Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Always On My Mind

A Dormer Series - part 2


When I met Cottage, it checked most of my little boxes. Among those little boxes, there was one that said "bedrooms under roof".

Quand j'ai rencontré Cottage, il remplissait la plupart de mes critères, parmi lesquels "chambres sous les toits".

 
You might think it's because I love how charming a sloping ceiling is. You wouldn't be wrong, but the main reason was that I don't like the idea to have huge unknown spaces above me when I sleep.

Vous pensez peut-être que je ne peux pas vivre sans le charme d'un plafond en pente, mais c'est plutôt que je ne peux pas vivre avec l'idée d'un grenier vide au-dessus de moi quand je dors.

1.
But in my head, this little box went with "dormer windows" and this didn't get checked with Cottage. From the day I visited it, this was on my mind. I thought dormer windows actually belonged to Cottage and it was just a mistake they weren't there.

Mais dans ma tête, ce critère allait de pair avec "chien assis". Non, non, je ne voulais pas un doberman dans ma chambre, mais une de ces charmantes fenêtres. Quand je regardais Cottage depuis le jardin, j'avais la sensation que quelque chose lui manquait.

2.

Fixing that mistake meant creating dormers that could have been here from the beginning.

Lui rendre ce qui lui manquait signifiait créer des fenêtres qui donneraient l'illusion d'avoir toujours été là.

3.
So every time I would wander around Cottage, I would take close-up pitures of dormers that I never showed you in my "Wandering Around" posts, of course. It was a secret project.

Par conséquent, chaque fois que je partais en excursion aux alentours de Cottage, je prenais en photo plein de fenêtres que je ne vous montrais jamais dans mes articles, bien entendu. C'était un projet secret.

4.
But I did showed them to my carpenter when we began working on that project last year. This was a very long project because I didn't "use" an architect. The carpenter and I decided how the dormers should look like and how high or wide they should be, so they'd look like they always had been there and so I'd still have light inside my rooms.

Mais je les ai montrées au menuisier quand nous avons commencé à travailler sur ce projet l'an dernier. La préparation a pris beaucoup de temps car je n'ai pas fait appel à un architecte. Le menuisier et moi avons décidé de la forme, la hauteur ou la largeur des chiens assis de façon à ce qu'ils s'intègrent au mieux au Cottage tout en laissant entrer la lumière dans mes pièces.

5.
My parents helped me a lot on this project: we had decided on a budget and some decisions were also taken to keep within the budget.

Mes parents m'ont beaucoup aidée sur ce projet : nous avions décidé d'un budget et certaines décisions ont aussi été prises de façon à respecter ce budget.

6.
It seemed I had thought of everything until some day I woke up and it hit me... The dormers would need to be painted before their first winter. There was no way I was going to climb on my roof to paint those, so I called a painter and the quote was delirious, just because he needed a sacaffolding to do the job. I had completely forgotten to take this into account and it was out of budget... Was it the end of my dream?

 Je croyais que j'avais pensé à tout jusqu'à ce qu'un matin, je me réveille avec une illumination... Les chiens assis allaient devoir être peints avant leur premier hiver. Hors de question que je grimpe sur mon toit pour le faire, mais le peintre contacté m'a donné un devis délirant juste parce qu'il devait monter un échafaudage. Je n'avais pas du tout prévu ça dans mon budget, déjà entièrement utilisé. Était-ce la fin de mon rêve ?

7.
What? Is that a tear I can see in your eyes... No, no, no, I can't leave you like that, thinking I just ruined your day...

8.
Comment ça ? J'ai cassé l'ambiance? Bon, laissez-moi arranger ça en vous montrant les difficultés que l'on rencontre quand on cherche des photos d'inspiration de chiens assis sur Internet...

So let me ligthen up the general mood by showing you what fun things you can find when looking for inspiration pictures for dormers on the Internet.

There are a lot of these...


