December

Winter's here! We have several inches of snow and the lanes around Luggs Barn are only passable in a 4 wheel drive. The sight is extremely picturesque, although frustrating as it's slowing work down at this crucial stage! We've managed to get the interior cleaned up though, and are awaiting the granite worktops and long awaited carpets next week.

Don't forget to enter the competition to win a half price short break at Luggs Barn - click on the purple competition logo on the website to find out more!

November

This month has seen huge strides in the barn. The landscaping is now almost complete, and once the plumbers are finished we'll have a final tidy up outside. The parking and turning area to the rear of the barn is gravelled and fenced, and the little gate leading to the huge garden has been fitted. The outside seating area has been gravelled and the remaining garden area has had new top soil and is about to be grass seeded.

Inside, the chandelier has been fitted and looks superb. We now have almost all the sanitaryware fitted and working, and the kitchen is fitted and awaiting its granite worktops. The woodburning stove is already in daily use and much enjoyed by the builders! The bedroom carpets are due to be fitted in a couple of weeks and that day will be much celebrated after nearly a year of the building site stage!

We're also delighted to announce that the website is finally live! Visit http://www.luggsbarn.co.uk/ and tell us what you think! As the interior becomes finished we'll add lots more photos so potential guests can see the quality of the accommodation at Luggs Barn for themselves.

We're already advertising on several online directories, including I-Know Devon and Devon Online, and are looking forward to receiving entries for our competition to win a half price short break. Just click on the competition button on the website for information on how to enter.

October

The groundworks and landscaping are well under way now, and we're delighted to have found the original cobbled yard in front of the barn! The soil and stone are being pressure washed away and we're discovering more and more cobbles. Hopefully most of the yard will be intact, but the areas in which drains have been laid in the past will be repaired in due course.

We've always hoped to reinstate a cobbled yard, knowing that's what would have been here. Having received eye-watering quotes to create one, we're doubly thrilled to be able to enjoy the original - it adds even more to the wonderful sense of history here!

Also outdoors, the diggers are now on site to sink the huge underground oil and water tanks into the fields, and the water treatment equipment, which has dwarfed our tiny kitchen for the past year or two, is finally being relocated to the old flint privy! Not before time as Monty the Golden Retriever pup is now 6 months old and has outgrown his bed - we finally have space for a larger one!

The autumn weather is currently being kind and after a glorious sunny weekend, here's a picture of the view at the moment from Luggs Barn!

Inside, the oak flooring is now all in place and we're awaiting delivery of the new kitchen. Bathrooms are being installed in the next few weeks. We now have a lot of manpower on site and really feel we are nearing completion of this mammoth task!

Finally this month, we've just ordered a bespoke felt wall hanging from our friends at the Woolly Shepherd (who supplied us with sheepswool insulation). They took away Lily and Lucy's very first coats after they were shorn and have produced metres of wonderful felt, some of which once decorated will hang in pride of place in Luggs Barn entrance hall!

The website is within a week now of going 'live' and we can't wait to see the reaction from all our potential guests as well as friends and family who've been watching the renovations with great interest.

See you next month!

September

This month has seen the decorating gather pace and internal joinery begin. The bespoke oak staircase is being fitted, and oak flooring throughout the communal areas is almost complete. Plumbing and electrical work continues and the tiles and sanitaryware are all on site. We now have switches and sockets in most rooms, and within the next week or so should have working lights! As the autumn evenings draw in, we're also looking forward to fitting the woodburning stove in the first floor living room.

Repointing the exposed internal stone walls with lime mortar continues - the stonework has been a huge job but the character of the barn is returning with every week's work, so it's been well worth the effort.

Outside, the landscaping and balcony are next on the list, while the new kitchen units arrive next week! We have several new hens who are settling into their home and starting to lay already. The leaves are starting to turn and the valley and surrounding countryside are taking on their autumn colours. We're glad of the piles of scrap wood that the renovation has generated - with no heating in our own house, we rely on our log burning stoves to keep us all cosy!

Check back next month, when we should have a kitchen fitted and more internal joinery and decoration to report. We're still planning ways to make our very first bookings extra special...

August 2010

This month has seen the last of the windows fitted, and the Reuters TV crew spent a day at Luggs filming for their piece on sheepswool insulation. The cameraman can just be seen at the back of the van in the photo! Great fun was had by all, and the resulting few seconds of fame can be seen at http://www.reuters.com/news/video/storyvideoId=130693829&videoChannel=5VideoId=130693829&videoChannel=5

The insulation - largely local sheepswool - is now in place and plastering is well under way. The solid oak flooring is arriving next month, we're almost ready to order the kitchen, and we're finally starting the exciting process of choosing finishes!

Outside, somewhat later than planned, the groundworks are beginning. We've installed a new sewage treatment plant and rainwater drainage, as well as landscaping for the sitting area and garden.

As we move into autumn, the decorating will begin in earnest and we'll be looking forward to gauging the reaction to the website when it goes live for the first time! We're already considering ways to mark the grand opening of Luggs Barn - more details next month!

July

This month, the last of the new handmade hardwood windows are being fitted. With local slate cills, they’ve changed the appearance of the barn immeasurably, and we’ve all enjoyed seeing the transformation. This has been a huge undertaking; we had to restore most of the openings to more traditional proportions, which has entailed a lot of stonework. Paul, our mason, has spent weeks on end painstakingly choosing the best stones for each space, and the results are well worth the effort. The new argon filled double glazing units will be fitted in the next couple of weeks, and with the iron door and window furniture being fitted next week, we’re well on our way to the long awaited decoration stage!

Inside, an enormous amount of work has already taken place, including opening up the stairwell and first floor living room, exposing and repairing the old stone walls, and damp proofing and relaying the ground floors. In the old milking parlour, soon to be the kitchen, we found a wonderful cobbled floor complete with brick gulleys. Sadly we couldn’t leave it exposed due to damp and condensation issues, but we’ve covered it carefully with sand and relaid the new floor on top, so it’s preserved for future generations to find and marvel at! Upstairs, the stud walls mark out the bedrooms and first fix plumbing and electrics are almost finished.

The light evenings are proving invaluable, if exhausting, as we’re working on site until nightfall every day. From oiling the oak panelling which will enhance some of the old openings to creating the frames for window seats in the deep walls, there’s always something to do!

Outside, we’ve always loved the wild orchids which flower every summer in the orchard, but this year have been excited to see another species of orchid - just the one! - growing in the large meadow. If any botanists are reading and can help us identify the species, please do get in touch. Elsewhere, the many wonderful old roses are in full bloom, taking over from the wisteria as the perfect antidote to all the mess and dust on the site!

Coming up...

We’ll be using local sheeps wool insulation from the Woolly Shepherd at Dunkeswell, and are expecting a TV crew from Reuters during August who have asked to film part of the installation process.

Once the insulation is in place, the next big stage is plastering. We’ll be using traditional lime plaster almost everywhere to allow the building to breathe, as well as helping to retain the calm atmosphere which pervades the barn. August will also be the month in which we order the new kitchen and start choosing interior finishes. Check back for regular updates on our progress, and exciting offers for our very first guests. As we near completion and begin to take bookings, we’ll also be offering visitors to our site the chance to win a half price short break at Luggs Barn! 

Luggs Barn Grand Design

We’re currently in the middle of our own Grand Design - the renovation of Luggs Barn to provide top quality holiday accommodation while retaining the character of this beautiful old building. Long term, we plan to continue the sensitive restoration of our own home next door, a 15thC farmhouse with numerous period features. At the moment, though, focus is firmly on the barn and on managing the wildlife haven surrounding Luggs.