73) Bathroom number two

The family bathroom is what has been taking most of my time over the summer, and we had a deadline.  Granny and her 83 year old friend were coming to stay for a week and we felt that just one bathroom downstairs (however smart and luxurious) really wouldn't do - particularly with our still-somewhat-iffy-staircase.  Before the visit of our two octogenarians, though, I did tighten up all the screws on the stair treads (so they wobble a bit less), and I put up a more substantial stair rail, which is also continuous (unlike its predecessor which had a small gap in the middle, due to EVERYTHING in France being sold in 2.4 m lengths).

As usual, lots of (unnecessarily) large holes were knocked in the walls and the floors to take the (unnecessarily complicated) pipe work.  This picture shows the third shower room, which we will tackle after the heating upstairs has been completed (we have promised ourselves that we will not have a fourth winter when we are constantly chilled to the bone).  This is where all the pipes join up and descend through a (soon-to-be) cupboard in our dressing room, before passing through the basement and outside to our newly constructed fosse septique.

First the insulation was put on the walls.  Then the insulation was partially removed again so the plumber could run his pipes (there was somewhat of a discussion among the plumbers as to whether the pipes should go inside or outside the insulation).

Once all the insulation was in place, the battens (liteaux) were fixed, ready to take the plasterboard (placoplaitre).  Also the false floor was put in.  This was necessary in order to give sufficient fall to the out flow from the bath, bidet and shower.  Instead we could have had an outlet running  through our bedroom, but this would have meant an awkward boxing in of a corner and the possibility (likelihood) of (gurgling) noises.

With the basic structure of the walls in place, the plumbers put in the pipes and fixings for the showers, taps and so on.  And I made a box to for an alcove by the bath where you can put your glass of wine.

I am now becoming a bit of a dab hand at jointing plasterboard, but I must say, boxing in the beams was a bit of a challenge (note also the alcove in the shower, just in case you fancied a glass of wine in there too - we are in France after all).

Despite my detailed instructions and drawings on the wall, the plumber managed to not line up the shower tap with the hose outlet (albeit only slightly).  He also managed to put the tap unit in crooked (to the vertical), and the top tap was pointing to one side.  All of this would have built in problems for later on as well as making everything look askew.  I rang the boss and told him I was not impressed.

He then sent another plumber ("one of our best guys") to bash another hole in the wall so that it could be re-done correctly.  I slightly wondered why we had not had "one of their best guy"s all along.  And when I discovered that our normal plumber had also put the wrong tap on the bidet (the French ought to know about bidets for God's sake), I said to the boss man that, form now on, I only wanted the "one of our best guys".  By this time even he was, I think, beginning to realise rather too much was going wrong so he sent me a rather contrite email saying that in order to have a more "serene" ending to the chantier, he would use Jean Paul in future on our job.  Presumably the use of the word serene was something to do with a translation oddity, but I appreciated the sentiment.

Putting tiles up on the sloping ceiling required a certain amount of ingenuity (and caused a certain amount of amusement amongst the artisans).  They had, however, said it would not be possible, so I was determined to prove them wrong.

The tiles we have chosen for all three bathrooms seem to have been made from reconstituted diamonds, or possibly something even harder.  They are incredibly difficult to cut, and this is especially so when cutting holes in the middle of them for taps and so on.

Still, we managed it, and bit by bit things started to take shape.......................

I have become a great fan of "No More Nails", which in French is "Ni Clous".  Sticking the boarding on, again though, did involve a certain amount of creative thinking and ingenuity.

Now it's just about finished ......

and it' sooooooo nice to have a little luxury.......................

One unexpected problem was the incredibly BLACK grout.  It is matt black and absorbs 99.99% of all light falling on it.  As a consequence, it it very difficult to use as you simply can't see it.  Also, it is rather like the tiles being the only known substance on earth that is harder than diamonds, the grout is completely impervious to any known cleaning product.  The top picture is before cleaning.............................

.....................the bottom picture is after washing with soap, washing up liquid, shampoo, bubble bath......... perhaps I'll have to buy some gloves and wear them all the time, just like the Queen.

72) Summer's almost over, back to work

Actually I have been working pretty hard over the summer but, with all our visitors, there have been rather a lot of play days too.  As well as the young (see previous post), we've also had the older generation in an attempt not to appear too ageist (one 83 year old French friend who came round for a swim dived straight in the pool and did two lengths under water - I find that quite a challenge at 25 years younger).  The pool has, though, been a godsend during our (official) canicule even if some only want to dangle their feet whilst admiring our palm trees (see left of picture).

Pools aren't just about lazing around though, they do require a certain amount of work (albeit quite enjoyable).

Inevitably the heatwave did take its toll.  Various trees and hedge plants I had planted earlier this year just gave up the ghost (I never thought I would actually be planting Lelandii but, with such a mature existing hedge, it really is the only sensible way to extend it in our lifetime).

Our lawn went brown and our horse chestnut decided it was Autumn about the sixth of August (actually it is - work it out - mid summer's day 21 June, four equal seasons of three months, first day of Autumn about the 6th of August).

The terrace (which faces south) was just too hot at lunch time, but we found a partially shaded spot for the gazebo which worked well and (at the time of writing) it hasn't yet blown away.

In the summer the markets become more crowded, but they are still one of the great delights of being here.  And now we can even engage in a bit of light hearted banter with some of the stall holders whom we are getting to know quite well. 

Sooooo many cheeses, hand baked bread, patiseries, fresh vegetables ripened in the sun (rather than in nitrogen) and fruit with flavour, especially our local melons.  An easy way to have a simple but delicious lunch on the terrace with a demi Querbi and three cheeses including some Brillat-Savarin - what living in France is all about.