Because the actress's family name happens to be "Dormer"... I'm wondering how she would feel about sitting permanently on Cottage's roof... Cottage is a man, he tells me he wouldn't mind in the least...

Pour commencer, on trouve beaucoup, beaucoup de photos de l'actrice Nathalie Dormer, plus ou moins dénudée - j'en ai choisie une soft pour le blog - dès que l'on lance la recherche en anglais car son nom de famille se trouve vouloir dire "chien assis" en anglais !

Now, I bet you're smiling! I found a couple of those adorable pictures just because dormer happens to be called "sitting dogs" in French.

Bon, là, je parie que vous souriez ! Et oui, on trouve tout plein d'adorables toutous assis !


This what I got when tiping in French "sitting dog Brittany": a nice lady wearing the typical headdress from her town and her dog sitting next to her!

Et voilà sur quoi on tombe en tapant "chien assis Bretagne"... Et oui, parfois les moteurs de recherche ont raison de ma patience ! 

Well, see you soon... I'll tell you if I found a solution to my dormer painting problem... or not!

Allez, à bientôt... Je vous dirai si j'ai trouvé une solution à mon problème de peinture des chiens assis... ou pas (comme dirait un de mes élèves) !






PS: I'm sharing my collection of French dormers at the following parties!

Ivy and Elephants             Vintage Inspiration Party       http://diybydesign.blogspot.fr/2015/08/sizzle-into-summer-its-party-230.html 

H&GT BUTTON FALL                                           





40 comments:

  1. I know you've found a solution . . . right?! The dormers are so sweet with their tile caps and little ornaments. Can't wait to see Cottage. Jo @ Let's Face the Music

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  2. Magali! BONJOUR! How I love these old and totally French dormers, and I know you'll come up with a solution because you and Cottage have come a long way in the preparation and transformation. I love seeing the different styles around your area, again a style that many of us HERE want to have and emulate!

    Thank you for coming to visit my post!

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  3. Hola Magali como me gustaria tener esos dormers en mi casa me encantan, y voy a estar un poquito impaciente esperando que nos muestres las fotos completas de los tuyos, nos dejas en suspenso verdad? gracias por tu blog. me alegras cuando lo recibo . hasta la proxima cuidate :) nelly

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    1. Gracias Nelly ! Y sí , tendrás que esperar un poco , con paciencia o unpatiently , pero voy a publicar la revelación de las buhardillas pronto ... o no!
      Magali

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  4. I like that you had a vision for Cottage and you're following through on your plans. Dormer windows add so much charm to a home!

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  5. Hi.......Love them all..but my faves or #'s 6 & 7..i love those corbels in 6..an the trim in 7..cottage belongs more handsome with every post you share..an..i'll never look at a sitting dog now an not think..dormer..hope you have a Great week.!

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  6. Mais pourquoi donc ce genre de fenêtres s'appelle "chien assis" ? Il doit bien y avoir la réponse sur Internet... Allez, encore un petit effort pour nous l'expliquer... Et merci pour tous ces "chiens assis" en pierre, en bois... ou à poils (sans jeux de mots cette fois).

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  7. Oh yes, for certain you found a solution, because this story simply must have a happy ending! Adding dormers is going to be exactly what Cottage needs to make him perfect for you.

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  8. bon ben après les chiens assis tu nous laisses en train de mijoter sur le feu, haaaaaaa, ça ne va plus du tout ça, noooon m'dame, plus du tout...
    mais j'ai ha^te de lire la suite... dit c'est bientôt hein

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    1. Promis, c'est pour bientôt... Enfin, c'est aussi la rentrée, j'ai quelques cours à préparer!

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  9. The doomers are so sweet and add such character. I cannot wait to see the solution. I know it will be cottage worthy!!!!
    Have a wonderful rest of the week Magali.
    Kris

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  10. Funny how all those dormer-'unrelated' items popped up on you! I'm curious as to your solution without painting??? I'll wait and see!

