Half an hour ago we decided that we're on holiday for a week. This means getting up when we want, going for walks, eating nice food, sitting by the fire, and absolutely nothing at all to do with renovation, at all. I am to flagellate myself with old dried flageolet bean plants while begging for forgiveness if I go within 3 feet of the cement mixer or a hammer. This is because I kind of reached a wee crisis point just now, this time about the drainage.
I want this to be a blog of our work on the place as my other blog is meant to be about smallholding matters and is fast becoming something more akin to a renovation rant. I thought it might be useful in case anyone is thinking of doing the same thing, as I had trouble working everything I've done so far out, having to patch it together from many sources, along with a lot of trial and error.
Being concerned that the world we inhabit is about to go bang due to us as a species using too much too soon, mostly on tick, I prefer to work in traditional, natural materials, bought when I can afford it, so there is little here that isn't stone, lime, wood and linseed oil. I also as much as possible work with hand tools and with little paid help (K works, but she gets paid in foot rubs). This might be why I'm a little worn out!
I have never done work like this before, having spent most of my life in an office dying of boredom, so am learning from scratch as well.
This is about working with your hands, with natural(ish) materials, in as simple and low-key a way as possible. If you, dear reader, have a simple rough house with few straight lines, this might be useful. Anyone else is better advised to employ someone who knows what they're doing or risk making a hell of a mess!
So here goes...
