EP11: Renovating a Maison!

[@alanparnass]

Darlene, you are a gem. Thanks for adding the photo/video of our visit to your maison. Meeting you and Shaun was a bonus on our six week biking adventure in France. Sipping two bottles of champagne, touring your house and property, and getting to know you both personally was the highlight of our entire trip. Already planning to return to the Dordogne next fall and visiting you again to see the amazing progress you will have made by then. Restez heureux, restez en bonne santé et profitez de la vie.

[@DarleneLavett]

You’re absolutely welcome Alan, and it was our pleasure! I never thought a KZbin channel could help bring people together ‘physically’, so that was a real buzz for me too. Hopefully one day we can come and visit you and your beautiful part of the world too. X

[@stevehoulihan5605]

My wife and I are on holiday in the Dordogne from the Gold Coast, and we drove past your lovely home yesterday. Couldn’t resist stopping to take a selfie in front of your famous home! Your “boys” gave me a barking good welcome through the fence as I walked by. We thought Daglan looked very nice, might be worth a walk through on a future video. Good luck with all your renovating, we love watching your progress on You Tube!

[@DarleneLavett]

😂 That’s so funny. I heard old-man Jack barking and thought what’s he barking at? I plan to give you a walk through the village in my next vlog as well as a look at the crazy fete we had here which is the highlight of the year in Daglan. Thanks for saying hi! If you’re still in the area just knock ✊ and we can have a drink and a chat. Have a great holiday!

[@stevehoulihan5605]

Sadly we are on the train to Paris and home in a few days. After multiple trips to France we are in love with the Dordogne. We can see why you love it! We are considering putting an offer on a maison in Sarlat, only time will tell if we can turn the dream into reality. In the meantime, we are enjoying a bottle of wine and some sheep and truffle cheese on the TGV. Sooo different to the GC to Brisbane train, where you’re not allowed to eat or drink anything! The French really know how to enjoy life.

[@DarleneLavett]

@@stevehoulihan5605 Yum! How great is the TVG!? I hope you are well rugged up for this cooler weather! Enjoy Paris and good luck with the Sarlat Maison, very exciting! I’m uploading my latest vlog now (fingers crossed as my software upgrade is not behaving itself). Thanks for following along on my journey and saying hi. 😊

[@KiwiBabz]

Love your stylish summer kitchen. Can't wait to see the new kitchen and bedroom. Wow you two know how to work. Good for you. Your home and surrounds are beautiful. ❤

[@DarleneLavett]

Thanks so much! This is all created on a tight budget but I think with a few pieces to make the rooms pop, the final outcomes shouldn’t disappoint. Thank you for watching and for your lovely comment😊

[@Parisdoesrock]

~Just a friendly thought, cardboard on a roll. If you have it available for purchase. During our build, once the wood floors were put in, I put down cardboard in our high traffic areas, used paint tape around the edges to hold it in place. In the end, it was a massive saver on the floors. It made a huge overall difference. When your area or room is finished, you simply pull it up, vacuum and light cleaning around it with a damp cloth, then toss it in the trash. Amazing progress!

[@DarleneLavett]

Fantastic idea, thanks!

[@cynthiahudson7528]

Greetings from Texas. We found your channel last week and enjoy your videos. The house looks very well maintained and the location is fantastic. My husband loved Sean’s workshop/man area. We Look forward to seeing more of your area and your future renovations. We may check out your area as well as we are also looking to relocate. All the best, safe travels. Cindy

[@DarleneLavett]

Bonjour Texas! Thanks for your message and for following along. If you need any help or information then please let me know and I will help where I can. Otherwise I hope you find my vlog helpful in learning more about this beautiful part of the world. 😊

[@patriciadelsey8793]

Can’t wait to see yiur choice of wallpaper. Wonderful summer kitchen

[@DarleneLavett]

Thank you! I must admit I’m a little nervous about the wallpaper reveal…! 😂 but I have another 3 bedrooms so I plan to create beautiful spaces everywhere. I’m currently sitting in my summer kitchen, waiting for my dinner to be cooked! Haha

[@daisy9910]

I remember learning to roller skate on parquet flooring as a toddler. I'm amazed at how much you've accomplished since your last video. I feel guilty about my own renos. 😅

[@DarleneLavett]

Thank you so much! I love that this episode bought back memories for you. When I was a child, friends of mine had a parquet floor, and I was literally too scared to stand on it because it looked like perfection. 😂

[@daisy9910]

@@DarleneLavett 😂

[@SusieMonk-jh8tj]

