PROJECTS
FINISHED PROJECTS
Facade
In 2013 we started renovating the roof and the windows to protect the interior from rainwater damage. When we bought the house, you could actually see the sun coming through the cracks in the roof. We hired local builders to replace the broken roof tiles, successfully stopping the rain as well as the sunshine from leaking in.
The windows are handmade by our local carpenter. Since the house is very old (built in 1718), it’s impossible to find factorymade windows, they would never fit.
In 2015 we started taking down the plaster from the facade. Our Geomatra was a bit upset when he found out. He told us that “you are not allowed to do that without permission from the comune”. Even so, he managed to convince them to let us proceed and got all the proper permissions in order. We could keep working on the facade and we learned a valuable lesson: always ask for permission before we start a new project. When we had removed it all we realized that we preferred the underlying stone walls to the plaster, so we asked the builders to keep the stones visible
The facade on the house when we bought it
The facade as it looks today
Garden
Around the house there were only some slippery stones for stairs. This did not feel quite safe, especially with guests coming, so we decided to replace them with proper stairs and pavement so you don't need to get muddy when you walk around outside the house when it rains. This work was finished in spring 2020.
The path between the main house and the Metato
The pathway nowadays
Metato and the old outdoor oven
In 2018 we discovered that one of the walls in the Metato (a stone shed used for drying chestnuts for flour) was a bit unstable, so we started renovating it. At one point we needed help with transporting some building material, which led to us getting to know our new builder that helped us restore the outer walls of the Metato and the old outdoor oven. Now the outside of the Metato and the oven both match the main house in style and robustness.
The facade on the Metato before renovation
The old stone oven before restauration
The facade on the Metato after renovation
The old stone oven after the restauration
Upstairs bedrooms
The rooms on the upper floor were in a really bad shape. As you walked on the floor, you were always worried that they would suddenly break, and the sun shined in through the ceiling. So of course we had to renovate them, and we also took the opportunity to make some improvements to the layout (making space for a bathroom, otherwise only available on the ground floor). We also stabilized the structure of the rooms and renovated the beams. We spent the Christmas of 2013 removing all the plaster from the walls, even knocking down some of them, which proved to be really hard work. On our way back to Sweden after that trip our hands were literally shaking, and we worried about even being able to refuel our car since it was so difficult to get the payment card out of the wallet.
We put in chestnut flooring in all the upstairs bedrooms and painted all the walls white, making the rooms a bit brighter.
Master bedroom before renovation
Master bedroom after renovation
Single bedroom before renovation
Single bedroom after renovation
Double bedroom before renovation
Double bedroom after renovation
The bedroom on the entrance floor
This was the last bedroom to be renovated in the house since it has been our bedroom during these years, so in the spring 2021 it was finally finished. We have repainted the walls and the beams have been given the same treatment as in the rest of the house.
In contrast to the upstairs bedrooms, the floor is made from the restored original cotto (unglazed terracotta) tiles
The old bedroom on the entrance floor
The newly renovated bedroom on the entrance floor
Bathrooms
When we bought the house, there was a single old bathroom with a toilet and shower downstairs with water from.. actually we don't know, but it wasn't from the water company.
To use it, you had to go through the master bedroom, which is less than practical in the long run when you have guests staying the night and it is the only available bathroom. So when we started renovating the inside of the house, we moved the bathroom closer to the center and built another one, almost identical, directly upstairs.
The old bathroom
The old bathroom
New bathroom on the upper floor
New bathroom on the entrance floor
Kitchen and living room area
The kitchen and social area are in the same room, right as you enter the house. There is a fine balance between adding all the things you want to have in those rooms and keeping it from getting too crowded.
We put in a wood-burning stove in the open fireplace which keeps it very warm and cozy inside during the colder months.
We saved all the cotto tiles (unglazed terracotta tiles) that we had previously removed from the floors in the house, and put them back in the kitchen after thoroughly cleaning them. That turned out to be quite the undertaking, not only were the tiles very old but they had survived multiple owners, some of whom had had them painted.
For several years we didn’t even have a proper kitchen, just a single hotplate for cooking. You really had to plan your meals, so that all of the food was still warm when you finally sat down to eat. But as of 2018 we have a new, handmade kitchen that works perfectly. Even doing the dishes is delightful, as you can look out the window and see a wonderful view.
The old kitchen
The old kitchen
The old fireplace
New kitchen dining area
The new kitchen
The renovated fireplace with a wood burner
Corridors
Both on the entrance floor and the upper floor there is a long corridor. Before we renovated them, they were very narrow and dark with a rickety staircase and a storage room at the end behind a door. We opted to remove the storage room and put a spiral staircase in cast iron at the end of the corridor, which we picked up in The Netherlands on our way down to the house.
