Category Archives: Renovation

Closerie Falaiseau, Loire Valley, Renovation

Four Fireplaces, Two Fire Starters and No Fire

March 6, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 4 Comments

Last Friday night when we still thought we might be able to have a fire in the renovated fireplace upstairs in Closerie Falaiseau, we thought we would order a fire starter on-line. We first became acquainted with the Cape Cod fire-starter, under the name of pierre à feu (fire stone) when staying in Valérie’s beautiful gîte in Mesnil Jourdain, which incidentally is no longer available for rental.

The principle is simple: a pumice stone soaked in lamp oil is placed under the logs in the fireplace and lit with a match. After 15 to 20 minutes, the stone is removed using a special hook and set aside. When it’s cool, it’s returned to its ceramic (or cast iron) pot. This eliminates the need to use newspaper (which is now coloured and no longer burns properly), small firewood or briquettes. Neither of us had ever heard of it before. I thought it might be French but Jean Michel couldn’t imagine rural France coming up with such an invention so I’ve tracked it down and discovered that it’s an American invention.

We found an on-line store (Roncier) and ordered one which we found quite expensive at 69 euro including shipping but when we tried to pay, my Visa card was refused. I tried another one card and it didn’t work either. After checking my emails to make sure the order hadn’t gone through, we went searching for another website. It turned out there is actually a huge choice of fire-starters and Roncier is among the most expensive! This time we chose a Turgis which costs 33,46 euro plus 10 euro shipping. The whole process must have taken about an hour!

Next morning, I received an email from each of the websites saying my order had been registered. However, since Roncier said it would only be shipped when payment had been accepted, I wrote and cancelled the order. On Monday, I again received emails from both sites saying that the order had been processed and was on its way.

This morning, both turned up within a half an hour of each other, one by carrier and one by post. When we didn’t answer the door bell straight away (do I dare admit we were both asleep?), the delivery man climbed halfway up one side of the fence, put the parcel over the top with one hand then used his other hand to lower it as far as he could on the other side, before letting it drop to the ground. Fortunately it didn’t break! By the time the postman arrived, I was dressed and could go and open the gate for him.

We can’t quite work out the 23 euro price difference although the more expensive one has a wooden handle which Jean Michel rather favoured until I pointed out that it looks remarkably like another type of recipient I know, so we’re going to put the one with the iron handle upstairs and the wooden handle downstairs where it will be less conspicuous.

So now we have four fireplaces, two fire starters and no fire.

Loire Valley, Renovation, Restaurants

Why the Fireplace Smokes and Other Annoying Things

March 5, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 9 Comments

We seem to be having a run of bad luck and are hoping we’ve come to the end of it!

The first thing we did after we got to Closerie Falaiseau late Wednesday afternoon was to turn up the heating. Then we went to buy an espresso machine to replace the cheap-O one that gave up the ghost last time we were here. You may remember that I have a super-duper Italian one in Paris which grinds the coffee beans and now makes excellent espresso, cappuccino and latte. We had decided on a De Longhi for Blois which uses both ground coffee and pods and is reputed to be sturdy.

The ex-Penalty - Chez Gabriel — The ex-Penalty – Chez Gabriel

Neither of us felt particularly keen on going home to cook and eat in a cold house so we went to Au Coin d’Table. It was closed. Since it’s winter it’s only open from Thursday to Sunday. So we went to Le Penalty instead, which isn’t quite the same. Also it’s changed owners since we were here last and is now called Chez Gabriel. I’m not convinced that the French fries are really home-made as claimed.

The second time we used the espresso machine, the on/off pilot light stopped working. Jean Michel took it back to Darty to have it replaced but they didn’t have any others in stock. We have to go back again later in the week, but we’re using it in the meantime, of course. Either I have become a foamed milk expert or the wand is much better than any others I’ve tried but soon I’ll be doing latte art!

The fire that wouldn't burn — The fire that wouldn’t burn

The most disappointing thing on the bad luck list is the fireplace of course As you know, it smokes. After the first try with green, damp wood, Jean Michel went off next day and bought some dry firewood. This time, he couldn’t even get it to burn! And there was still smoke. We called the roofer.

The roofer came on Saturday afternoon, took one look at the fireplace and said, “Le tablier est trop petit”. According to him, the fireplace is not deep enough for its size and, as a result, will never work properly. He thought maybe we had changed it in some way. He also explained that we have a hill behind us which does not help and that grey days such as we’ve been having recently aren’t conducive to a good fire either. He did agree, though, that opening up the top of the chimney might make a difference. He obviously can’t come this week, but will come in our absence. It turns out it will be a lot cheaper than we thought.

