Running a French Holiday Gite in Rural Brittany

Wednesday, January 09, 2019

Eating like a king

It amused me the way that this tin of mushy peas left the can for my tea tonight.



Oh how exciting my meal is!

Mind you, there could be red wine involved later on...

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Monday, January 07, 2019

Roller blind fun

Last time I was over at the Gite I replaced the pull cord mechanism on the roller blind for the French windows that lead to the patio.

We have roller blinds on all the windows of our Gite and they're not little lightweight blinds, they're almost more of a security shutter, they're heavy plastic with lead weights in the bottom so if you let them drop quickly they come down with a bang.

Since the pull cord was fraying I replaced the whole mechanism with a new one which is easier said than done, not least because getting the cover off the blind mechanism at the top is really difficult as it all clips solidly together, and then you have to deal with the considerable weight of the entire roller blind as you thread the new pull cord into position.

Anyway that one was done last time and I bought a couple of spare new mechanisms (good old eBay) and brought them over with me this time.

Good job I did because the roller blind pull part of the blind next to the toy box had also failed and needed to be replaced as well. And so the fun began, took me perhaps an hour to prise the box containing the roller mechanism apart with several screwdrivers, flat bladed knives and a considerable amount of banging with a hammer.

Finally got the box opened so I could wedge the roller blind into position, unwind the old pull cord and replace it with a new one.

Here's a photo of it work in progress, the new mechanism in place and the old frayed pull cord shown in the bottom right. Wouldn't have wanted that to snap.

All finished now, box clipped back together and new pull cord works fine. Until the next one wears out of course...





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Friday, January 04, 2019

First sight of the newly decorated Gite

Back in May I wrote about the green flocked wallpaper in our Gite being removed and the lounge, stairs and upstairs hallways all being redecorated. 
The work was all finished that month, but despite having had perhaps 10 sets of guests staying since then, we hadn't seen the results ourselves. 
So when I arrived at the Gite I was excited to see the results of the decorators labours, and not disappointed, it all look really great and a big improvement.  Very clean and fresh. 











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Wednesday, January 02, 2019

Lots to pack in the car can only mean one thing

There's a large pile of things next to the car, so yes, I'm off to our Gite again for a mixture of break and renovations. 

Since I last went I've been busy buying :
  • New pillows for all beds
  • Pillow protectors and bed protectors for all beds
  • New toilet seat to replace the cheap one supplied with the toilet 
  • Lampshade 
  • Pull cords for the window blinds
  • Repaired velex blind 
  • Repaired ladder and swing for the climbing frame 
  • Chlorine and flocculant for the pool
  • New pool pipework 
  • Fire blankets
  • Cushion covers 
  • Tea towels 
  • More glasses for the kitchen 
  • New bath mat
Plus a spare mattress, wardrobe, some light fittings and plumbing bits for the other house, and the list goes on. 






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