Looking good

Below are two photos taken earlier this week, of the southern (front) side of the house, and the western (courtyard) side.

Two major developments have taken place since the last post: first, the old, patchy stucco has been chipped away, leaving a clean, even stone surface; second, doors and windows are being installed.

The front of the house, i.e. the side that is visible from the road.
The windows, left to right: upstairs, the master bedroom and its en-suite;
downstairs, the kitchen, and Nancy's sewing room.

The western side, facing the courtyard.
On the left, the three-panelled French door to the living room;
just right of centre, the main door; and right, the dining room window.

The same views, last year:

One among many ...

One of the pleasures we are both looking forward to when we are settled in our completed house, will be to welcome our friends and share the beauty of the area with them. And I can't think of a better way of doing this - before sitting down at the end of the day to a glass of Bordeaux and a plate of foie gras - than by introducing them first to the local architecture.

Sounds boring? Smells of dusty books from "European Indigenous Architecture 101"? Nothing of the sort. It just means come ready to put on your hiking shoes, get on a bicycle (we'll have a few) or, more traditionally, as good Frenchmen have done for generations, get in the car and drive slowly down some of those narrow, winding, and generally deserted local roads, for an afternoon's discovery of a few little-known villages that pepper the Périgord Noir - our corner of the woods.

Gaulejac is only one minor hamlet among many towns and villages in the area: varying clusters of houses modest and grand, farms, covered markets, castles and churches, all made up of that lovely honey-coloured limestone. But for this unifying colour and style, no two villages are the same. Each one is worth a visit, and deserves to be seen on its own terms.

But don't take my word for it. Before you make the trip, check out this online primer, a simple but well-documented blog which I discovered recently about the beauty of local villages.

We'll have dinner on the table when you return ...

Steady progress

Nancy returned from Gaulejac on Friday with complete photo coverage, and a positive report about progress on the house. There are a few challenges, to be sure, but they are generally well in hand and on the way to being solved.

For instance, there was much anxiety for a while over the exact, desirable colour for the exterior pointing (mortar). The building contractor kindly applied a number of samples on walls all around the house, but the right shade continued to elude us. Until the architect, M. Coq, suggested matching the colour of the pointing on the house next door. A simple and logical solution, and elegant as well, since the two buildings form an ensemble anyway: close together, similar in size, built in the same period, using the same stone and in the same style.

Here are some of the many photos that Nancy brought back (click on any photo to enlarge it):

Above: this wall, between the landing and our bedroom,
is one of the interior surfaces where the stone will

remain apparent. The pointing was being done while
Nancy was there, and here it is now, in its finished state. 

Right: The right end of the same wall, showing

the entrance to our bedroom.

The master bedroom, where the flooring will soon be in place.

Here are a few of those "before-and-after" shots that you all like:

The kitchen fireplace - 2009

The kitchen fireplace - 2011

The "évier" - 2009

... and now.

In the two shots above, note that the old cupboard has been moved over to the other side of the fireplace, to make room for the new doorway to the dining room, visible in the "now" picture.

The "buanderie" (little room off
the kitchen) in 2009

... and now.

I will post more photos soon.

From England with love

While Nancy is checking things out on her own at Gaulejac, I'm doing some virtual traveling, imagining that I'm there with her.

Browsing away on this Holiday Monday, I discovered another recent media piece on the Dordogne. This time, an article from the online edition of The Mail - an English newspaper. Of course, there is nothing surprising about the region receiving attention from the folks across the Channel (which, by the way, on this side of the Atlantic is usually referrd to, quite rightly, as being neither English nor French, but simply "the Channel").

More than any other group, our Brit cousins have loved and visited "Dordogneshire" again and again. For centuries, in fact. Today, many still buy land, settle and integrate there. Which is an improvement on the approach their ancestors used to take, I suppose, although if it weren't for them, we wouldn't have many of the beautiful castles that pepper the landscape to this day.

To read that online Mail article, click "France holidays: Chateaux, cheese and canoeing down the Dordogne river" for a modern English perspective on all there is to love about the region - including what Nancy is probably enjoying right now ... 

Foie gras (pronounce "fwah grah")

As to visitors from much earlier times and their lasting influence on the region, click here for another interesting find from the English online media or, for a more detailed historical account, check out the Wikipedia entry on Dordogne's most famous resident ever.

Eleanor of Aquitaine's seal

New openings, more light, and no more bumps on the head

We flew back from France last night and, as promised, here is the latest on progress to-date at Gaulejac.