Next day, the sun came out and the clouds lifted so Jean Michel split the wood into smaller pieces and we eventually had a small fire going without too much smoke. Feeling more optimistic, we went rushing off to Troc de l’Ile to find a sofa. Jean Michel wanted two sofas so we could both lie and read in front of the fire. The first person we saw was Mrs Previous Owner. We found two likely looking candidates that were cheap enough to throw away in a year and a half when we bring our furniture down from Paris. However, they were pretty massive, so Mrs PO very kindly phoned Mr PO to come and help take them up to the living room as I certainly couldn’t. We strapped them into the trailer and set off home.

On the way, Jean Michel suddenly said, “I think they are too big to take through the door.” It was also the first thing Mr PO said when he arrived. We measured all the doors and windows and had to face up to the sad fact that there was no way we’d get them upstairs or even downstairs for that matter. I phoned Troc de l’Ile and told them we were coming. We got there just as they were closing. Everyone was standing around waiting for us! We took our credit note and said we’d be back next day.

We managed to find a matching leather sofa and armchair and a second armchair with a footstool that Jean Michel is happy with. They were also not as heavy which meant that I could help take them upstairs. But the fireplace still smokes and we’ve given up any further attempts until the roofer has been because the smoke actually made me sick (headache and nausea). We are, however, enjoying our newfound living room and it makes it feel much more like a real home.

I nearly forgot. We went to dinner at Au Coin d’Table on Saturday night after the wrong sofa episode. I phoned and made a reservation. When we got there, however, there was no trace of it. It turns out there is a restaurant called “Le Coin de Table” in Tours (an hour away) and I made a mistake when I looked up the number in the Yellow Pages. I suspect it isn’t the first time because I remember this happening another time. I phoned the other restaurant to cancel of course. The lady found it most amusing!

The very eclectic interior of Au Coin d'Table — The very eclectic interior of Au Coin d’Table

Closerie Falaiseau, Loire Valley, Renovation

First Fire in the Fireplace

February 28, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 15 Comments

We’re at Closerie Falaiseau. We’ve had dinner and are sitting on the sofa in front of the non-operational fireplace downstairs . Why, you may ask, are we not upstairs, drinking champagne and eating foie gras in front of our beautifully renovated Renaissance fireplace. Well, the answer is simple. We’ve lit the first fire and discovered it smokes.

Mr and Mrs Previous Owner came over this afternoon after lunch so that Mr PO could help Jean Michel take the 150 kg fireback upstairs. It was an amazing operation and I have finally understood how a chain hoist works.

The manual chain hoist at the top of the landing

First, Jean Michel attached the chain hoist horizontally to the railing at the top of the steps (chain hoists are usually used vertically). Then he put a plank under the chain. After that, he put two thin planks on the steps.

Mr PO and JM then lifted the fireback onto the first planks. JM put a super strong strap around it and attached it to the hook on the end of one of the two chain loops.

The fireback is now attached to the chain hoist

Mr PO, on the landing, started pulling one side of the other chain loop. This turns a pulley mechanism inside the chain hoist housing. When the pulley turns, it lifts up the end of the other chain loop with the hook on the end. Pulling on one chain enables the hoist to increase the mechanical work that is being done. Now isn’t that clever?

It was amazing to see Mr PO pulling on the chain loop while the 150 kg fireback slid effortlessly upwards. He did tell me not to stand at the bottom of the steps though, just in case the whole load crashed back downwards and crippled me forever.

Mr Previous Owner effortlessly pulling up the 150 kg fireback

The planks weren’t quite long enough, so a little adjustment was needed halfway up and again when the fireback reached the top of the stairs.

JM and Mr PO then had to lift it onto the landing. Using another set of planks they lifted and slid it upright into the room. I could see by this time that Mr PO needed a break so I forced JM to go downstairs and get the trolley so they wouldn’t have to lift it all the way across the living room to the fire.

Just then, one of our neighbours went past on his bike so we called him up to help. That way, there were three men to carry the fireback across to the fireplace. Once it was in place, JM drilled a hole in the wall and screwed in the bracket he had made previously to stop the fireback falling forwards.

He then brought up some firewood from our little wood, which incidentally is now full of snow drops and budding daffodils, laid the fire and lit the first match.

