Chantier pierre vu chez Anne Clair and Mike

Today I went to give Anne Clair a hand with rendering an interior stone wall with lime.  Mike, Anne Clair and their three children live on the other side of Saint Hilaire du Harcouet in a yurt while they renovate an old torchis building using ecological materials where possible and practical.  They have worked hard on the land uisng permaculture principles and have a thriving vegetable garden, chickens and pigs and they have planted many trees.  Mike has constructed several successful rocket stoves (to heat the yurt and the water in the bath house).

 

Some images of their place and today's chantier:

 

 

The yurt and vegetable garden

 



They renovated this little torchis dwelling last year with

 earth and lime and Mike has built a rocket stove  inside which heats

 water recuperated from the roof of a nearby barn



Their future home



Anne Clair fills a bucket with the lime and sand mix

(a mixture of chaux vif and sand that was left to mature for several

months in this barrel)



Liam helps to bring the buckets of lime to the pulley





Anne Clair shows the children how to use the pulley



Liam and Anna Rose take charge of the pulley





Successful team work





Anne Clair prepares to apply the lime putty and

 sand mix to the stone wall



Applying the mix to the wall.  Once dry

 the mix can be scrubbed with a brush to

 reveal as much or little of the stones as is wanted



Liam takes time out to demonstrate his skills in using the swing

Anna Rose brings stones in her wheelbarrow



Anna Rose tries dad's security boots for size

 



Mike spent the day taking care of the little
 one and prepared a delicious vegetarian meal
 with produce from the garden