As I sat down to write this post this morning, I was surprised to find that I did not take nearly as many photos as I expected that I would. I have a couple of good excuses though: between the beautiful work we admired throughout the house and the beautiful weather we enjoyed throughout the week, I was so taken by the reality of the place that I didn't always remember to focus and shoot. Still, I did bring my camera out a couple of times. So, when I say that this was a very exciting visit, you don't have only my word to take for it.

Here then is a brief rundown of what we observed that was new and remarkable, with the occasional photo to illustrate the point (and don't forget: click on photo to enlarge, throughout this blog):

• the roof is done, complete, finished ... and quite beautiful, too. We were particularly pleased with the way the new roof tiles harmonize with the existing lauze ("stone") roofs on adjacent buildings. While there are no new shots of the completed roof, you only need to look at the previous posting, using your imagination to fill in the few blanks, as it was already well advanced a couple of weeks ago;

• the new passage between the kitchen and the dining room has been created and looks terrific, like it's always been there. And on that point, a significant development, as well as a huge relief, was that now that all doors have been resized and brought to modern opening standards, for the first time we were able to walk through all doorways without ducking or bumping our heads against the old low lintels;

For the first time, you can now see all the way through the downstairs area, from one end of the house to the other: looking North from the kitchen, through the dining room, and into the foyer and living room.

• all doors, windows and shutters have been manufactured and fitted to their respective openings, though only frames are in place for now, until all the stone work has been done;

The new bedroom window on the South wall, overlooking the valley.
(Bars visible outside are part of the scaffold erected to finish the stonework.)

• as can be seen on several photos in this posting, studs and insulation were started along walls and gabled ceilings, while we were there, and should be done by the end of this week;

• also while we were there, poplar sub-flooring was being laid through much of the upstairs;

Looking South from the guest-room, across the landing, and into the master bedroom through the newly framed passage.

• and still upstairs, the doorway between the guest-room and the en-suite has been opened.

Looking North through the guest-room, with the brand new brick flue from the living-room chimney and the new doorway leading to the future en-suite.

Before closing, generally speaking, it's worth mentioning that until this visit, we had been concerned sometimes that the house might be dark inside. This is often the case in old stone buildings where windows are few and small, and older materials like dark wood and apparent stone do not reflect light so well. However, I'm happy to report that this is no longer a concern. As can be seen in some of the photos above, new additions like the dormer windows and lighter interior surfaces are making a huge difference.

Finally, during this latest visit at Gaulejac we also explored the surrounding area in a direction we had not taken before: across the valley and up the opposite slope, through the field that we see from our kitchen window, where brown cows graze sometimes . As a result, we gained a whole new perspective on our future home. I did have my camera this time, and was able to snap this sweeping panorama of Gaulejac, as the cows see it.

Looking North from across the valley, Gaulejac in its entirety: our house in the middle, our neighbours the Salomons' house immediately to the right, the farmhouse known as La Perbélie up above to the right, and hidden from view, below our place to the left, a little house that has been sitting empty for several years.
Below: zooming in on the house.

 

On schedule ... am I boring you?

I'm afraid that unless you're us, or a reno freak, this blog may not hold much dramatic tension for you, if it ever did.

Granted, through late December and into the New Year, when work got going, every report and photo brought some radical news: "look, no more roof!" then, "look, new roof beams!" and more recently "wow, a new chimney!". And considering that for more than two years, the question everybody always asked: "has worked started?", invariably got them the same answer: "not yet", I think that to speak of "dramatic" new developments in 2011 was not overstating our case. We could see genuine interest on people's faces.

But lately, as we've admittedly settled into a steady narrative of reasonable expectations and progress according to project calendar, I get the sense sometimes that people are happy to hear that everything is going well, but ... it's almost like it's become routine. The last time someone asked me what's new and I told them excitedly, something like "the North roof is almost entirely tiled!", they smiled, with briefly a puzzled - or was it concerned? - look on their faces, and then I could swear their eyes glazed over.

But take my word for it: to us, it's as exciting as ever. 

Every week, by Wednesday night, if we haven't received any news, one of us is bound to mutter: "Why haven't we heard from him yet?" The "him" in question is architect and general contractor Monsieur François Coq. Every Tuesday afternoon, he holds a site meeting with the trades currently engaged in the project. And within 24-to-48 hours, he emails us a brief but thorough, numbered report (we are up to #13), and usually a few photos - some of which, like the ones below, end up on this blog.

These reports and photos are the high point of our week.

You see, Gaulejac is on our minds most waking hours, and the subject of most of our conversations. The date of our next trip there is like a beacon in the night. So, if we bore you every time we see you, with our endless descriptions, ideas, photos, and plans, please tell us and we'll gladly change the channel. But, as the conversation moves on and we all agree that Chilean wines never disappoint, and how about Stephen Harper, and yes, this new movie is very good ... know that all along, in a corner of our minds ... we're still in Gaulejac. Where we are looking forward to welcoming you soon.

