The House That Fought Back!

I love our new house in Cognac but this last week it has been testing my patience.  I often think of old houses as having rather quirky and sometimes temperamental personalities and this one is obviously no exception.  I think it's fair to say the honeymoon period is well and truly over and that it's time to get going with the renovations in earnest.  

The first "incident" occurred on Christmas Eve at about 9.30pm while we were enjoying a yummy supper lovingly cooked by my chef husband, Spike.   The slightly dodgy table centre that I had cobbled together with the trimmings from the Christmas tree and some bay branches from the yard was lit (thankfully Spike bought some red roses which improved my rather bedraggled offering).  We had the radio playing in the background and were feeling very smug that we had managed such a nice meal considering our limited kitchen facilities.

My woefully inadequate table centre

We were half way through the meal when the power box by the front door started making some terrible knocking noises so we rushed around the house turning off the computer and other electrical appliances before shutting down the power completely.  With torches in hand and thankfully candles already lit (being Christmas) we went around the house unplugging everything and turning off the switches of the numerous ancient Bakelite junction boxes that are to be found dotted liberally around the house.  Spike then tried to turn the power back on... nothing!

From a mobile phone we managed to get through to someone at EDF who said they would send someone round on Christmas morning to sort it out.  

Obviously by this time our dinner was somewhat congealed but in spite of everything we spent a lovely candlelit evening together in an eerily quiet house before retiring to bed.

A taste of the house's 19th century roots

Watching the little Christmas trees spinning around isn't as entertaining
as the TV but beggars can't be choosers!

After a restless night worrying that the electrics might be completely condemned by EDF coupled with a rather chilly start to the day due to our heating being off the lovely EDF man arrived and thankfully rescued us... ahhhh!  

With the heating roaring away and everything right with the world again we took the dogs out for a walk along the river and visited some friends for Christmas lunch (which was delicious).  

Boxing Day was blissfully uneventful and take-two of our Christmas Eve supper (thankfully Spike made enough for two meals) was a success and everything seemed to be back on track but the very next day we realised by the afternoon that the house seemed to be getting a bit cold.  Having inspected the oil tank we saw to our horror that it had run down to nothing. We'd only checked it a couple of weeks back but obviously our old boiler is a pretty hungry beast. Luckily we have second tank with oil in reserve so it was just a matter of transferring the oil over and voila we'd be back in business in no time... well apparently the boiler had other ideas!

The monster in the basement just refused to fire up again and we had to call out an emergency heating engineer.  Unfortunately he spent an hour poking around and looking bemused and finally whilst scratching his head in obvious confusion he said he'd come back with some spare parts in the morning.

That was a few hours ago now and it was while I wrote this post that a distant "woo hoo" emanating from the basement reached my ears so I knew to my immense relief that Spike has managed to get the old girl going (yes boiler's are female in France... talk about stereotyping!) so it looks like we are not going to freeze after all (hooray!).

The look of a triumphant
(or should that be slightly smug?) man!

These last few day illustrate my theory that houses are living breathing things.  The electrics are the veins, the water pipes the arteries and the boiler is the very heart and although as with people it gets harder to accept change as you get older I do hope that we can gently coax our dear old house into the 21st century without any more crises and that with a few carefully planned operations she'll (temperamental old houses are also female in France!!!) be as good as new.

A Trick of the Light

We are heading for the shortest day of the year and as the Winter Solstice and Christmas approach it's time to enjoy a little light to get us through the darkest days.

The Place du Solonçon in our quarter of Cognac by lamplight

The other evening we took the dogs out for a stroll around the centre of Cognac to look at the Christmas lights.  They were rather low-key compared with somewhere like the Champs-Elysées in Paris, but after living in the countryside for several years, where there was little sign when the festive season was upon us, they were simply magical to me.

On the way to the centre of town via the old medieval quarter of Cognac

Place François 1er in the heart of Cognac

The elegant bridge over the River Charente that leads us home 

Usually on returning home from a Winter evenings walk we would all snuggle up in front of a fire but this year we sadly don't have that luxury.  Having recently moved I discovered to my dismay that my dream of a roaring open fire this Christmas was not to be because the flue of our fireplace was already being used by our monster of a 1970's boiler.

