There are candles twinkling around the living room, but no Christmas tree, as I hoped there would be by this time tonight. The builders have been in the house all week, so despite the fact that the house was very organised, tidy and clean this time last week, it is upside down again.
As you may (or may not) know, we are renting here, at The Farm. We live in “The Barn”, as we have affectionally named it. It is a traditional Scottish stone barn. The structure is at least 200 years old, but some features that were in the building (like the original Caledonian pine flooring, which would have only been used in barns when Caledonian Pines were so plentiful that they could be used for barn flooring, and the little slit-like windows) lead some to suspect it is much older. The structure is approximatly 17 meters long and 5 meters wide with upstairs and down. Length-wise, it is split. The first half houses a very generous kitchen/dining area, a small shower room and my laundry closet. We also have a futon and tv/xbox at one end of this room. This room is where the heart of my home beats. A stair well cuts up through the kitchen and leads to the kids’ rooms and a bathroom. Currently, we have 4 children in 2 bedrooms.
The other half of the house is our living room/office area. The stone walls in the living room were pointed but left rugged. The loose limewash was chipped away but, where it held firm, it was left on the walls. Several coats of cream-tinted lime wash were applied to the old walls - the effect, in my opinion is stunning. When it was found to be in near perfect condition, the antique pine floor, already mentioned, was lifted for the underfloor heating to be layed (laid?) then replaced, sanded and waxed. Above the living room there is a very cleverly designed mezzanine which is used as Len’s office. It overhangs the living room but leaves about one third of the room open to a view of the vaulted ceiling.
There is an additional area below the living room that most old barns do not have. Don’t quote me on it but I believe, at its conception, the room was a mill. It is very much a basement area in that windows are scarce, but as The Barn sits on a slight slope, there is a quaint, arched, stone opening in which french doors have been installed. This is Moma’s room (which she happily shares with daddy). We have a small hall, a coat closet, a bathroom area, a walk-in closet and a spacious bedroom.
