Maison des Fleurs
&
Appartement de Roses et de Vignes
Listed in the Sunday Times 2018
'One of the top 20 gites in France'
&
Sunday Times 2022
'One of the best 30 self catering gites in France'
Maison des Fleurs.'..sits at the heart of village life serving up southern France in all its glorious, sunlit simplicity. Antique bedsteads, window box geraniums and baguettes from round the corner are all part of the scene here. So, too, is a magnificent array of beaches & ancient monuments....' Sunday Times
Introduction
Maison des Fleurs
Appartement de Roses et de Vignes
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Appartement de Roses et de Vignes
Renovation of the Apartment
Lounge Renovation
October - December 2016
The work undertaken in these months has been hard and not very photogenic. The ceilings were taken down, insulation put up and then it was all plastered. First though, the old plaster was taken off the beams and they were chopped free of rot and then sanded - this resulted in everywhere being covered in a light rain of wood dust - horrible. The ceiling is now finished and the beams just need treating plus the walls need finishing off.
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Before I can clean and paint the floor, however, we have to take out the window, make the hole bigger and insert new glass doors. We also have a Juliet balcony to put up in front of the doors. The balcony we obtained from a reclamation yard at Narbonne. In our minds this room is nearly finished but the reality is that it will take considerably more time to alter the windows to a balcony - but it will be well worth it.
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As with the Bedroom, I had to take the crepi off the walls - a time consuming and messy task. In one place I revealed the underlying beautiful Corbieres stones - they will be varnished and left as a feature.
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The lounge is large and will house the usual furniture such as sofas and coffee tables and DVD player, but there is also an antique book case to go in there and a settee that will be turned into a canopied daybed.
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January 2019 - July 2019
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Work continued on the French windows that will be a feature of the lounge. The French windows were listed as 100 cm wide but were, in fact, 105 cm - it doesn't sound much but it involved grinding down the sides of the walls where they were going - a horrible and a long job. The balcony and the windows were incredibly heavy and we engaged the help of a local builder, Julian, who was brilliant.
It was all worth the effort, the result is amazing and inside the lounge it gives a real 'wow; factor. We are waiting for quotes for a piece of double glazed glass to go on top of the French windows. Meanwhile I can soon move in to paint the walls and the floor and then the lounge is - believe it or not - finished! NB Whilst waiting to get into the lounge to decorate I painted the new balcony, the railings, front door and garage doors - credit where credit is due!
Window that is to be replaced and the antique balcony found in a Reclamation Yard.
I am very fortunate to have a husband who can turn my somewhat off the wall ideas into reality. An example being the daybed. Once I decided I wanted it to be canopied I found a piece of wood which I renovated using car body filler (!) and painted. Peter then added a box shape in wood and a curtain rail and .. voila... a canopied daybed. The fabric is new but in the old tuile du jouy style but the curtains are lined with antique handmade cotton crocheted single bedspreads that are just gorgeous.
