Restyled Refinished Vintage
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Rent our holiday apartment in the South of France
Our apartment at Argeles-sur-Mer is available to rent now. Email us direct for the best prices for this season and next. See our "Galleries" post for more photos of our little seaside place in the South of FranceApartment gallery
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Tag Archives: kitchen
Christmas project-part one
BLEACHED, FADED PAINT FINISH At last, some time to work on our house!! Our kitchen and sitting room are on the first floor. Not unusual in village houses here, but it limits flooring options when your room is thirty feet … Continue reading
Posted in What we did, how we did it and what we used
Tagged BLEACHED, chalk, DRIFTWOOD, floor, kitchen, paint, varnish
10 Comments
Post Paint View
Kitchen ceiling finished, this wall almost finished. Brackets to mount under the little white painted wall cabinet Trolley needs new feet to line up with other surfaces Art Nouveau tiled splashback to go up Smaller cupboard to paint Inside of … Continue reading
The clock case
So, now Trev has finished panelling in the new wiring in the kitchen, I can fill, paint and finish this wall and the ceiling. My Unfitted French Kitchen story continues on this, the Wall of Worry ( put that into … Continue reading
Twiddly bits
So here is Trev, up a ladder once more, panelling in new electric feeds and junction box. He only has to cut the 1 cm plywood to fit around the differently shaped beams, all with different sized spaces between. And … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used
Tagged electric, kitchen, panel, wood
Comments Off on Twiddly bits
Trevor’s limited editions 2017
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
The cracks are beginning to show…………and I am very happy about this
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
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
Gluten free Tiramisu – and why you should unpack all your kitchen & dining stuff before you try to play hostess with the mostest
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
Episode 162- The herringbone kitchen ceiling realised
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
The Thursday Three- copper, verse and Turkish rugs
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
In which Trev loses the will to live again-
You may recall me buying these hand made coppery lights in M. Bricolage a couple of years ago. They had vile plastic hanging flexes. Not a problem, I made ruched linen sleeves for them (sew a tube up with a … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used
Tagged beams, copper, flex, kitchen, lamps, lights, Linen
5 Comments
Episode 160- the penultimate bit of plasterboarding
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
In which I admit it . I mostly hate new things
Another day in which I wear so many different hats that I need more than one head. A morning of intensive day-job work; then Very Quickly painting the kitchen wall because Trevor’s Monster Fridge is arriving earlier than expected. Congratulations … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged kitchen, painted, panelling, renovation, restoration
15 Comments
Driza bone – or tiling by Tonto
So Trev went to war on the kitchen floor. This certainly looks like “warpaint” (PC alert- I hope no one is offended) In fact its the water/dust spray from his serious tile cutter. He says that the brick tiles I … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged brick, floor, kitchen, leak, mosaics, shower, tiles
11 Comments
Floored
We found the brick paviours. They will work in kitchen and the cave. We are NOT going to conveniently drop on the 34 square metres of reclaimed floor tiles or brick that we need, within our budget, the minute we … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged brick, cave, floor, kitchen, paviours, reclaimed, tiles
14 Comments
Economication. That’s the name of the game.
So, ply is hard to find in France and relatively expensive. Chip board also. So in the first floor kitchen we put down a sub tile floor using our leftover stash of tongue and groove remnants; to be covered by … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used
Tagged floor, france, groove, kitchen, tiles, tongue, wood
6 Comments
Small steps and hot French finds
Little bits done this week. Finished laying terre cuite hearth in salon, edging next. Also finally decided on floor finish for wet/cooker wall in kitchen. Whilst loading said option, I spotted this chaux (lime) based natural paint in Brico-Depot in … Continue reading
Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged chaux, cuite, finish, floor, kitchen, lime, paint, terre
7 Comments
Friday French Fix- Quelques idées pour les petites pièces
On the basis that size isn’t everything (there’s a talking point) here’s some small French rooms. http://www.hgtv.com/design/rooms/bedrooms/10-creative-headboard-ideas-from-rate-my-space-pictures The textiles are a bit twee here for moi, but the palette is great and SOMEONE here has had the chutzpah to rock … Continue reading
Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged antique, bedroom, embroidery, french, kitchen, painted, room, swedish, terrace, textiles
28 Comments
Episode 149- Perceptions and the interception dance
I have been loathe to invite anyone into the French house whilst my vision for the whole place remains less than blindingly obvious in most areas. This couldn’t go on, so on our last trip we allowed in some curious … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged aquarelle, blog, cave, chair, diner, french, house, kitchen, os de mouton, painting, pyrenees, renovation, restoration, salon, staircases, watercolour
5 Comments
Quandaries -the buffet- update
So, I dredged up the photo above-left-, which is the only photo I had of the QB (Quandary Buffet) taken when we bought it. Surrounded by stuff. Next time we saw it was … Continue reading
I’m not saying my partner is displaying a degree of ocd, but…..
