Recovering old stonework.

The maçons are back up to full speed this morning and the roofers arrived to remove the slates for the new lucarnes. At the end of last week there was a small hicupp and a change. A few weeks ago we had two pallet loads of granite corner stones delivered for the new window and door frames. Over time the number of stones has been reducing as the maçons have built the windows and doors. At the end of last week it dawned on us, and the maçons, that there were not enough stones to make the side door to one of the gites. Neither ourselves or the builders noticed that there was not an entry on the quote for the side door. It was on the architect plans but somehow got left off the quote.

In order to save time and money, (ordering and paying for more stones), the maçons have cannibalised the original barn door entrance by cutting out the back of the stones (which will be hidden by the window frame) and using them to build the side door. The new new 3.5m long granite lintel, replacing the current oak lintel, on the old barn entrance will also be lowered to the same height as the lintels on new doors each side of it. This frees up some more stones for the side door and it should all look more pleasing to the eye.

It sounds a bit confusing, but in the front-on pictures of the barn that have been published, the big gapping hole in the middle of the building was the original 3m by 3m entrance. This is where the stones have been 'recovered' from.

|   8:18:55 PM