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  11. I love your sense of humor and I'm sure Cottage is feeling quite daber with his painted dormers. Kathleen in Az

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    1. Cottage is feeling proud... and wet as we have a little leak in one dormer! It's been pouring night and day recently, but I hope we'll be able to fix this soon!

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  12. Dormers add just the perfect touch!

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  13. oh !!! le toit de Cottage s'orne-t-il désormais fièrement d'une lucarne ? j'ai hâte de la découvrir ! tout comme j'ai hâte de savoir comment faire preuve d'ingéniosité pour éviter un échafaudage.... au plaisir de vous lire - monique59

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    1. Je ne dirai rien avant le prochain article... Mais je dois une fière chandelle à mon menuisier pour cette astuce!

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  14. I lover dormers and because i do i can just imagine you will find a way to paint yours. Have a great time figuring it out and i have a great week.

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  15. Your cottage is So beautiful! You're a lucky girl to have it.
    Brenda

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  16. Quelle histoire .J'adore . Mais comment as-tu présenté le projet pour le permis de construire ?
    J'attends la suite avec impatience. Caresse aux minous. Bises. Babette

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  17. Hehehe...Natalie Dormer and sitting dogs! Personally, I love dormers and hope you have a fabulous solution coming our way. :)

    -andi

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  18. Love Mr. Cottage with his new dormers....you always keep us in suspense to see what happens, and we keep coming back! Hope the leak clear up soon! Old cottages and water doesn't mix!

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  19. Dormers would look lovely in your cottage. I am sure Cottage will agree.

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  20. An interesting building, and I like your roses.

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    Replies
    1. Those roses bloom twice a year, in June and then in September.

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  21. Dormers are so nice - I hope you solve your problem and find someone who is willing to paint for a reasonable price! My last name should be Dormer, as I seem to dog-sit for my daughter all the time! Best of luck with your dormer search - I love your inspiration!

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    1. I did find a cheap painter, I'll tell you all about it in the next post! And now, I'll call you "Dormer"!

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  22. Je suis sûre que tu as trouvé la solution, j'ai hâte de lire la suite !
    C'est vrai que les chiens assis sont très jolis, ça permet de casser la ligne droite de la toiture et apporte beaucoup de cachet.
    Tu m'as bien fait rire avec Nathalie Dormer !
    A bientôt et bonne journée.
    Nathalie

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  23. Cottage will be so happy to have dormers when you find the perfect solution. Love all your inspiration pictures. Thanks so much for sharing at Vintage Inspiration Party.

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  24. Sweet Magali, you and your cottage are so charming and I love your storytelling :) You take such good care of your darling cottage. Hugs to you!

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  25. Oh Magali, you must have a dormer or two...they are like a feather in a cap...a necessity! Could the pieces be painted before they are installed. I just installed my own baseboard mouldings and I painted all of them the finished color before installing. Saved an immense amount of time...just little touch ups here and there. Hope you find a solution, have a lovely week ~ Mickie.

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  26. I know you found a solution because you are one resourceful blogger buddy!! I have to say I did like Natalie Dormer in The Tudors. She was a pretty convincing character. Everybody loves the puppies of course! Cheers Magali.

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  27. The suspense is killing me. Where are those dormers? I would not buy a house until we found this one - with dormers!

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  28. Why not paint all the wood before you put in the dormers. I can hardly stand the wait.
    Mary

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  29. Your writing is so charming. Yes, you saddened me with the painters' estimates. Yes, you gladdened me with the puppy's photo, and Natalie Dormer, and the lady of Brittany. I will wait impatiently for the end of this tale. I saw your link at the Vintage Inspiration Party.

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  30. I've got a feeling you worked things out. You are always very resourceful, Magali! Enjoyed your dormer tour, and the other dormers you found, as well!

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  31. LOL love all the dormers and I'm sure Mr Cottage would love to have the actress sitting on his roof all day.
    Nice finds but as I read along I do hope you find a solution to your painters problem. ;o)

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