I can’t get over how expensive paint is in France. The last time we were in Leroy Merlin I was astonished – an external gloss paint for wood is around €49 per litre! Today I poured a small test foundation for the barn wall. It’s a double-skinned wall which is fortunate, because the two lower courses of bricks on one side of the wall have crumbled into nothingness along the entire length of the wall. The idea is to put a small foundation in before replacing the two lower courses of bricks. Because it’s a very old farmhouse, it’s not a good idea to introduce cement; so I’m doing everything with NHL 3.5 lime. The mixture I used was 1 part lime, 2 parts sand, and 2 parts gravel. Seems to work all right, but need to leave it for a while to set before I can lay bricks on it.
I also progressed sorting out some bits and pieces in the workshop, and filled the remainder of the holes in the pantry walls; these are now ready for lime plaster. Tried some of LSS’s elderflower cordial which she made a couple of days ago and bottled today. Very nice it is too; she may make some more tomorrow. The elderflower champagne which I’ve started brewing has still not started bubbling, so I suspect the temperature in the house is just too cold for the yeast being 20 degrees.
Tomorrow there’s a car boot sale in Lamotte Beuvron which we’ll have a look at.