And if you're still interested, per the now customary format of these postings, here are some of the latest photos from Monsieur Coq:

The East wall, with the second chimney almost finished. Below: the same wall, before. 

Note the old roof line, which is still visible in the photo above, where new stonework has just been completed. 

We now have eavestrough!

Roof tiles, a new window and, look at that blue sky!

By week's end, the roof should be complete (see photo below). At the same time, we hear that pointing has started (i.e. applying mortar between the stones), and our future bedroom has a new window, directly above the kitchen's, on the southern wall. I have added a photo of what that opening used to look like.

Oh, yes: and spring has sprung in the Dordogne!

The newly framed bedroom window.
Below: before.

Latest site report

Roof fully framed, insulation going up, dormer windows in place, roof tiles on site and about to be laid.

Here are some photos from the latest batch, sent by the architect just yesterday:

Compare with the way it looked in its original condition - below - as recently as last fall.

The old floor beams were lovely but most were unusable. New oak beams are being laid in place.
(Above, the guest room, and below, the living room.)

The front of the house. Note the new
stone dormer window, which went up this week.

More press coverage of the Dordogne

After the Globe and Mail (see November 4 post) it was the Toronto Star's turn, last month, to uphold the virtues of our future home region.

Travel editor Jim Byers writes:

"The Dordogne isn’t a name that rolls off the tongue of North Americans like the French Riviera or Bordeaux or Burgundy. But the rich food and the small towns and wide rivers and historic castles that seemingly pop up every 10 minutes might just be the essence of what many visitors would want from a European or French vacation."



La Roque Gageac, on the Dordogne River

 Jim Byers photos /Toronto Star Jim Byers/Toronto Star

Read more from "A picture-perfect paddle in France"

Some then-and-now shots (2008-2011)

The chicken coop, as it used to be ...

... and as it stands now. The half-demolished part,
on the left, will become the covered sitting or summer
dining area, while the part on the right will remain
essentially as is, though with a lowered roofline,
to afford a better view of the valley
from anywhere in the courtyard.

The stable (future living room) as we first saw it in 2008 ...

... and in February 2011 - with subfloor concrete slab in place,
and ceiling beams gone, soon to be replaced with
new oak beams that will bear the guest room floor.



An original truss (this one was in the attic,
where the  future master bedroom en-suite will be), in 2008 ...



... and the new reproduction truss, in the same spot
but higher, now awaiting insulation and covering.

More photos from the last site visit

Some of our regular visitors have asked for more views of

"Gaulejac - The Building Site" ...

The view, driving up to the house.

The courtyard, from the second floor ...

... and the house, from the courtyard.

Stone & Oak, and some concrete, too

We were very pleased with the progress and quality of work we observed on our last visit at Gaulejac, just last week. It was odd to see this place, which over the last two years has remained unchanged visit after visit, finally come to life and starting to look like a house ... well, a house-to-be.

Here are some snapshots. As usual, click on the photo to enlarge:






Part of the roof frame over the guest room, in the north end of the house.



More of the roof frame.
Our only regret is that only a few parts of the beautiful work by Monsieur Renaudie, Master Carpenter, will be visible once all is done.



The new, raised chimney top over the kitchen fireplace, the first of the three chimneys that will rise eventually above the roofline. The next two will take form over the next three weeks.

  

Two mortar samples that were patched in for us to choose, for both inside and outside walls. We chose the sample on the right. The other colour is lovely but so yellow and bright that it takes over, and the beautiful "pierre des Eyzies" stone tends to recede in the background instead of being featured as it ought to be. Keep in mind that the colours aren't quite true in this photo: there isn't so much pink in reality.



While the real thing is being built ...

We'll be in Gaulejac next week. This is a special trip as, for the first time, we expect to see big changes on the ground. A lot has happened there since December, when work started.

It's been a long wait but as some of you know, until we can start playing with the real thing, we have the scale model (1/33) of our future Gaulejac home, which we started bulding this summer (click photos to enlarge).

When we return, early March, you can expect a major update, with stories and photos. But until then, enjoy the model ...

Ground floor - l. to r.: living room, dining room, kitchen, Nancy's room.

Upper floor - l. to r.: guest room, landing and library, master bedroom and en-suite.



Upper floor, with the master bedroom and en-suite in the foreground




Front (facing South)



Courtyard side (West side)

Merci du joli coup de main Alexandre!