So until we update the heating system I've had to improvise by putting some red tinsel in the fire basket along with some pine cones and twinkly lights.  I also placed a mirror behind it to reflect back the light and was genuinely surprised at how effective this was. So with my makeshift fire and a few lit candles placed around the room we couldn't be cosier.

You could argue that the fireguard is unnecessary but our electrics are
so ancient it's possibly not as mad as it looks

The pinnacle of bringing light into the home though is, of course, the good old Christmas tree.  This year for the first time we bought a cut tree.  Normally we buy a small tree with roots and attempt to plant it out in the garden in the New Year but because we are now in town and only have a courtyard I broke with traditional and bought what I like to think of as a massive cut flower to ease my guilty conscience.  

Our Christmas tree - The masking tape on the walls is a little odd I'll
grant you but it is marking out where we plan to open up the walls

The upside to the terrible guilt I felt at buying a dead tree is that I could have a much larger one than ever before (woo hoo!).  Spike stopped me from buying a floor to ceiling tree because we don't have much space in the corner of the room at the moment but next year, once the walls have been opened up and the room has been decorated, I have promised myself a tree that touches the ceiling (I seem to have somehow overcome that crippling feeling of guilt)

We buy each other a new bauble every year
which helps gives the tree individuality

OK I bought this one for myself

Oh and this one from a brocante in the Summer

One idea that I saw on TV and would like to try next year is to use vintage pocket watch cases as Christmas tree decorations.  They took the cases of broken pocket watches, with no intrinsic value, and removed the inner workings (which are too heavy for a tree although beautiful in their own right).  They then replaced the innards with photos of loved ones or Christmas scenes.  You could of course put whatever you want in them which is what makes the idea so charming and personal.

In order to be able to do this I will need to get to an auction in England and buy a job lot but I think the idea is wonderful and hope to sell them in the shop I am planning to have open by next Christmas. I am also toying with the idea of using vintage brooches as tree decorations because these little works of art are very undervalued at the moment and can be quite beautiful.

A super way to add a vintage feel to your Christmas tree

It only remains for me to wish you a joyful, light-filled Christmas

Interiors, Eau de Nil and the Big Screen

The other morning I curled up on the sofa with Spike and spent a happy few hours watching the classic film noir 'The Third Man'.  There is nothing dreamier on a cold winter's day than to escape into a misty world of intrigue and scrutinise the wonderful vintage interiors of this glamorous, dark and shadowy world.

Old films have always held a special fascination for me and I am planning to use some ideas from the many mid twentieth century films I have devoured over the years to decorate our new home.

A classic Hitchcock film set for the 1948 film 'Rope'

One particular film that I have seen several times and never get bored of is the wonderful tongue in cheek 'Hitchcockian' style film 'Charade'.  This Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant film, set in Paris, first captured my imagination as a child and ever since I have longed for 'eau de nil' interiors and chintzy wallpaper set in wooden panelling.  As I look around the townhouse we have recently purchased I know that I am finally getting nearer to that deeply cherished desire and the home of my dreams.

A charming room with stunning Art Nouveau lamp and of course
the stunning Audrey Hepburn

 

The wonderful Peter Sellers in one of his most celebrated roles as
Inspector Clouseau in the process, with the help of Cato,
of wrecking his beautiful Parisian apartment

Because the previous owners of our house hadn't updated the decor since the 1960's virtually every interior door has been wallpapered in the centre of the panels and the woodwork is painted in different colours rather than white.  I am determined during the renovation process not to neutralise the decor to such a degree that the house becomes bland and loses it's charming traditional French feel.   

Our first floor landing with Raoul doing his best impression of 'Pyewacket'
from the 1958 film Bell, Book and Candle

The corner of our living room ready for it's close up
aside from the upside down wallpaper

Although I will be changing the colours and the wallpaper (unfortunately most of it is too far gone and the wall paper in the living room, aside from being very dark and stained, has been hung upside down) I will attempt to retain the feeling of a Parisian hotel room or apartment from the early to mid twentieth century.

