Un Travail Bien Fait

Franck arrived in Burgundy and at La Maison des Chaumes yesterday.

As with all of our other French vacation rental renovations, we had planned (on paper) to be finished with weeks to spare.

So of course, we finished about....ahhhhhhh.....5 seconds or so before speeding off to the Lyon airport to fly back to Canada.

However, like a belated Birthday gift, it is always a thrill to return to the properties and actually take a moment to soak in the end result of months (years in the case of La Maison des Chaumes) of hard work and effort.

Franck took some photos before settling in, so the house looks just like it would when new guests arrive. However, keep in mind that it WAS 11:00 pm when these were taken - the house is usually a LOT brighter.

Just for the record, Franck DID get a much better sleep than me when he was flying and has informed me he feels like a new man and isn't quite sure how I haven't collapsed from exhaustion yet. He also told me that he is going to his parents' house for dinner tonight and eating a raclette, one of my favorite things in the Whole World.

Needless to say, I'm feeling a conflicting mix of pleasure at living vicariously through him and nauseating jealousy.

Here is the eating area in our newly renovated kitchen, with my beloved vintage "Air France" poster on the wall.

Franck must have laid on the floor for this one. Check out my Villeroy & Bosch apron sink. I still lurve it, although not as much as the photographer stretched out on the Portuguese tiles.



Eating area again, with the girls artwork to chew by. I also love my weighted ceramic farmhouse ceiling light. Like the sink, that was a splurge.



And here's the very expensive hole we cut int the wall between the living room and the kitchen! Even though several large hairy French tradesmen tried to dissuade me, I remained adamant about doing it. Let me just take a moment to remind everyone how I WAS RIGHT. It's what makes the whole place flow and work.

I also love our country pine coffee table and side tables that we picked up at local brocantes. I never expected to decorate this house with touches of red, but it just called out for it. The muse, French feng shui, call it what you will, but le rouge spoke to me.

More photos coming up soon...