Our wood with crocuses and daffodils — Our wood with snow drops and daffodils

It was a very moving moment and we were about to cheer when we realised that the room had started to fill with smoke. We opened the door to let it out, hoping it would soon go up the chimney. But it didn’t.

Jean Michel had suspected this might happen but thought we would just have to have a smaller fire, not no fire at all. You may remember the story of the delinquent owner who removed the crest stone when he had to sell the house. Well, the exact same person bricked up the top of the chimney, reducing it by one-third (we don’t know why), thus preventing the smoke from going up the chimney properly.

The next step in the operation is to have the chimney opened up again. Tomorrow, we’re phoning the roofer so he can come and give us a quote. But I think the champagne and foie gras in front of the fire might have to wait until next winter! Sigh.

Architecture, Loire Valley, Renovation

French Renovations in the Loire Valley

February 1, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 6 Comments

I thought I would use my guest post on My French Life this month to do a recapitulation of the renovation of our Renaissance fireplace in Closerie Falaiseau, our 400-year old house in Blois. I know that some of you waited with bated breath as we converted it from a “bandy-legged monster” as Barb Hall so aptly called it in a comment, to a straight and dignified fireplace ready to use.

The hearth looks a bit stark at the moment but once the fireback is in and the logs are in place and there’s a roaring fire going, it should look a bit more attractive!

French Renovations in the Loire Valley

posted on My French Life, the global community of French and francophiles connecting like-minded people in English & French

The first time we visited Closerie Falaiseau, a beautifully restored Renaissance home built in 1584 near Blois in the Loire Valley, we didn’t see the upstairs fireplace. It was almost completely covered up with a large wardrobe.

So on the second visit, we asked if the cupboard could be moved. But it was very heavy and we only had a partial view. It was not until we signed the final deed of sale and saw the house empty that we had any real idea of the state of the fireplace and even then, it turned out that a large rattan fan was hiding a gaping hole filled with cement. Read more

Architecture, Loire Valley, Renovation

The Fireplace is Finished – well, almost

January 9, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 11 Comments

We are on our way back to Paris. It’s 10.30 pm and by one o’clock, we should be in bed. Not like last night when Relationnel hit the sack at 4.30 by which time I was asleep, woken from time to time with hammer blows. But today was our last today and it seem inconceivable to leave Closerie Falaiseau without finishing the fireplace.

In yesterday’s post, I was up to the first coat of limewash. When we got up next morning, we were surprised to discover that the pale ochre colour in the bucket had turned almost white on the fireplace. I applied a second coat and a certain amount of homogeneity appeared. It was quite amazing.

Bricks arranged like miniature Roman bath ruins

In the meantime, Relationnel began work on the hearth which – obviously – turned out to be much longer than expected. First, we were using refractory bricks of various shapes and sizes which Mr Previous Owner had recuperated from somewhere or other, thus saving us quite a bit of money. Second, there have to be little air tunnels in the hearth under the top layer of bricks. By the time he had laid it all out (upside down), it looked like miniature Roman bath ruins.

So while that was going on, I started the rendering on the walls. I must say I had been somewhat apprehensive. I’d looked for a video on You Tube on applying “removable” rendering with a roller and there weren’t any. I did watch one on applying ordinary paint with a roller and got a few tips though. First, we mixed in the colour (well, Relationnel did with his neat machine) hoping we wouldn’t need a second batch halfway though because it didn’t look very repeatable. Relationnel then demonstrated how to apply it and it didn’t look easy at all. The paint seemed to fall off the roller before it even got to the wall.

Now, how to get it onto the wall without it falling off first

He told me to begin in the middle of the right wall (which will be hidden behind a large bookcase) until I got the hang of it. One of the things I saw on the video was that you should do the edges with a paint brush first (after putting adhesive tape on the adjacent wall for protection). My efforts didn’t look too bad and the paint got better at staying on the roller once it was totally impregnated.

Fraussie learning the techniques of rendering

That bit was done standing up. Then I had to climb a ladder to do the top bit. I’m not that keen on being that high up and by then the paint-soaked roller was really heavy. Also, since my technique was better, the paint wasn’t as thick, making the join a little obvious. There was also the hard-to-get-at bit between the mantle and the oak beam that you more or less have to do blind.