The wonderful thing about this house is that I am, for the first time, not worrying about what other people like or the resale potential so I am completely free to style it to suit us. I am very lucky that Spike trusts me and lets me make most of the aesthetic decisions and so far hasn't had cause to complain (although I may be pushing his tolerance levels this time!)

So while Spike tackles the serious business of making sure the fabric of the building is sound I have been painting tester paints on lining wallpaper and sticking them around the house to see how they look in each room. By painting a large area like that it means you get a good idea of the colour and you can also try it on all the walls of a room because it's surprising what different light can do.  I am particularly colour sensitive and if I feel it's not right I will not rest.   I painted the master bedroom of one house we owned at least five times before I had doctored the colour to my satisfaction but it was worth it because the room always pleased me and started the day on a positive note.

Could the cupboard in the background be painted the allusive 'eau de nil'
 I am looking for?

This last couple of weeks I have been on a search for the ultimate 'eau de nil' paint for our bedroom and having tried various shades of sludgy green I haven't found it yet.  I have also been looking at chintzy wallpaper samples online for inside the panelling I would like in our bedroom and the two little attic guest bedrooms.  

Although we are a long way off getting to the cosmetic side of the build I find that I am more motivated during the renovation process when I have a good clear vision of the finished result.  I can hardly wait to wake up in a bedroom worthy of a glamorous classic film but I think I will pass on the murder, espionage and attacking manservants!  

     

Bonjour Bordeaux!

Last week I stumbled across an advertisement in an interior design magazine for a large brocante that was being held in Bordeaux over two weeks and with it being only around and hour and twenty minutes away from us in Cognac we decided it would be good to have a day out and buy a bit of stock at the same time.

Perhaps naively we also thought that we would take the opportunity to pop into IKEA while we were there because we wanted to buy some magnetic knife strips and and few other bits for the house. Unfortunately we were led astray by our sat. nav. and that completely set the tone to the day of running late for everything.  Having escaped the tempting clutches or that well known Scandinavian store and resisting the allure of buying stuff that looks vintage but obviously isn't we finally made tracks for the Quinconces quarter of Bordeaux for the market.  

Finding the market wasn't our biggest problem this time it was finding a free parking space that proved to be an issue.  We were in our little Renault Trafic van, Piggy, and having set off down into an underground car park we quickly realised that the the lower down we went into the depths of the earth the lower the ceilings became.  I have to say it was quite hair-raising as the aerial on the roof scrapped on all the concrete beams. To say that we were flustered when we finally emerged into daylight is an understatement but we did at least find that allusive parking spot.  

Of course by then we were running late for lunch.  I had set my heart on an Art Nouveau bistrot called Le Bistrot des Quinconces and was relieved when they said they were still serving.  It was truly beautiful but having had our order taken we waited a good half and hour before our food arrived and by the end of the meal (which was very tasty) it was well past 3pm. Bearing in mind that we have a little beagle at home that gets an attack of the vapours if he is not fed by 6pm we knew we were really cutting it fine.  

Stunning Art Nouveau windows that would be virtually impossible to replicate today

There is nothing quite as elegant as a mirrored interior, an opulent chandelier mounted on a glamorous moulded ceiling and crisp white linen tablecloths

It was wonderful to see a beautiful original mosaic floor in such good condition

By the time we finally began to shop for trucs it was a matter of scanning the stalls before diving in to the odd few that looked as though there might be something promising on offer.  The market was wonderful but the prices were very steep (no doubt the vendors were trying to recuperate the outlay for their pitches) but there were a few things I would have loved for our new house had we been further along with the renovation.

I briefly toyed with the idea of buying a little velvet fringed boudoir chair that I thought would be ideal for our proposed dressing room.  The vendor enthused about how comfortable it was and urged me to try it but having plonked myself down I was sorry to inform her that I felt that the seat was flat and lumpy.  With a raised eyebrow she sat down herself and stated that there was nothing wrong with the seat and went on to conclude that it must be that I have a lumpy petit derrière (well really!!!)

So frustrating that we didn't allow ourselves enough time for a leisurely browse

As for finding stock we bought a couple of things that I am yet to clean up but it isn't an ideal venue to buy to sell on

As dusk fell we rushed back to Piggy and caught an all too brief glimpse of the elegant city of Bordeaux

This impressive brocante and antiques fair is held every Spring and Autumn so we are already planning a visit to the one in the Spring of next year with the intention of finding a few treasures for the house and allowing ourselves more time to enjoy all that it has to offer. 