You are both sweethearts. Just getting in there and getting things done. What I love is you are using French Artisans . I really dislike when Brits move to France and import UK tradesmen. A certain château springs to mind. We have had great advice and work from the French guys who are all qualified Tradesmen unlike cowboys in UK. Darlene you might find it easier to use plastic sheeting to protect when you are sanding. Dust sheets just don’t keep the fine plaster dust out in my experience. Bon courage and keep up the good work

[@DarleneLavett]

Hi Susie, do you live in the Dordogne Department? I’ve heard a lot of people say the tradesmen are difficult here but we have had nothing but the opposite so far. We feel very fortunate that we’ve met very helpful tradesmen and women, with reasonably priced quotes and high quality work. Great tip too! Thanks 😊

[@SusieMonk-jh8tj]

Hi Darlene we are a bit south in the Gers very rural and love it. I just watched a couple of episodes yesterday when your furniture etc arrived . The workshop and Gym stuff was amazing. No wonder you look so good. My exercise nowadays is pushing fabric through my sewing machine. @@DarleneLavett

[@DarleneLavett]

@@SusieMonk-jh8tj well there you go, I hadn’t heard of Gers before. It must be nice to be close to Toulouse. Speaking of sewing, Im trying to find curtain fabric but can’t find anywhere close or anything on line! I might need to do a trip down to the big city.

[@SusieMonk-jh8tj]

Try Madura I know there is one inToulouse or was. Zara home also. There are a couple of companies that advertise on KZbin . U S is best for choice but since Covid transport is horrible plus import tax. Same goes for UK. There was another shop in Toulouse but it moved out from the centre and I can’t remember the name. Ageing is catching up LOL@@DarleneLavett

[@micheledenise2305]

Oh i love when u show what ur doing inside ur home love love this episode cant wait till u start the carriage house!!!😊

[@DarleneLavett]

Thank you! 😊

[@deirdrecerasa3932]

Love the progress you are making. ❤

[@DarleneLavett]

Thank you! 😊

[@lgrigg5439]

It's always a pleasure watching both of you renovating your beautiful chateau

[@DarleneLavett]

Merci beaucoup! ☺️

[@lindadrew8237]

Love your videos Darlene, you’ve got a love a girl who doesn’t mind getting he hands dirty! Looking forward to seeing the results of your hard work. ❤

[@DarleneLavett]

Thanks so much Linda!

[@emmiewahl2842]

It is going to look amazing.

[@DarleneLavett]

Thank you Emmie! 🤞

[@robinzaleski5]

Such exciting progress! And how fortunate that you have a summer kitchen so that you are not cooking over a hot plate in the dining room during your kitchen renovation. You really did pick a fantastic property to live in while renovating. Thank you so much for sharing the journey with us. Cheering you on from Connecticut, US.

[@DarleneLavett]

Hello Connecticut! It’s was a little gem to discover the summer kitchen and it’s potential. Lucky for me I have a very clever husband and he was able to make it a very usable and comfortable space. Thanks so much for your feedback, bonjourne! 😊

[@micheledenise2305]

I love ur channel i hope u start doing 1 every week. Alot of channels do.. I think it helps build a channel...im 63 and watch alot of utube and look for channels weekly i love urs and hope to see more of u ❤😊

[@DarleneLavett]

Hi Michele. Thanks for your feedback, I think I’m finally getting there with my vlog content and quality. It’s taken a little while. ☺️ But yes that's the plan! I hope to be able to upload videos more often too, well at least once every two weeks. So glad that you find them enjoyable to watch given you know the number of vlogs out there!

[@lorraineelderhurst4199]

Love your vlogs, cannot wait until you post a new one each time. My husband and I have renovated 12 houses from miners cottages in Bendigo to fishermans in Elsternwick Victoria. Your footage has excellent content and I love the way you vary it from renovating to family time and showing us little snippets of your village etc.

[@DarleneLavett]

Oh wow Lorraine! You are a renovation queen! Sounds like you need to start a vlog too! 🤩I lived in Albury Wodonga and Bendigo for 3 years during my military training and then first army posting at the Survey regiment which was at George Lansell Fortuna. Such a beautiful place!

[@daynight4902]

BEST WISHES TO YOU

[@tanyalavett7392]

Sumo, skip bo and ads! Love love love ❤

[@DarleneLavett]

My beautiful Sumo boy 😍 Love you sis! 😘

[@micheledenise2305]

Oh my gosh u should put that sink thats in ur basement in ur kitchen under the window😊

[@DarleneLavett]

Good idea! Isn’t it wonderful! The enamel is still in good condition too.

[@lindamounts2193]

Enjoy seeing your projects. Maybe not quite so much speedy time lapse. It gets a little hard on the eye and we enjoy watching you work so not always needed. Thanks.

