my sanity…

Posted on October 5, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Well it felt like that anyway. With a significant increase in guests at the seaside apartment this season, we have also experienced a few “less kind” reviews. I won’t go into detail but it’s not been very nice. Fortunately, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Food and wine, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged argeles, Argeles-sur-Mer, cafe gourmand, catalan, french, pie, seaside | 17 Comments

The Thursday Three – quilting, sanding, painting, waxing

Posted on September 27, 2017 by coteetcampagne

More photos of this lovely piece fresh from France on our etsy shop (right) Very Petit Chateau. Trev has been working hard on our very brown coffee table Remember this table? Tutorial on request..

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged antique, chateau, french, painting, quilting, salon, sanding, table, vintage, waxing | 13 Comments

Village houses in the Pyrénées-Orientales

Posted on September 21, 2017 by coteetcampagne

More French village houses for your delectation in this lovely department bordering the Aude; we drive through these villages when we go down to the apartment at Argeles. We have found a new route down over the mountains and will … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged Caudiès-de-Fenouillèdes, french, Maury, occitanie, paint, painted, Pyrenees Orientales, spain, st paul de fenouillet, village houses | 19 Comments

Episode 161- the kitchen ceiling, inspiration from 13th century Domaine at Luc-sur-Aude

Posted on September 16, 2017 by coteetcampagne

You remember the horrible kitchen ceiling? The one I demolished and then started wondering about half way through if the insulation tile was asbestos? horrible kitchen ceiling post In common with most old and some new French houses, the ceilings … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used | Tagged barn, beams, Castillou, cave, ceiling, french, herringbone, house, joists, kitchen, lambris, paint, renovation, restoration, village, wine, wood | 17 Comments

Wedding of the decade

Posted on September 6, 2017 by coteetcampagne

No, not mine. I have had the privilege of being involved in the beautifully conceived and elegantly styled design and production of my friend Beverly Lambert’s French Rustique Vintage Chic wedding. A ceremony at Esperaza Mairie on Friday will be followed … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged antique, Aude, chic, french, rustique, vintage, wedding | 10 Comments

Housses de coussin and antimaccassars

Posted on August 27, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Ok, what is an antimaccassar? for those of you who may be less obsessed with the minutiae of textiles than I am. they are small fabric mats placed over the back of chairs to protect them. Mainly, in the Victorian … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged anti maccassars, embroidery, fabrics, french, indiennes, Jacobean, Linen, salon, tree of life | 15 Comments

Episode 160- the penultimate bit of plasterboarding

Posted on August 26, 2017 by coteetcampagne

This was the entrance to the kitchen when we bought the French house. You may struggle to see all the improvements but we can! Above and to the left of the doorway (in which there will be no door) there … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used | Tagged building materials, door, doorway, french, house, kitchen, lintel, old, plasterboarding, renovation, restoration, village | 22 Comments

Episode 159- Working on the salon door

Posted on August 21, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Do you remember the truly hideous door in the salon? This did not say “hello, I’m a French village house salon door” in any language. It’s sole merit was that it fitted, and adjusting reclaimed doors, or their frames, to fit … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used | Tagged antique, door, french, house, reclaimed, renovation, restoration, salon, village, vintage, wax, wood | 10 Comments

Rideaux de porte- door curtains

Posted on August 15, 2017 by coteetcampagne

I though you might like to see my “new” door curtains. You may recall that we have a “Jack & Jill” shower room on the second floor at the French village house. We now have functional locks on the access … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged antique, bedroom, Campagne, cotton, curtains, french, house, Linen, renovation, restoration, rough, rustic, silk, village, vintage | 21 Comments

Vintage French linen cushion on etsy

Posted on August 3, 2017 by coteetcampagne

New in our etsy shop-see top right of this page. The Madame de Pompomadour cushion! Made with vintage French linen fabrics and trimmings Brocante chic

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged antique, brocante, cushion, etsy, french, Linen, shop, vintage | 5 Comments

Fabriqué en France- les housses de coussin arrivent

Posted on July 26, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Well, a bit later than planned, here are the first of my cushion covers made from old fabrics. I plan to use at least 50% vintage /recycled fabrics and embroideries on these cushions. I am offering the option of covers … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog | Tagged antique, canvas, cotton, covers, cushion, dentelle, embroideries, france, french, Linen, needlepoint, recycled, tapestry, vintage | 19 Comments

21st century schizoid plans

Posted on July 22, 2017 by coteetcampagne

I had a brilliant trip to Toulouse on Thursday with bride-to-be Bev#1 (who loves fabric and old stuff as much as I do) and Welsh Bev#2 ( who comes from the same South Welsh valleys as my Mother’s family). There … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged antique, bedroom, book, curtains, cushion, design, fabric, french, Linen, occitanie, painting, Septimanie, vintage | 10 Comments

The Terrace Bedroom- La Chambre Terrasse

Posted on July 15, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Never let anyone tell you that you can do nothing with a room 2.3 metres wide and five metres long, except perhaps turning it into a bathroom. Remember this painted door from an earlier post? That’s on the other side … Continue reading →

Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged antique, bedroom, chambre, embroidery, french, house, painted, renovation, restoration, silk, terrace, terrasse, village, vintage | 21 Comments

Episode 157 – In which I think that I may have pushed my vision more than a tad further than anyone would deem standard French house restoration

Posted on July 13, 2017 by coteetcampagne

Nothing here is straight, or straightforward. We knew that in principle, but in practice the reality is that sometimes even more creativity and lateral thinking is required when finishing off our projects. Because I will not let Trevor demolish or … Continue reading →

Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France | Tagged door, french, fretwork, house, lime plaster, old, original, plasterboard, renovation, restoration, wall | 11 Comments

Episode 156 part two – waxing a painted door

Posted on July 2, 2017 by coteetcampagne

So, by popular request (at least THREE readers) here is how we roll when we refinish doors here at the French house. This technique is based on our finishes developed for our painted furniture and gives a far tougher surface … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used | Tagged antiqued, antiquing, bedroom, doors, french, house, paint, painted, tutorial, wax | 12 Comments

I Troc therefore I am- Carcassonne

Posted on June 28, 2017 by coteetcampagne

It is true. I love to Troc. We were driving around the industrial estate behind Casino supermarket in Carcassonne looking for the Orange Boutique. Googlemaps said that we were virtually sitting in it; then Trev suddenly remembered that Phil had … Continue reading →