Home Sweet Home

It's been a tiring couple of weeks but I couldn't be happier.  We are safely installed in our new home in Cognac and la vie en ville is agreeing with us both.  It's always worrying when you make such a large change to your life but I'm relieved to say that I have no doubt that we made the right choice.

A little grubby and sad but a beauty waiting to be revealed

I think the reason I never really felt quite satisfied is that I am a townie through and through and although I love the countryside and the idea of country life and I think it's fair to say that I have given it a go but I only truly feel stimulated by my surroundings when there is beautiful architecture to admire, cafés to frequent and boutique shop windows to gaze into.  The countryside is a wonderful place to visit but for me, after ten years of living in France, I feel that I have finally arrived.

So these last two weeks we've been busy unpacking just enough of our things to live comfortably without getting unnecessary items out of storage that will get in the way during the renovation process.  We've been so preoccupied with this that I've hardly had time to keep up with the numerous Christmas sales of my Etsy shop.

My new spacious office (I think I may change the wallpaper!)

And my dwindling stock (must go shopping!)

We've only just started to fully explore all the nooks and crannies of our new place and to gingerly peel back wallpaper, lift corners of lino and discuss which walls will be opened up and to what extent. That's the exciting part.

We did start by gingerly peeling back wallpaper but may
have got carried away when we found a false wall the length
 of the narrow entrance hall... not so narrow now!!!

So we have a lot of dust filled days ahead of us but the house has such wonderful original features coupled by a feeling of charm and elegance that I really don't mind going through all that upheaval again.  

The stunning marble fireplace in the living room that needs opening up
and something to be done with that 1960's chintzy inner surround!

The view of all four levels of the house from the top of our elegant
spiral staircase is definitely worth the climb!

Our cute little bedroom/cat sanctuary is just oozing with French charm

I am the first to admit that I have a terrible track record for putting down roots but I am confident that this time we have at last found our forever home and in spite of the sceptical chuckling I continue to endure from close friends and family (not to mention the chorus of "that's what you said last time!") I remain sure that I will not tire of this poor ugly duckling of a house that will, given time, blossom into a swan or for that matter the fabulous vibrant town of Cognac.  

Ne Paniquez Pas!!!

We had an unexpected phone call from the buyer of our house a few days ago informing us that the date of completion of the sale of our house had been set for the 12th November.  We had expected to be moving at the end of the month because our Notaire was struggling to get all the relevant parties for our sale and the buying of our new house together at the same time.  The Notaire's assistant was surprised, for some reason, that we wanted to complete on the new house the same day as selling our present one but having explained that we didn't fancy wandering homeless through the streets of Cognac with two dogs, three cats and four chickens she got straight on to it.

Oscar and Jake visiting their new home and backyard for the first time -
Jake looks happy but Oscar is not as easily impressed!

So this last week we've had to get ourselves into gear and have been yo-yoing between a lock up in Cognac (the owners of our new house have kindly allowed us to put our things in the garage) and home with Piggy (our new van) packed to the rafters.

After having completed about seven or eight trips we realised that as useful as Piggy is a Renault Trafic isn't really big enough to move some of the larger lumps of furniture we have acquired over the years. So we have decided to hire a large box van with a tail-lift for two days including the day of the big move.

I have been tossing and turning in bed trying to work out the logistics of the move and mulling over the best way to make the move as painless and hopefully drama free as possible for our menagerie of animals.  We decided that on the day of the move the dogs will stay with us and wait in Piggy and the cats will be shut in the kitchen until we have sold the house and then be picked up before buying the new one.  The three of them are used to being pampered (it's like a cat hotel here) are very vocal so I am dreading the chorus of cross pussy cats I will have to endure as I drive Piggy the short (but very noisy) journey to Cognac.  

Leama relaxing in the grounds!

Raoul trying out the hot tub for size!

Primrose taking advantage of the warm stone therapy on offer!

As for the chickens we are hoping the owners of the house we are buying will allow us to move them the day before the sale (by then we should have managed, with a lot of swearing I'm guessing, to erect their new flat pack home).