[@DarleneLavett]

Noted! Thanks for the feedback. I worry that I bore my views but will slow it down a bit.

[@cmp7777CeliaP]

Great work on your maison Darlene & Shaun. Lots accomplished & you are doing really well with your vlogs. Good effort on your french too❣️you have a good mix of content so keep it coming thankyou. Love from the Gold Coast🧡🧡🧡

[@DarleneLavett]

Bonjour GC! Oh I do miss SEQLD and those beautiful beaches. And thank you for the lovely feedback. I want to show that you can do anything at any age really, the only thing that stops you is your imagination. x

[@bigboy77dk]

Watched some of your vlogs 😊 Saw in one, thst you talked about the big clock in the hall. If you would like it to run, but not chime, you simply remove the weight, that control the chime side. Usually the left one.

[@DarleneLavett]

Thanks for the tip! I had no idea and it’s such a lovely piece.

[@stephaneganibardi1760]

Très agréable vidéo, merci, à bientôt .

[@DarleneLavett]

Thank you for watching and for your lovely comment. There was a time I would not have understood what you wrote but now I do! Day by day I’m learning more. J’adore parle Française 😊

[@mjecheverria4197]

❤

[@robynhudgens7820]

Hi Darlene, great to see the progress and see another video up! I am hoping to move to France one day but for now enjoy a visit every year. So I have a question! Do you think it’s worth moving all our furniture and accessories there, or do you think it’s better value for money to buy over there? Not sure what the shipping costs are but apart from personal items, did it make $ sense for you? Thanks and best of luck with the kitchen. I love pink tones in a guest bedroom, you can’t go wrong there. À un jour et bonne chance.

[@DarleneLavett]

Hello Robin, thanks for your message 😊 I love every shade, tone of the colour pink! I can’t wear it myself, but maybe that’s why I’m decorating a room with this beautiful colour. Anyway I sourced my inspiration from that bed head as I mentioned. To be honest we sold most of our furniture in Australia before the move as we knew much of it was not going to work in the Maison. Surprisingly, though furniture in this part of France is quite expensive even just for basic items so you just have to be clever and look around to get value for money. It’s taken a little while but we finally found some good quality but reasonably priced furniture shops in the region. The other thing is if you have any new items of less than six months of age, you will need to pay tax on those to ship them (VAT of 20%)! It has turned out to be fortuitous that hubby is now making furniture too! I hope that helps and thanks for watching!

[@mocarra100]

I can't wait to see the finished rooms, of the bedroom and the kitchen! I noticed you don't post a lot? Much love from Oklahoma USA Jackie 🇺🇸 💖

[@DarleneLavett]

Bonjour Jackie! Thank you for your msg. The rooms under renovation are starting to look… amazing! I can’t wait to reveal them next. I’m new to vlogging so will up my game a bit! ☺️

[@cherylreid9165]

Did you consider sanding back the plaster in the kitchen to reveal the brick walls? It doesn't have to be 'perfect' to look good. It can also provide a warmth to the space swell as a sense of age. Looks fabulous with modern cupboards, furniture etc. as well as an older style. (Personally prefer the eclectic look of the former.) Good luck with your endeavours and have fun!

[@DarleneLavett]

What a great idea, I hadn’t even considered it but might need to have that conversation tonight with Shaun over dinner. Our style will be quite eclectic as I love, mixing and matching the old with the new and having a really cozy space.

[@katehobbs2008]

Hi Darlene, just a tip, lots and lots of viewers will criticise the music. Your choice to have it, but I suggest you make sure that it is not too loud and metallic, check out the Pethericks and Chateau Diaries. It is one of the most frequent criticisms I see on every channel. And definitely no music when people are speaking. 🇦🇺🌸

[@DarleneLavett]

Thanks Kate. I have learnt a lot since this episode so hopefully you’ll find the volume of music has now been resolved.

[@michelesauret7779]

A lot of work, you are courageous. But the result will be coming soon

[@DarleneLavett]

It is indeed! Thanks for the encouragement 👍

[@lesserpoo]

I thought you’re not supposed to seal walls like that because then they can’t release the natural moisture that occurs?

[@DarleneLavett]

Great point and something we weren’t familiar with Les. Look forward to showing you further progress and what happens next.

[@lesserpoo]

@@DarleneLavett thank you for sharing your journey! Can’t wait to see all that you do!

[@Didi-ir1gr]

More French s’il vous plaît et ajoute la langue française à CC

[@Arcanesse]

bravo pour votre francais et j'ai decouvert votre vlog... avec du retard je vous souhaite la bienvenue ...

[@DarleneLavett]

Merci Beaucoup! I am studying every week to improve my French but I think I’ll need a few years to learn it all!