Building Projects

To further our plan for turning our homestead in Bulgaria into a comfortable and cosy place for traveling families to stay we have several projects in mind that we shall be working on in the near future. Just how far we get with them and the order in which they are tackled will depend to some extent upon the various material, financial and human resources available to us.

Summer Kitchen: Faulty guttering and a few loose roof tiles combined to create some serious damage over the last year to one of the small outbuildings. We intend to completely dismantle the building and recreate it as a covered, partially enclosed summer kitchen. We are hoping to reuse most of the old materials (mud, bricks and roof tiles) and incorporate some decorative elements which will turn it into something functional and creative.

Compost Toilets: Definitely room for improvement here! We don't intend to get rid of the old outside toilet just yet, but we do hope to add some more aesthetic compost toilets, both inside and outside the house.

Hayloft-to-Den Conversion: We would like to clear out one of the haylofts and turn it into a cool space for older kids as a den or story-telling corner. For younger children we want to finish sorting out the ground-level playhouse in the garden.

Cowshed-to-Craft-Workshop Conversion: This is a bigger job and to do it the way we are thinking of will mean we shall need to acquire a few new skills first, such as working with natural mud and lime plaster. If we manage to make the place really cosy it could also double up to provide additional sleeping space when we have a lot of guests.

We shall be documenting our progress with these various projects and hope to be able to post some impressive 'before' and 'after' photos over the coming months!