The wall on the right of the fireplace after rendering

After the middle and top sections came the bottom bit which is hell on your back. While I was doing it, Relationnel appeared. “That’s dangerous, you know”. “Oh là là”, I thought, “What have I done now?” “Oh, why?”, I asked, hiding my apprehension. “Because now I’ll want you to help me all the time.” “Ha ha!” The whole wall only took a couple of hours and I was rather pleased with the result though a little uneven. I attacked the second wall with much greater aplomb and it looks most professional.

Meanwhile, Relationnel was still messing around with his bricks and finally came to the conclusion that some of them would need to be cut. Eventually, everything was ready and he started cementing them into the frame. After tea and Christmas cake on the worksite, I added another coat of limewash. The result was getting better all the time.

But the bricks were very tricky and when Relationnel went to bed at 4.30 am, he hadn’t finished. This morning, he finished them off while I put on another coat of limewash. After lunch, it was my turn to help again and I learnt yet another skill – putting refractory mortar (my old friend) between the joints. We finished off the job together and at 7 pm, the only thing left to be done was to add the ventilation grills but two of them require a special metal bracket but that will only need another hour or so next time to we go to Blois.

The fireplace as we were leaving Blois (with the coat of arms taped up for protection)

We’re not satisfied with the mantel which needs another coat of fine-sand rendering to get rid of all the bumps but we can live with it for the next two years. The next time we go to Closerie Falaiseau, we’ll go hunting for a sofa at the dépôt-vente, buy some firewood, find a way to get our 150 kilo fireback upstairs, lit the fire then crack open the champagne !

Architecture, Loire Valley, Renovation

The Fireplace is Still Not Finished

January 7, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 6 Comments

This is the post that was supposed to announce that the fireplace at Closerie Falaiseau is finished and that we have opened our vintage champagne and eaten our home-made foie gras to welcome in the New Year.

The state of the fireplace in the last post

Well, we’ve eaten some of the foie gras because of its relatively short lifespan. But you’ve guessed it – the fireplace is not finished despite the fact that we’re staying an extra day and that I have contributed far more than I initially thought I would. You may remember from my last post on the subject that I was going to put rendering on the wall on either side of the fireplace after priming it.

What it looked like behind the mantel before Relationnel covered it all with refractory mortar

Well, since the mortaring of the inside of the mantel proved far more time-consuming than Relationnel initially thought, I figured I should volunteer for something else more urgent. I was told that I could fill the joints between the lintel stones. Not with putty, of course, but with lime mixed with sand and water. We’re doing this the traditional way. The information came from Nicolas, the man in charge of renovating our balcony in Paris who is apparently a superduper expert when it comes to stone.

Damaged lintel before filling the joints and reconstructing the stone

My experience with mortaring the back of the fireplace came in good stead and I eventually got the knack of filling the joints. Then I filled the other cracks and holes. Relationnel said I was doing so well that I could reconstruct the missing bits of stone. Great! I was very skeptical at first but in end I managed to create something very reasonable. However, half the reconstruction fell out of one of the gaps I had filled, which was disappointing to say the least. So I didn’t even look at the biggest one.

Partial reconstruction on the largest gap

Next day, I surveyed my handiwork and declared that the sand was too coarse so Relationnel produced some ultra-fine sand. Now why didn’t he tell me about that the day before? It produced much better results and I was able to reconstruct the one that broke and, with infinite patience, complete the gap I hadn’t even attempted. I was getting the hang of it.

The lintel after doctoring with a multitude of different colours and textures

On Friday we needed more mortar so we both went to Brico Depot together. It was the first time in four days that Relationnel had set foot outside the yard. I’d been grocery shopping in the morning, so I was marginally luckier. We decided to go out for dinner on Saturday night to have a côte de bœuf at Au Coin du Table in lieu of champagne in front of an open fire and not talk about renovations or fireplaces. We almost succeeded.

On Sunday morning, I got a new job – putting a coat of light-coloured rendering on the mantel using a water-down version of the fine-sand and lime concoction applied with a spatula. That was a joke! The first batch was too thick but we eventually found a workable consistency and did it together, with me on either side and Relationnel at the front. When it dried, it looked very uneven and not much lighter than the first time, just not as rough. Hmm …

Mantle after second lot of rendering on the mantle

When Susan and Simon from Days on the Claise arrived for lunch, with half the meal to boot, we were definitely glad of the diversion. They also run a tour business called Loire Valley Time Travel, taking visitors to the châteaux in Celestine, a Citroën called a traction avant which started life in 1953. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t brilliant and we didn’t get to meet Celestine, though maybe we’d never have got back to our renovations if she we had!

