What becomes of stinky cheese
It has been two months since we took possession of the keys to the Castle. Two crazy months of wandering from room to room, to room, to room, to room, to room… a fleeting attempt to understand this monster of a house and to discover all of its secrets.
My dear readers, it has come to my attention that rumors are flying. Rumors that the two of us are completely overwhelmed and doing nothing but spinning in circles with hands clasped to either side of our faces crying out “oh dear, what have we done?” Holed up in one room huddled over an electric heater with a crust of bread - no stinky cheese allowed - and watching copious amounts of American television on a pirated connection to Hulu to stay connected to the homeland… Well, I can tell you that nothing could be further from the truth.
It goes without saying that a property of this size is a daunting task, but keep in mind - this is not our first rodeo! - When we bought 227 North Street, our last home in the wine country of Northern California, it was in much worse shape than the Château. We couldn’t live in 227 for the first two years due to the fact that it was caving in on itself. Granted the castle is much larger, but it is solid, with a good roof, and basic amenities that all function to some degree. Parts of the Château are actually quite pretty, – in a Mrs Havisham kind of way – serious faded glory. In many ways the photographs lie. Photos seem to blend everything together and fool the eye into thinking it is all quite beautiful. Where as the truth of the castle is it is tired and shabby, with a feeling of simple uncared-for-ness.
The nice thing about this restoration project is that it can be tackled in sections. By the action of closing the doors, entire sections of the Château can be left as they are for now, and restored in their own turn. The west wing, the east wing, the south facing bank of bedrooms on the second floor. The Hall d'entrée, the Billiard room, the Bibliothèque, the grand Salon, the Salle à manger, the Bedrooms of honor, and the kitchens (all three of them) on the first floor. *note to my non US readers, in case you do not know, in the States we call the ground floor the first floor, and the first floor the second floor! (now that’s not confusing at all! LOL) So, like horses with blinders on we have begun! First up… Drawings! There are no floorpans for the castle to be found. No elevations or sketches of any sort. In order to understand the layout and conceptualize any alterations we need to see it on paper, and the drawing began. With laser measure and classic tape measures in hand, as well as really good flashlight, every inch (clearing of the throat sound, I meant to say centimeter!) of the castle has been measured to the best of our abilities. There are simply some things that could not be measured and were left to the magic of math and a bit of deduction. Hand built walls that are roughly 28 inches thick, and vary quite a bit were on occasion impossible to measure. After weeks and weeks of climbing through every nook and cranny I have produced a 3D model of the Château. From the model floor plans and cuts have been produced. (Mr. Ward, I think you will be proud of these drawings!). Next will be electrical and plumbing layout plans.
We have many hurdles ahead of us with one of the largest being the Architects du Batiment de France (the French government department in charge of the protection of Monuments Historique.) Our home is a listed historic property and as such all exterior changes must be approved by the Batiment de France. We are very fortunate that only the facades and rooves of our property are protected! There are incredible properties available that are 100 percent protected, inside and out, and no one will touch them. imagine having to ask permission to add a nail in the wall to hang a painting, crazy! We have been granted permission by the Batiment de France to commence with interior restorations. This was very kind of them considering that they do not actually have jurisdiction over the interiors. On the other hand anything having to do with the exterior of the property must be approved before any work can be done including surface cleaning, repairs to doors and windows and our only true addition to the exterior of the property… the pool.
Oddly enough, no other permissions or permits are required for any of the interior work. New heating, air conditioning, electric, plumbing, water filtration, wall changes, installation of kitchens and bathrooms… none of this requires a permit, nor is the work ever inspected. This is all very foreign to the boys from the States where everything has to be permitted and inspected at every step of the journey.
As we launch ourselves forward, in our usual fashion we take the time to have fun and entertain. I must assume you have seen the video posted by Vivienne and Simon of Château Love on YouTube (if you have not - click here). We have invited the surrounding village into our new home to explore and discover that which has traditionally been closed off to them, and it helps to make us a recognizable part of the community. Dinners are being served, lots of champagne being consumed, guests keep coming to play, and we are thoroughly enjoying life in the French countryside.
Christmas is now looming and my thoughts keep turning to decorating the castle! There are miles of garland and monster wreaths to be made, and we ordered a Christmas tree. (apparently you cannot just walk onto a tree lot in France and expect to find a fourteen foot Christmas tree! what is the world coming to??) If you know my Christmas tree, just wait till it is fourteen feet tall! Our temporary kitchen is set to cook festive foods starting with Thanksgiving when Ron and Larry arrive from the States, and Lisa and Scott Del Fava swoop in from Italy! We have even managed to find a used dishwasher and an American style refrigerator (don’t tell anyone here… it makes ICE!!!!!) to use in our temporary kitchen.
Two other pieces of equipment came to join the family and it appears we do not know how we got along without them before. A Miele steam mangler which is an incredible machine that makes quick work of large pressing needs… dishcloths, table cloths, sheets, comforter covers, duvets, all ironed as smooth as new in the blink of an eye! (Miele please send advertising payment to Château Avensac 32120 Avensac, France). The second piece of equipment is a small used refrigerator that I wish I would have gotten when we first arrived in France last December. No longer do I have to open the door of the main refrigerator to be greeted by the pungent and rather unpleasant smell of… Cheese!
We are happy and well in France and beginning to conceptualize the look and feel for each of the rooms and spaces including the future fourteen bathrooms! We can’t wait for you all to come and play and discover the magic of the Château for yourselves. It may be more akin to glamping in the short term, but the future is coming faster than think!
As Thanksgiving approaches we both are wishing everyone our best wishes for a fabulous Holiday season!!!