getting tidy

We asked all the neighbours and the tradesmen who had worked on the building to come to a tea party. As a result two things happened: we spent an exhausting week running around finishing small jobs and cleaning up, and to my surprise a couple of the tradesmen came to finish off jobs they had been working on. The most noticieable of these was getting the balcony railing done. Regrettably we've had some grey wet weather since, so the pictures don't make it look too inviting. Some sympathy is due for the menuisier, who found himself assembling it in a downpour (I lent him a waterproof and a hat). So, from inside:



The glass is 10mm thick, and laminated, with nicely rounded edges. The glass looks insubstantial but has a very reassuringly solid feel, as does the stainless steel framework. Here it is from outside, with puddles:



The plumbers also came along, and painted the central heating pipes red (flow) and blue (return), a curious but apparently traditional aspect of the craft. They were a couple of young men, and weren't able to explain what the green stripe meant (if anything), just that it was what they had to do.

I then put up some of our pictures, and a couple of mirrors, to make the barn look a bit less barn-like, and for some reason (as in our previous house) the family photos have arrived on the stairs:



The entire village then came around yesterday afternoon - possibly 60 people - and a good time was had by all, with conducted tours at intervals. The boiler drew quite an enthusiastic crowd, even though the plumber was one of the few people who couldn't come - he was having his own open day. It's hard to be sure exactly how many people came, and for data protection reasons, we had to forbid photography. But many of them came with pot-plants and flowers, which was very touching, and the plants are now occupying the sunnier corners - allowing for the fact that there are thick grey clouds everywhere, and absolutely no sun at all:



And the odd new purchase also arrived during the week, smelling strongly of antique dealer's wax and looking better than I had hoped:



This chest is surprisingly heavy, and I can only hope that the woodworm have been asphyxiated by the wax, as there seem to have been a lot of them at work quite recently. We'll see.

Postscript to those tiles

All it took to get them looking better was a further coat of linseed oil, and then a wipe down with turps to remove the stickier bits - where the tile is already fully saturated, extra oil just sits on the surface.

So not a bad result at all:



I have yet to remove the waterproof tape from the top of the floor drain, but I wanted to be sure the grout was fully dry first.

And as our plumber is coming tomorrow to put in branches on the hot and cold pipes, top right in the picture, we'll be able to install a washing machine quite soon. Plumbers usually mean water all over the place - the cold pipe is, after all, the mains supply for the whole house - so we'll probably get to try out the drain too.

The last floor is tiled

And about time too.

The six coats of linseed oil took a while - and it probably should have been more, to judge by the way the grout has stuck to some of the tiles. I tell myself it gives the tiles a pleasantly rustic look.

The one in the middle is (probably) the same tile as before:



And here's a general view of the room.

And yes

(a) the walls need to be painted
(b) the tiles could do with a bit more cleaning off - possibly something fun like an acid, and
(c) the oak strip for the raised section isn't there yet. I couldn't find a bit of oak 2.5 meters long.



In my spare time, I've also helped out a real professional builder in putting down a waterproof surface on top of the wood-chip-silo, and it certainly seems to be waterproof now. Trouble is, it is a much rougher surface than the 90-year-old concrete that was there before, and it is crying out to be tiled. I am not sure that I can face any more tiles right now.

And for a break, I spent the weekend over at the Poterie du Don, learning how to use a potters wheel. It will come as no surprise that this is a bit more difficult than it looks.



The windows really are a funny shape. I blame the architect. No change there, then.

And as for the sticking plaster on my head, I can only blame myself. I put the post-box just where I would hit my head on it when I straightened up after putting down a concrete sill in the farmhouse cellar.

the end of the tiles?

well, nearly.

In case you don't remember what tiles look like, this is one of the last:



The tiles were irregular shapes, and difficult to fit. The ones bought a year ago were even more difficult, as they were on average half a centimeter bigger than the newer ones. I had to saw the edges off to make them match. But all that I have to do now is seal them (three or four coats of linseed oil), and grout them. Then the last floor will be finished. Almost. There are some oak edge strips to be done too. And sealed with linseed oil.

And, talking of sealing, the new lid went back on the septic tank, without breaking. A bit of grease round the edge helped it slide in place nicely. Naturally I am not sufficiently indelicate to post a picture of either the lid or the septic tank itself, and certainly not the grease, but this is the mould I made the new lid in:



Getting it firmly back on was - err - a relief.

creeping towards the end of the bathrooms

It seems to be a very slow process, but we are very nearly there. I've finally done all the tiling and grouting except the two removable hatches into the space below the bath, and the mirror for the second bathroom.

This is the mirror in the red bathroom (it's easy to remember which one that is, as of course "the East is Red"):



The plastic over the round window is not (entirely) an admission of defeat, in that we haven't yet been able to get the coloured glass to go into it. It's more to keep the new cat out of the bedrooms, though at present getting her to come out from under the cooker would be something of a triumph.

And this is the west (blue) bathroom, just waiting for the plumber to put the fittings in. And of course I hope they will fit, as the floor levels do need to be just about right:



I've also been casting a new lid for the septic tank in (regrettably yes, in) the farmhouse. The old lid had cracked and the smells would gradually percolate up from the cellar to the kitchen (naturally the septic tank doesn't have a vent pipe). I am keeping my fingers crossed that the rather wet concrete won't cure into something fragile. If it does, though, I'll still have the mold and I can try again. It was tricky getting the reinforcing to fit, as it comes in 20cm squares and the width of the lid is just exactly 40cm. I crimped the rods of the steel mesh a bit and that shortened it. Hopefully enough. Though I won't know until it starts to rust where the ends project (if they do).