It wasn't the early morning light angling through the Persienne shutters that woke me this morning as it does in springtime but the tweetering of birds (and that's nature's tweetering not the Stephen Fry variety). It was 6.20 am and all was apparently well. It crossed my mind that what would life be worth without birdsong? Well, the answer came back quickly, it would be a sterile world indeed. On going downstairs and easing open the ground floor shutters I noted an early morning mist hanging over the hospital opposite. All was quiet. I sensed this was not a mist of late winter but a hint of a very early spring. How ridiculous, I thought, but then here's nothing wrong with a soupçon of optimism. So it was in this mood that I decided today was a good day to tackle one of my favourite household chores, or rather a labour of love, the polishing and buffing of all things wood. This gives me ample opportunity to study the different types of wood around the house and also the relating joints.
This professional beeswax is expensive, but you get what you pay for, pure beeswax
When our carpenter suggested a 'Perigordian floor' as a solution for our oil stained uneven terrazzo hall floor we inherited with the house, both Lesley and my ears pricked up with interest. We had observed a version when visiting his house. What he was proposing was a step beyond what he had tackled chez lui. This floor would incorporate a system known as dessus-dessous, or over and under, and M. Pelletier was anxious to try it out. The design is a classic going back to the middle ages and involves the laying of 'terre cuite' or hand baked terracotta tiles in a diamond pattern set within an oak framework. We agreed with M. Pelletier's scheme as we had absolute confidence in his skill and expertise. So two years ago, just before Christmas he and a colleague set to work. The result, in our opinion, is truly impressive and a testament to French artisanal skills, M. Pelletier advised us to seal and then treat the finished floor with a mix of turpentine, beeswax and linseed oil in equal parts. This was the floor that formed part of my polishing duties of the day.
Almost as good as ironing or hoovering, buffing up the 'Perigordian' hall floor
M. Pelletier had also provided a bit of local history whilst undergoing the works. He said that in times past, when people were blessed with what we now call 'the long view', oak trees were felled alongside the River Dronne and then eased into the water. They were then weighted down and left for a period of 15 years or more in order to season them. This is the reason the local oak here is almost indestructible, and usually after many years of abuse. Well seasoned oak treated in this way ends up as hard and durable as steel, it seems. The timbers that grace our grenier (attic) are a true reflection of this.
Beautifully seasoned timbers arch across the roof space
M. Pelletier has also informed us that a particular joint on the bannister rail that runs down and meets the newel post in the hall is known as 'The ray of Jupiter'. As you can see from the photograph it is a highly unusual and complex joint. A thing of beauty for sure.
The 'ray of Jupiter' meets the newel post in the hallway
Part of my polishing ritual always takes in a good 20 minutes of applying wax and then buffing and even stroking my favourite piece of furniture, a Louis XIII bench. This is what now greets our bed and breakfast clients as they pass through our inner hall on the way upstairs. It is well known that when selling a house the aromas that make potential buyers more likely to commit themselves is the smell of freshly ground coffee, freshly baked bread, toasted tea cakes. Well here at 36 we have another evocative aroma to add to the heady mixture, beeswax!
Our Louis XIII bench emitting its beeswax odour
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