Its weird. Trev is happy to exist in the necessary chaos around us in France but I am reaching the end of my patience with this project now. I want clean. I want to go look for something in it’s … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged kitchen, oak, shelf, sideboard
12 Comments
Episode 143 – More decorative finishes- lambris wood panelling
There are a number of elements we see time and time again in humble French houses. One is lambris, or narrow wood panelling. It’s been popular here for centuries though the default finish seems to be dark treacly varnishes and … Continue reading
Friday French Property P**n Fix
My current obsessions are- *Kitchen dining storage –Left-http://decordeprovence.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/spring.html I love open shelves, I know many don’t . We have them in the UK and they are no more hassle, cleaning wise, than cupboards with doors. *Small bedrooms- Right- thedecorista.tumblr.com I … Continue reading
Chop Chop – skirting around French kitchen restoration
If you have been paying attention, you will recall that in order to find the wooden staircase we cut a while back, we had to clean up and tidy the cave. This was going to be the last job on … Continue reading
Faïence in France – Tile Style- Getting it just right
http://www.faience-ponchon.com/ http://www.homeceramics.com.tn/Content/Pages/Faience-gres.html There are some gorgeous kitchen tiles available right now, and I was very tempted by these mixed designs-Â above- for a while, and they may well have worked Chez Nous, but as ever I am drawn back to … Continue reading
Posted in Art, design and inspiration blog, Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged 18thc, 19thc, Canaletto, faience, floor, france, french, house, kitchen, marble, renovation, South, stone, terracotta, tiles, tomettes, travertine
22 Comments
Belated Thursday Three, or four
Because the sun is shining and because Trev has nearly finished The Never Ending Floor-y and because one of our good French friends has just made a gesture so generous it reduced me to tears….. Here are three plus one … Continue reading
Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged carved, chimney, Chinese, copper, dragons, french, kitchen, lights, suspension, wood
34 Comments
Episode 138- I like whitewashed floors but they have to WORK- so- a practical and tough floor finish for you
We started with this Gascony Pin-maritime from France’s oldest managed forest. This is a clean, hard pine, with less knots than many, and those knots found have a low resin content, so bleed is less of an issue. Trev says … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used
Tagged diner, floor, france, kitchen, lasure, pine, plancher, plank, white, wood
6 Comments
Episode 136 – Random late evening musings
Yes it’s a bit dark (because it IS a bit dark) but here are the first few floor boards wearing their carefully chosen first finish. The sheen will soften down when its dry….. I bought my first French interiors mag … Continue reading
Episode 135 Part 1 – the horrible kitchen ceiling
It’s not pretty is it, the kitchen ceiling? It does not shout ” French Country Village House” in any language.It’s got to go. It has been suggested that we board over it, but no. As we are gluttons for continuous … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged asbestos, ceiling, country. french, house, kitchen, tiles, village
26 Comments
entrée libre
So, we need to address the last issue we have with the layout of the village house; the teeny, tiny entrance hall. It’s not as bad as it was, at least it doesn’t have the door (opening outwards) to the … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged decoration, entrance, french, hall, house, kitchen, original, renovation, restoration, village, workshop
14 Comments
Brut renovation
Yes, renovation is damn hard. So, how has this working week gone so far? Well, first of all the sheer weight and volume of wood needed for our thirty foot long kitchen diner at the village house meant that making … Continue reading
The Thursday Three- Boiserie, carved wood, dining furniture
Yes I know, this is a terrible picture, but it is the only one I have to hand that shows my kitchen diner at the French village house WITH DINING FURNITURE! The country table, as you now know, came from … Continue reading
Christmas ?
So it’s almost Christmas “France says” asks how we all celebrate this – see http://francesays.com/ I have only just got the tree up (don’t ask) and the gifts wrapped (nearly) so am less organised than ever this year. One likely … Continue reading
Flipping French Floors #1
Builder’s debris, strong cleaners, constant sweeping and damp dusting, strong sunlight & no protection, years of benign neglect; no wonder My French Floors have had enough. Seeing the way the thirsty floor in the terrace bedroom soaked up the lime … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France, What we did, how we did it and what we used
Tagged floor, floors, french, house, insulation, kitchen, oil, pine, renovation, restoration, wax, white, wood, wooden
15 Comments
Episode 125- Farewell my lovelies, à très bientôt
Last week we waved goodbye to a pile of stuff destined for the French house as it started it’s epic journey to the far Aude valleys. We will all be reunited very soon; and if I can get the junk … Continue reading
Posted in Antique and Vintage finds, Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged antique, bench, bergere, chapel, france, french, furniture, house, kantha, kitchen, original, painted, quilt, renovation, restoration, rugs, vintage, wax, wood
13 Comments
Episode 122- August achievements, and some bad impressions given
With almost three weeks in France, we got lots of niggling small jobs done.These might not seem madly significant to those undertaking Grand Designs, but they gave us a great deal of satisfaction. Putting up coat hooks in hall- until … Continue reading
Kitchen lighting- a concession to the contemporary
AS you may recall, I am mixing it up at the French village house and adding a few classic contemporary pieces to the antique and vintage mix. This is the chrome & enamel fitting that will be installed over the … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged antique, dining, enamel, fitting, french, house, kitchen, light, lighting, renovation, restoration, table, village, vintage
4 Comments
Ten things I wish someone had told me about letting a holiday home
To wrap up the Argeles apartment posts for now, here are ten handy hints if you are thinking of letting any space, small or large. Some we learned the hard way, so you get the heads up right here- 1) … Continue reading
Posted in Renovation and restoration diary- France
Tagged argeles, france, french, holiday, kitchen, Linen
3 Comments
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