Eventually we’ll live in France full-time.  Or at least that’s what we keep promising ourselves.  The current goalpost is “just after Mo’s finished university (his first degree).”  It makes sense.  Between us Graham and I will have accumulated 120 years of life on the planet, seventy of which will have been spent living and working in the British Virgin Islands.  Time for a change, perhaps.

Buying Les Terraces was the first step down that road.  After 3½ years of owning the house and deciding that the Studio doesn’t rent (very often – no terrace), we’ve decided to turn it into a master suite with some serious “wow!” factor.  We’ve spent hours pouring over ideas, and as many trying to make floor plans for a house that has neither straight walls, nor level floors, nor right-angled corners.  There have been (more than) a few terse words exchanged and the laser measure we bought at Easter has been an effective resolver of disagreements – some of the time.

So, we’ve perused catalogues for hours and hours, and Graham has spent even longer looking at design web sites for ideas.   I even spent a morning leaping in and out of bath tubs, much to the amusement of the showroom staff.  We’ve finally decided what we want to do and everything’s on order.  The studio is no longer in the rental pool, or at least not for the time being.  When it’s finished in mid-April 2013 it will be available to rent as an adjunct to either the ground or second floor flats and ready for us when we want to move home.  The plan includes an upgrade of the first-floor bathroom, giving it a walk-in shower and a separate loo, while the studio will change completely.

The studio’s kitchen will be a wet room (think rain shower) with a free-standing bath while what is currently the bedroom will become a dressing room and the entry for the suite. The sitting room has already been reconfigured as a large bedroom with a separate seating area.  It isn’t finished yet, but here’s sort of how it will look:

Hopefully it will all work out OK.