WASHING-UP LIQUID YOU NEED TO TRY

One of my thoughtful and very kind friends has just given me a lovely gift ...washing-up liquid from Daylesford . 

Lucky for her, she visited the organic farm in Gloucestershire this weekend.

She certainly knows how to spoil me and knew it would appeal to me. I can't believe how excited I am about it!!

I've just cleaned some very greasy saucepans and spoons.  This is not just a pretty bottle of washing-up liquid, it effectively washes grease and grime leaving dishes sparkling and clean. 

 Environmentally kind, biodegradable, sensitive to skin with a beautiful scent of rosemary. It even looks good in a clear bottle with simple white and grey graphics so if you're anything like me, you won't be embarrassed to leave out on show in your kitchen. 

 I can't rave on enough about it.  All in all a perfect product...10 out of 10!!!

You can buy it online here.

HALL RENOVATIONS - A STONE FLOOR

Our hall has a grandness. It has remained, the same as it was originally built back in 1870's. 
The staircase is the prized feature, with its deep stairs and mahogany handrail. 

This is the hall as it looks today... 



and looking the other way towards the front door...

When introduced to The Manor House, it was the hall that we walked into first. 

Standing all together, our first impressions was of a room in need of updating and some renovations. High ceilings, large staircase, lots of space, mostly a light and airy room with beautiful original doors to rooms that had to be explored.  

Once we'd moved in and started renovating the house, generally our motto has been that not everything has to be expensive to update.  We always try to use what you have or clean, mend or add too it. 

Under a green carpet in the hall, we found a natural stone floor.  It was an exciting moment.  
We suspect that the sandstone had been sourced from a Mansfield quarry in Nottinghamshire around the 1800's when this part of the house was built.  



(above) detail of stone floor

After many years of walking on the floor, especially into rooms that were probably occupied by servants, some areas have become worn and indented. We were keen to discard the carpet and see the distinctive beauty of the natural stone floor. 
It's a durable, unpretentious, honest flooring that will last many decades and beyond.


BEFORE (below)
We had to take the hall carpet up as soon as possible because I hated it (we didn't even have time to take any photos). The stair carpet we had to live with for many years before we decorated the hall and came up with a better solution.

BEFORE (below)

PUPPET HEADS

You may have noticed some 'heads' on our lounge  mantlepiece?    

We bought them at Newark Antiques Fair.  Lucky for us this is very local, so we often pop down for the day to see what is on offer.

We bought these antique puppet heads from a Danish stall. Three are made from papier-mâché and the other from wood.  A close-up look at them shows they have been painted and varnished.  

I love the 'quirkyness' and colours used on them.

WALTER IN THE KITCHEN

I'm sorry about this but please allow me this bit of self indulgence........ meet Walter!!!

I am not usually someone that likes photos of animals but I love this one of him.  

Walter is a miniature Schnauzer and 2 years old. He rests his head on the pine kitchen table (not very hygienic, I hear you say). We are looking towards the area that has been painted and updated.   If we were looking the other way, you would see a very old, worn and shabby kitchen that has yet to be worked on.  I will update this post over time, as we work on the kitchen. The stars are a new purchase from Cox and  Cox.

DINING ROOM UPDATES

To get from this...

(before)

to this...

(after)

we had to go through this ...

the dining room was stripped back to it's bare walls and completely renovated.  Damp walls needed attention, replacement floor, windows, electrics, radiators and a new fireplace.

(above) The wall was taken down that separated dining room and corridor.

(above) Rolled Steel Joist (RSJ) had to be added to hold the ceiling up. A mock beam was used to cover it up.  Existing plumbing had to be diverted and updated. Updates to the electrics.

  

(above) This shows an exciting discovery.  There must have been an original door to the outside that had been bricked up over time.  

(above) A kitchen hatch was bricked up.  We used the original door. Secondary double glazing was taken down and both windows replaced with hard wood ones in the original style .

We were very lucky with the fireplace.  This part of the house dates back to the 17th century.  When the builders took out the existing reconstructed stone fireplace with beaten copper canopy, heavy timber mantel and probably added around 1970, they came across a curved, gorgeous shape.  We plastered it and it's now filled with logs....

and looks like this...

We don't actually make a fire here or burn the logs, as the room is quite warm enough in the winter. The logs are used on the wood burner stoves in other rooms.

IN THE BEGINNING

5 years ago, we fell in love with this house...

A very grainy photo!  It's taken from the original details of the house that were photocopied. 

On this blog you can follow the process we went through (and are still going through) to mostly renovate, sometimes restore, definitely repair and remodel our house.