After seeming to wait around in June, for the underfloor heating screed to dry and for the windows to be delivered, we finally got watertight in July as windows and doors arrived along with the sedum green roof.
Now it really does feel like the beginning of the end as the second fix gets underway. Continue reading
There was one thing we were clear about when planning The Secret Acre’s eco-makeover. We didn’t want to be looking out from our new bedroom over 60 square meters of grey roof extension.
And it turns out that installing a green roof is amazingly simple.
In fact most of the hard work had already been done by the farm in Wiltshire who grew our roof in self-contained modular trays that arrived stacked on a lorry. Continue reading
There’s a lot politicians could learn from buying windows. Not some high-tech Bill Gates thing, just your plain old glass variety.
As you know, we are very keen on insulation at The Secret Acre. So it was a given that we would be getting the most energy efficient windows we could afford. Continue reading
Like all good builders of timber frame extensions, we wanted it to include a large wall of glass to frame the panoramic view beyond.
But let me be upfront and say I am not a big fan of bi-fold windows. I think it is their all or nothing, open or closed scissor action. So I would probably opt for the less aesthetically pleasing patio doors. Emma takes the opposite view. Continue reading
There always seems to be that moment on Grand Designs when everything stops for several months while they wait for the windows to be delivered.
Determined not to have that problem we ordered our windows some time ago, and yet after the amazing speed of progress in the first eight weeks, June still felt like we were waiting. Continue reading
One of the things we are looking forward to on our journey to a happier life is being creative in the new kitchen. Using our home grown produce and local foraging to cook, bake and preserve etc, perhaps eventually even selling some ‘farm kitchen business’ style as so many smallholders do. Continue reading
While the eco-makeover of the smallholding’s accommodation carries on, Emma and I continue to seek as much practical help and advice as we can to prepare for the adventure ahead.
So it was one Saturday last month that we found ourselves visiting The Empire Farm in Somerset for their course ‘Living the good life on less than an acre’ which sounded perfect for us at The Secret Acre. Continue reading
Four weeks further on and Stevenson the builders continue to make amazing progress in the sunshine on our smallholding’s eco-makeover.
The timber frame extension shot up almost overnight, so now the whole building is in place just awaiting the windows to get us water tight. In the original part of the house the first fix has been done and the walls beautifully re-plastered. Continue reading
I could say it started recently with the dog, but that wouldn’t really be true.
Emma has already written about her motivation for finding our Secret Acre. For me I guess it started watching The Good Life television series at an impressionably young age, which helped foster a lifelong passion for our environment and living a happier, more self-sufficient life. Continue reading
In 2014 we finally took the plunge and decided to put life before work.
The result was to take on a one acre smallholding near Stroud. Both the land and the bricks and mortar are in need of renovation as Estate Agents say!
So, our first tasks in 2015 are an eco-makeover of the house, prepare the veg beds, and repair the greenhouse and orchard for a productive 2016.
The Secret Acre 