After lunch, I volunteered to whitewash the fireplace. Well, I gathered that was what “fleur de chaux”, water and a savvy mixture of pigments corresponded to. I was a bit doubtful about its ability to cover up all my handiwork, not to mention someone else’s plasters and the remains of a colour job somewhere along the way, ranging from dark red to yellow and pink. So we got out the scales and made up our extremely liquid mixture.

Relationnel started panicking and said it wasn’t even worth trying but I was more philosophical. It looked a darned sight easier than anything else I’d done up until that stage. Why not give it a try? The result was not quite what we expected. I’ll tell you what we did about it in the next post!

Loire Valley, Renovation

More Progress on the Fireplace

January 3, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 13 Comments

Relationnel said today that if he’d known how long the fireplace was going to take, he’d never have started the renovations. I’m not convinced though. I somehow can’t see him going to stay in a gîte somewhere else in France to enjoy an open fire when we are the proud owners of a 400-year old house with no less than four fireplaces. He might have started the refurbishment earlier though …

He has been working full speed for three days. The mantle is now more or less ready to take the whitewash. He’s had to reconstruct it inside and outside, requiring large amounts of refractory mortar and bits of brick and a lot of skill and patience. We had hoped to be able to renovate the stone but it is really quite damaged and would take weeks and weeks to restore. It has also been painted various pink and ocre shades over the centuries so whitewash seems the best solution.

Having spent the first two days getting all my translations out of the way, I was finally able to contribute to the renovations today. Although there is rendering on the other walls of the room, the two panels on either side of the fireplace had been left unfinished, covered by a large bookcase on the right and a large cupboard on the left. Another cupboard stood in front of the fireplace. The previous owner left the bookcase on the right as it is almost an exact fit but the other side is completely bare.

Relationnel decided that if we were going to do renovations, we had to do them properly, including rendering on both walls. So that is my job. Today, I did the undercoat, an easy though tiring job because I’m not used to stretching my arms above my head, getting up and down a ladder to dip my roller in the paint, getting down on all fours to finish off the bottom, etc.

I donned my throwaway overalls and put plastic bags over my shoes to protect them and used the cap that I won with Carolyn Barnabo at the barbecue quizz we attended last year at the Australian Embassy in Paris. I always knew it would come in handy. Relationnel demonstrated how to put paint on the roller and I was off.

The mantle with only the right side to go

We used to have our house repainted regularly when I was a child in Townsville by professional painters and I certainly don’t remember ever seeing them use paint rollers. I don’t know when they were invented, but they are certainly a big improvement over those large brushes I used when I did my first paint job thirty years ago.

Relationnel does the last bit of rendering

Also, that water-based paint is a real boon. When you’ve finished, you just have to wash it all off the brush, roller (though since it was a cheap-O one so we threw it away), paint bucket and grid thing. The only disadvantage is that in winter, cleaning everything outside with no running water is a bit of a bind. It was easier when we painted the front gate in the heat wave last summer.

But Relationnel said I did a good job so I went off to make lunch while he did some more mortaring. We finally sat down at 2 pm by which time I didn’t want to move another inch. I asked Relationnel how long it would take to dry. “Oh, you can put the rendering on this afternoon if you want.” No way. I had a nap instead. I’ll attack that tomorrow!

Lifestyle, Paris, Renovation

SAD and Au Vieux Campeur

December 27, 2012 Rosemary Kneipp 20 Comments

I don’t know if displaced tropical Queenslanders are more likely to suffer from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder or Winter Depression) than others but I can’t find any other explanation for having felt so down this week. Already the days are short (it’s only light from 9 am to 5 pm max) but the scaffolding on the balcony cuts out most of what natural light there is and gives artificial neon light from 8 am until 7 pm. The flower seller at the market found me so down on Sunday that he gave me a kitchy little pot of four-leaf clover!

Relationnel was told the scaffolding was moving to the next set of windows today so about 10.30 am, I went downstairs to find some workmen to ask. They reassured me it was D-Day so I raised my arm and said “yey!”. They looked a little surprised so I explained that they were my windows that had been obscured for the last four months.

The sun was out, the sky was blue and just going downstairs seemed to cheer me up so I thought I’d go to Rue de Rennes to look after the missing suitcase invoice problem. First stop was a shoe shop called Arcus. I gave them the date and amount. They were very friendly and immediately tracked down the purchase and gave me a receipt.

