We live in the middle of a very large Alfalfa field, that's why!
First came the house (building on left), then my "Folly" (building to the far right) which consists of guesthouse, greenhouse, workshop and garages all in one.
And then we built the Barn, my favorite Building.
When I say "we built" I mean it. We studied Andrea Palladio's small villas in Italy; and this is what we came up with. The main house was first, then the "Folly" and then the Barn.
It made a nice courtyard design with a large horsetrough fountain in the middle. All in all about 3 years in the making. We designed, we laid marble floors, we executed all of the paint finishes, I painted all of the tiles, we stuccoed walls and posts and we loved every minute of it. We had help, of course.
We were thrilled and sad at the same time when everything was finished.
Gina
Gina, the landscape is so beautiful! Forget the rolling hills of Tuscany, green and soft looking alfalfa is the way to go! I love the story of your house and additions. And I always get moved when I see so much appreciation for my country's art and history (We can't really be proud of our present, but our past wasn't too bad!). I'd love one day to be able to build and make a house just like you did. I can understand the thrill and the sadness once it was completed.
ReplyDeleteDear Francesca, building our house was a wonderful experience. I would do it all over again. We had to make only one change. The double glass doors, we had ordered, flew off of our truck on the way to our building site. It ended up on the mountainside in a thousand pieces. No matter, I had spotted better doors in a salvage yard that came from the Ballroom of the historic Hotel Utah, Salt Lake City.
ReplyDeleteHope you get your wish of building your very own house in the country.
Gina
I agree with Francesca...your house is lovely and truly reminds me of ones in Italy!!! I would LOVE to have a house like this - what a dream come true :) Beautiful!!
ReplyDeleteHi Barbara, When you visit in the Spring you can enjoy first hand "life in the country". We can paint and take time out to gather a few eggs for our breakfast.
ReplyDeleteBuilding is not for everyone, however, for us it was a great experience. And if the truth be known, I loved being the boss and telling everyone what to do (in a nice way, of course).
Gina