The ducks climbed the property ladder this morning when they were taken to their new home, the Jardin Public in Cognac, today.  They have a lovely duck pond and we were particularly keen on them being re-homed there as we love the idea that we will be able to walk the dogs and go and visit Claude and Jacques whenever we want.  They are small ornamental ducks but they are also a couple of bruisers so I'm sure they will adapt to their new pond mates in no time and be running the show after a couple of weeks.  

Big ducks in a small pond this morning!

Claude and Jacques making friends in their new elegant town pond!

So with all things considered I have decided to take a couple of weeks off from posting on my blog to settle in with our little family of furry and feathered friends.   I look forward to sharing with you over the coming year the trials and tribulations of renovating our new home and the planned expansion of my brocante business (watch this space).  

My Old China

Last Sunday we visited a small flea market in a village with a very notable name that is situated about 15 minutes south of Cognac.  

I'm saying nothing!

We didn't find much for my Etsy shop but we did manage to buy two sets of Art Deco ceramic knife rests and a pretty Italian shabby chic soup tureen.

Pretty in pink Art Deco knife rests

Charming duck Art Deco knife rests

A stunning little soup tureen from Italy

I have recently started to collect a particular make and pattern of crockery.  Many years ago when we first moved to France I bought a pretty tureen for it's decorative appeal and didn't really think any more of it so when Spike spotted a little cake stand with the same pattern I just had to have it. 

Such a pretty design from the end of the 19th century

On turning the cake stand over it turned out to be made by the well known manufacturer, Longwy, which surprised us both because Longwy is more famous for a chintzy 1920's flower decoration typically on a blue ground. 

This example is from a fellow Etsy shop owner and is quite charming

The design is called Oiseaux (birds) and is quite a rare pattern especially when it is in green and red as opposed to just the red.  Well I shall keep my eye out for more Longwy 'Oiseaux' trucs from now on as I find it's always more fun when you're pouring over hundreds of stalls to have something in particular to look out for.

The Trucs you find at a French Fleamarket

Last Sunday I set off with Spike in our new purchase... the long awaited replacement for our old Big Blue Van.  We decided not to go back to England to buy the van even though it's much cheaper over there mainly because French second hand vehicles really hold there value unlike their English counterparts.

The seal of approval from Jakie and Oskie who seem to love Piggy
as much as the old Big Blue Van

I have named our Renault Trafic Piggy because it is such a square neat shape that it reminds me of an old fashioned piggy bank.  Spike calls it 007 because it has among other things 007 on the number plate but the van will always be piggy to me.

Anyway, off we went in Piggy to a large vide grenier (sort of car boot sale) that was being held in the village of Annepont, about a half an hours drive from us.  We had never been before so we parked in the allocated parking area a way off from the fair and set off across a large field in the direction of the market we could see in the valley below.

I think we could have parked a little closer but bearing in mind the chip
butty I was to gobble down at lunchtime perhaps it was just a well

The day began with a pleasant warmth that was to develop into something of a heatwave and with the low Autumn sun in our eyes we tried to get around as quickly as possible before I burned to a frazzle (the curse of having fair skin).

I picked up loads of new and interesting trucs for my Etsy shop and a few bits for, yes you guessed it, the new house that we're moving to soon in particular a decorative cast iron fire basket that may or may not fit in the lovely marble fireplace.   It only cost us 10€ so if it doesn't fit I can always sell it on.

The market just went on and on (and on and on)

Out of all the things that were for sale the biggest had to be an old water mill that had been turned into a chambre d'hôtes (B&B).  The owner was holding an open day which was ingenious because the normally sleepy village must have seen thousands of people that day.  I confess that I was a bit tempted to take a look around but being busy and also not wanting to get his hopes up I resisted the urge to have a nose around (although I'm sure lots of people couldn't resist).

Such a beautiful setting and a wonderful buy for someone

In addition to his beautiful home he was also selling a super little vintage car that understandably drew a constant crowd throughout the day.  I was tempted but my budget sadly didn't allow!

So cute (no, not the man... the car!)

That's the joy of going on antique/treasure hunting expeditions - you never know exactly what you are going come across next.