Then I walked down to Boulevard Saint Germain to one of the Au Vieux Campeur shops. Parisians swear by this shop, though I don’t really understand why. It used to be just one shop on rue des Ecoles selling outdoorsey stuff. It is now a series of speciality shops – 29 in the Latin quarter alone – selling everything to do with sport and camping.

My objection, apart from the prices, is that the shops I go to (mainly for walking shoes) are always full of people. I spent a full hour trying on every possible pair of shoes in the shop before we went to Australia in September. I finally bought some ugly looking turquoise and grey shoes that gave me horrendous blisters in Tasmania. And then, when I had finally worn them in, they disappeared with the suitcase!

So I went back to the shop where I bought them, stood in line and asked for a receipt. I was sent to the “main shop”, two streets away. I queued there as well only to be told that I had to go back to the first shop. The lady rang up the guy and told him he had to give me a receipt. I went back and stood in line and gave him the details. He couldn’t find my purchase of course. “What time was it?” You gotta be joking – I’m supposed to remember the time I bought the shoes? I only know I was there for too long.

He finally sats it is not in his cash register. “Is this the only place I could have paid for the shoes I got downstairs?” “No”, he says relunctantly, “there are those two as well”, indicating a couple of computer screens further along the counter. “You mean, these three cash registers are not connected up ?” “Er, no.” “Are you telling me I have to wait until there are two more sales people to check?” “Well, I could turn them on.” Which he eventually did and I queued again while he served another few people.

The bistrot with the awful food - Le Cluny — The bistrot with the awful food – Le Cluny

Not that I blame him, it must have been very annoying for the other customers. Anyway, he still couldn’t find any trace of my purchase so I dispiritedly went out, by which time the rain was absolutely pouring down and I didn’t have an umbrella. I took refuge in the closest brasserie, Le Cluny, and ate an absolutely awful meal of spare ribs and potatoes. The young waiter commisserated and gave me a free coffee.

So, here I am, back home, still waiting for the scaffolding to move and it’s already 4.30, which is terribly close to knock-off time.

Next day’s update: removal of the scaffolding is now postponed to 7th January.

Loire Valley, Renovation

The Fireplace is Not Finished

December 17, 2012 Rosemary Kneipp 6 Comments

The fireplace is not finished. Relationnel has gone back to Paris without me because the balcony in the Palais Royal is not finished either. We will not be welcoming in the New Year with a glass of champagne and homemade foie gras in front of a blazing fire. Unless we postpone New Year until the fireplace is finished. Which is what I think we might do. It might be less depressing.

Back of the fireplace with chicken wire over a very uneven surface

You may remember that the last time Relationnel left Closerie Falaiseau, the back of the fireplace was lined with chicken wire, waiting to be covered with refractory mortar. Given the slow progress up until then, he decided to take a week’s holiday so that he could finish it completely. I was so pleased to have him back again after 10 days that I immediately offered to help with the mortar.

I got dressed in my coveralls, shoe covers and surgeon’s gloves while Relationnel got the mortar ready. None of this measuring bit. He just tipped the powder into a trough and then added water au pif, as the French say (pif is slang for nose). He mixed it round and it eventually had the right consistency. It looked deceptively easy.

Then he demonstrated how you hold up a large trowel at right angles to the wall, then with your other hand, you use a smaller trowel to somehow push the mortar onto the wall and flatten it on over the chicken wire. Ten minutes of that had me in tears. Not only didn’t my mortar stick but my whole body was hurting.

I put my trowel down and went over to have some time out on my gardening stool for a while. I watched Relationnel and tried to learn his technique. The first thing I realised was that he had shown me the technique for right handers. Which I’m not (although I later discovered that my relative ambidextrousness was very handy). I went back and tried again, this time using a large plastic rectangle with a handle on the back instead of the trowel. It made a big difference, I can tell you. By some miracle, the mortar then started to stick. Well, some of it anyway, but it seems that professionals drop a lot along the way as well. You just scoop it up and put it back again.

We worked steadily on and I started to feel more on top of things, particularly as we got past kneeling level and I could sit on my gardening stool which relieved my back and hands no end. Relationnel suggested I try mixing up the next batch of mortar. The bag was so heavy I couldn’t lift it so he tipped it in then added some water. I couldn’t even stir the mixture with the trowel it was so stiff so I set to with my hands.

