Phew ! Are you ready for part 2 of our winter renovation? Robin is working against the clock to get this space somewhat lovable before mid-April. Didn’t see the first part of this series? See Part 1 Winter Renovation.
One project Robin has attacked recently is correcting this odd enlargement of an upstairs bedroom over the staircase. Of course it wasn’t done well and needed this metal support which is really not ideal. We’d like to open up the staircase and put the bedroom back to its original size. The reason he has to do this now is because a new concrete floor will be poured downstairs and we simply cannot have the pole here. As a side note, can you see the mould on the walls? Yuck. Robin has already added ducts for several VMCs throughout the house for ventilation. It probably doesn’t help that the roof is actually disintegrating either.
Upstairs, a complete overhaul
All the rooms upstairs are small. However, next winter Robin will be taking down most of the walls and completely reconfiguring the space. There are currently 3 small bedrooms, one separate toilet and one bathroom. Robin would like instead three larger bedrooms and three en-suite bathrooms. We can do this as we’ll include the large room that was being used to store hay and meat. Yes, this is definitely a farmhouse!
Below you can see photos of Robin starting to remove the wall and floor of the extension in the upstairs bedroom. He’s also removing all the tiles on the ground floor as we will be having it professionally re-done with a projected mousse for the insulation to make up the irregularities in levels and a liquid screed for the floor surface. Eventually we’ll add stone or tiles. Sadly we won’t get around to that this year. The staircase will remain the same.
I know these terrazzo tiles are back in fashion right now but we don’t like them. Sorry if you do! They honestly remind me of a hospital. We could have tried to sell these but the time it would take to clean and sort them unfortunately isn’t worth it.
All this newfound natural light unfortunately won’t remain as Robin will be building a wall here. However, the stairs feel a lot less claustrophobic.
The Kitchen
This is our current small kitchen. It received a significant improvement last summer when we were able to repurpose these units when Robin was doing a kitchen renovation for a client. It is however a basic space. The dream kitchen that was supposed to be in the large barn connected to the house is, for now, my studio. It’s serving as both a studio and gallery at the moment. It’s too useful for painting sales.
Therefore, we have decided to make this space larger. This room is on the right of the front door, after another dingy hallway. Robin has taken down this wall and we hope a mason (the roofer) will help with the other wall. Already, there is so much more light. Unfortunately, the unchanged windows you see here will remain that way this year. The other wall not yet taken down is a load bearing wall. Unfortunately some if it will remain, blocking the staircase view upon entering the house. This isn’t ideal but we have to work with what we have. Budget needs to be taken into consideration.
In the last couple weeks Robin removed all the units, took up the tiles, broke down one wall and filled countless skips. I’m really hoping his body holds out because there is currently no bathroom in the house. He needs to be careful. This type of work is punishing on his wrist which has been bothering him recently, not to mention his back and knee issues. He goes to the kiné (physio) once a week, which helps.
Insulation
Can you believe that all the below insulation is only for the ceilings downstairs. Wild! We’re using natural wood fibre. It’s more effective and a lot more agreeable to work with compared with fibreglass. It is a little more expensive. It’s best to buy direct online.
Our Gate Arrived
Almost as a side note, as there’s so much going on right now, our gate arrived. We ordered this from a local blacksmith rather than a large company. There’s a big difference in quality. This is solid iron and the shape is called “chapeau de gendarme” or policemen’s hat. This refers to the top of the gate. The blacksmith still needs to come back to add a floral detail to the bottom panels. This is called a palmette in French, or rosace for a smaller gate. The gate will patina more with time.
Robin still needs to install the electrical mechanism for the gate. One of these days…
Plaster boarding (drywall)
So she does have a little character. After removing the thick white paint we briefly admired the colour and soubassement of these walls in the salon before Robin added a primer and started plaster boarding. The kitchen and room behind it are covered in hand-painted stencils. We’ve only glimpsed these details over the past few years behind the heavily flaking paint. The house was painted white in an effort to make it look more presentable for sale.
Things are starting to look like…something.
Up next, filling in the drainage channels, more plasterboarding, hopefully the floor guy and roofer will show up, a serious meeting about the bathroom layout, some pleading with the woodworker and more.
Robin has 5 weeks left before we have to move in… Wish us luck!
Help us buy a front door (and everything else)
We’re so grateful for your support!
Each stay in our rental or oil painting purchase helps us advance the renovation.
