Barn Developemnt 19

Insulation has been laid down on all of the new floors  and then the pipes for the underfloor heating.

All of the pipes end in a cupboard
which will be the control area eventually.

The area where the walk in shower is  to be situated has been separated with wood.


Little metal spiders mark the level that  the scree has to be poured to.

Barn Development 18

Finally the builders start the difficult task of adding plaster board abd plaster.










 The velux windows in the kitchen ceiling had to be built up as the roof pitch was not steep enough.  These also had to be plasterboarded.

The small guest bedroom.

The plasterers did an excellent job as some of the roof spaces were very small.  The oak beams were wrapped in plastic to protect them from the water and plaster.

The kitchen ceiling was the first complete area plastered.

The hall before and after plastering.  The room at the far end is my new work room.

The floor incelation was also added in this photo.

Barn Development 17

It was finally time to cut a door  from the cottage into what will be a new small guest bedroom.

There will be a step down into the room as the barn is situated on a slope. The thickness of the wall is quite wide and so two door linings were added to finish the space.  An extra piece will be added when the door is fitted.

BArn Development 16

Our builders laid a small foundation outside the cottage door and then built some brick work for a new oak porch.  This was being made by an oak craft man called David Clooney who had also constructed the roof beams for our extension.

The brickwork on the cottage was old and very bad but the builders removed the old pointing and re pointed it leaving an area for the new porch roof. 





Once the oak porch was fitted the builders added the slate and lead and it was finally finished.  I was so happy with it that I came several times that evening to have another look!  We have ordered a new front door as the old one has seen better days!

Barn Development 15

We waited  a few weeks for the bi fold doors to be added as the builders were making a lot of mess while plastering, but finally they came.  The frame fitted perfectly and they were up very quickly.

We were very pleased with the result and now we are finally weather proof.  The rest of the walls and ceilings can be plastered.

Barn Development 13

The zinc roof is being installed but the company forgot to order the Velux windows!  This is a big problem as the plasterers cannot proceed until they are put in and the whole project has to be put back.

There were a lot of people in a bad mood!

The window openings have to be covered over to protect against rain while we wait for the windows, which could be weeks!


In the mean time the builders could now put on the slate roof.

Where the kitchen roof joins the main roof was a difficult task which was made even more difficult because we wanted two Velux windows in the hallway.

The windows became smaller and smaller until we had to have some bespoke ones made which were quite expensive.  We had them in the kitchen for weeks but when we opened the box we found that the measurements had been turned around and they were no good!

More hours on the phone and delays but finally the builders managed to squeeze some off the shelf ones in and the company refunded us the cost as it was their error.

The whole roof episode cost us weeks of time and was very stressful. We got there in the end however and the builders had done an excellent job.

Barn Development 14

The new windows have finally arrived and been placed which means that the plastering can begin.

I took great pains to make sure that I chose the correct colour but they look too blue to me.  I will have to try and get used to them!  It might help when the wood cladding has gone grey.

The kitchen side window looking out.

The main bedroom and en suite bathroom.

Barn Development 12

Some further photos showing two of the Velux window openings.

Looking back over the kitchen area which is going to be covered with zinc because the pitch is too shallow for slate. There are going to be three Velux windows but they have to be raised at the back to create the right angle so they do not leak.  They are a bit taller than I thought!!!

A view from the garden showing where the kitchen connects to the rest of the rebuild.  All we need now is a roof.

Barn Development 11

 Inside views looking up showing the beams, roof supports and blue tarpaulins added to keep the rain out.  It was quite tricky for David our builder to work in the top roof space.

A view from the outside with the roof supports over my new sewing room and what was once  the log store. Areas have been cut out for some Velux windows.

The area over the new kitchen extension has been completed  and where it joins the other roof a valley has been created. The angles and addition of another Velux in the hallway  created some problems but everything was sorted out in the end.