It was worse than mixing the Christmas cake. The cement and water eventually penetrated the surgeon’s gloves and became cold and sticky so Relationnel came to the rescue. It seemed a bit ludicrous not to have some sort of beater to make the process easier. When I mentioned this to Relationnel, he suddenly remembered that he had an attachment for mixing paint. He had to buy some mason’s pails first and use a really big drill, but the attachment didn’t break and it reduced the mixing time amazingly.

To cut a long story short, we finished the first section, using a large ruler to make sure it was even and smoothing it all out with my plastic rectangle. I have to confess that I thought the whole operation was pretty dicey considering the unevenness of the walls. I was pretty amazed at the result.

However, when we started the next section the following day, I found the mortar very stiff and had a lot of trouble getting it to stick on the wall. In the end I managed to get it on and when we finished the first layer of the second section, Relationnel came over to smooth my side down as I didn’t have enough strength in my wrists. As soon as he touched it, it all just peeled off, like marzipan on a cake. I was devastated.

That set off another flood of tears. I was particularly worried that what I had done the day before was going to peel off at some future point in time but Relationnel reassured me. In fact, after mixing up the next batch of mortar, he realised that it needed to be more liquid. I tried again with the new mortar, getting him to check that it was OK all the time, but in fact, it was fine.

After completing the visible part of the back of the fireplace in a total of three sections, I then looked after the last smoothing and evening operation, which fortunately was very successful so I was slightly mollified. Relationnel was was very proud of me.

More completely finished — Mortar completely finished and smoothed

That night I practically cut the tip off of my small finger cutting up pumpkin which put paid to any further contribution and seriously disabled me for 48 hours as I could no longer touch type correctly. I’m sure you want to know what happened next, but I am going to keep it for the next episode!

Food, Renovation, Wine

The Kitchen Sink

December 6, 2012 Rosemary Kneipp 2 Comments

Relationnel is arriving this afternoon with the kitchen sink. Well, almost. I wish he was. I am taller than the average Mrs Frog, unfortunately, which means that most sinks are way too low for me. It wouldn’t matter if I had a dish washer, but that is the one major item missing from Closerie Falaiseau and short of putting it in the bathroom (and that would not pass muster with my gîte guests now, would it?), it will continue to be missing until the kitchen is renovated in a couple of years time, at the same time as the addition of a very large bay window, complicated by the fact that the walls, you will remember, are about 70 cm thick. But I want light and a view of our wood.

What Relationnel is bringing, though, is the electric knife sharpener (why do knives become blunt so quickly?), my sewing box (someone’s going to notice that coming-down hem soon), a couple of warm pullovers (so I can wash my only woollen cardigan) and the second cheap-O espresso maker (because pieces keep coming off the one here and my extragently expensive one now lives in Paris without me).

He’s also bringing the fireback for the renovated fireplace which he bought in Baie de Somme through leboncoin.com on Monday. I was so sad not to go with him but it seemed a little silly to take the train to Paris (1 ½ hours) then go another 2 ½ hours by car and back again. So I’m waiting eagerly to see the monster which is a metre wide and weighs over a hundred and fifty kilos.

Leonardo’s company closing file is also coming down, sadly. I can’t believe it’s not finished yet but the Court wrote to say there were some things missing and a couple of errors. But Relationnel is also bringing the flowers Leonardo sent to me just as I was leaving Paris last time – the florist suggested delaying delivery until Relationnel could bring them down to Blois as it seemed a bit dicey to take them on the train with me.

xmas_cake_cooked — Last year’s Christmas cake fresh out of the oven

More importantly, the Christmas cake tin and ingredients will arrive tonight as well, though only Relationnel and I will be around to stir and make a wish, an unavoidable break in tradition this year as the cake is already late. I should have made it last time I went back to Paris. Of course. But I was too busy trying to close Leonardo’s company.

temperature_foie_gras — Taking the temperature of our home made foie gras

Apart from that, Relationnel is bringing all the materials needed to finish the BIG FIREPLACE OPERATION so we can wish in the New Year in front of a blazing fire, sipping vintage champagne and eating homemade fois gras (if we ever find the time to make it!). It could take a while to unpack from the trailer when he arrives. Then we’ll go out and celebrate our anniversary!

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Aussie in France

Category Archives: Renovation

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posted on My French Life, the global community of French and francophiles connecting like-minded people in English & French

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The Kitchen Sink

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