On the entrance floor the corridor has the original cleaned cotto tiles (unglazed terracotta tiles) from the house and on the upper floor it’s chestnut floor.
The entrance hallway during renovation
The old stairs to the upper floor
The renovated entrance hallway
The new stairs to the upper floor
Electricity, water and sewer
These are things that no one really sees, but if it doesn’t work, everyone would notice. We have installed all of the above features. After many years we finally upgraded the electricity to three-phase so that we could implement the heating system that we wanted.
The outdoor part of the heating/ cooling system
The sewer is hidden under the new stone pavement
ONGOING PROJECTS
Outdoor bathtub
Our initial thought was to build a pool, letting our guests cool off after a long day of exploration. The summer of 2020 we tried it out by putting up a temporary pool, and we realized a few things.
First of all, the maintenance of a pool is a handful and often involves a lot of chemicals. Secondly, we thought of all the water we would have to waste each year, since you need to empty the pool when you’re not around to keep it in good shape. Due to the aforementioned chemicals, you couldn’t even use it to water plants and trees.
Then we had another thought: maybe we could have an outdoor bathtub instead? It would still let guests relax after a long day, but you would also be able to use it all year round (you can heat it with wood during the winter), the chemicals are minimal since the water is cleaned by UV-light and it requires much less water. We have successfully transported it to the house, and now it has been installed.
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The only thing that is still missing are grass around the area and then some flowers before it is finished.
The outdoor bathtub
The outdoor bathtub is installed
Outdoor kitchen and dining area
Something that we have longed for all these years is a place to sit and dine outside or maybe just have a drink and some snacks looking out over the mountains. The best place we could think of is next to the outdoor oven, which would be perfect for an outdoor kitchen. Our idea is to have a bar next to the kitchen area and a table a few steps away, where you can sit and eat, overlocking the beautiful nature scenery. Now it's only a few minor things left before the kitchen is complete.
Outdoor kitchen
The view from the outdoor kitchen
SmartFlower
We have installed this solar panel that looks just like a flower and turns after the sun so it always get the maximum sun on the panels. We have tested the SmartFlower during the summer and it worked very well, but we still have to connect it to the electrical net before it is completely finished.
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SmartFlower
SmartFlower up and running
Garden
When we bought the house, several places in the garden were completely overgrown with blackberry bushes and there were a few dead trees scattered about. For many years now we have been persistently fighting the blackberry bushes (they were about 3 meters tall!) and now it’s finally getting better. The dead trees are gone, we have tried to rescue some of the old fruit trees with various results and we have planted several new ones as well. But as you all know, a garden is a lifelong project.
The plan is to have a kitchen garden with vegetables and herbs for our own use, enabling us to be a bit more self-sufficient and of course let our guests enjoy them as well. The taste of fresh, homegrown vegetables is hard to beat.
We are already keeping beehives, good both for pollinating the plants and providing us with delicious honey, but we would also like to have some space to keep hens and maybe some other animals (we have considered just about every animal from sheep to donkeys or alpacas). Time will tell!
Our newly planted olive trees
Our beehives
Cutting down the overgrown Blackberry bushes
Our composts and cultivation with irrigation and fencing
Cellar
When we started to renovate the house the cellar contained a large barrel for winemaking, had a dirt floor and was inhabited by bats. Since we needed a utility room, a third bathroom that was easily accessible from outside and somewhere to put the heating and cooling system we decided to make a real floor and put up a wall. This allowed us to add a bathroom there, making it infinitely more useful than a storage for only humidity-proof things.
The heating/cooling system is already in place, so you are free to enjoy air conditioning and hot showers. The bathroom only lacks some cosmetics at this point, such as shower doors and a basin. The laundry room still needs furniture, light and some other bits and pieces, but is ready to use if needed.
The wine cellar as it used to look
The laundry and utility room as it looks today
Barn
On our plot of land there is an old barn. It was already missing a roof when we bought the house, but now it’s in such bad shape that we need to tear it down bit by bit, (just to make sure that no stones will fall down and hurt someone) before we can restore it. It’s really a pity, since the barn definitely has the best view of the landscape. We are thinking of rebuilding it, still resembling the original structure but maybe make it into a rentable apartment. This project is still in its early stages.
The old collapsed barn
Inside the old barn when we bought it
Removing the dangerous parts of the barn
