Renovating The Chateau

Renovating The Chateau Behind the scenes with Leanne and Julian, renovating our chateau in the south of France.

Hello folks, we wanted to give you an update on what’s happening here Chateau de la CoutereA few weeks ago, we received ...
07/06/2026

Hello folks,
we wanted to give you an update on what’s happening here Chateau de la Coutere

A few weeks ago, we received the devastating news that we will not be granted the final planning permission needed to open fully as a restaurant.

This has been a two-year journey that has involved a huge upheaval in our lives, significant financial investment, and a real mental and emotional challenge — one we were fully committed to seeing through. After securing national hygiene approval, an alcohol licence, and completing almost all of the renovation work (including a new beer garden area off the chapel), we have sadly fallen at the final hurdle.

We have been operating as a business here at the château for over five years, welcoming guests, serving food, and of course sharing the space with people enjoying their holidays.
However, it turns out there is national legislation which prevents us from opening our particular château as a restaurant. We have met with the Mairie several times, and even they were not aware that we would be affected in this way. Despite being almost 2km from the nearest village, we are still classed as being within the same commune, and the commune of Saint Laurent falls within a designated flood risk zone.

Unfortunately, national regulations prevent any property within that commune classification from being granted permission to operate as a restaurant. The château itself is not in a flood zone, but because the wider commune is, we are unable to obtain the final change of use required.

It is a very difficult and, frankly, surreal situation, and the local planning office’s hands are tied. We are absolutely devastated. To make matters even harder, our dog Shadow passed away just two days after we received this news, which has made this period even more painful. This is why it has taken us some time to be able to share this update.

We are still here, and we are now doing our best to regroup, reflect, and begin shaping a new direction forward for the château.
Thank you to everyone who has supported us so far — it truly means more than we can express.
Leanne & Julian x
Image; Julian painting the little pub room several weeks ago.

A rare quiet weekend at the château!Life here is usually full — projects to finish, gardens to tame, guests to welcome, ...
10/05/2026

A rare quiet weekend at the château!
Life here is usually full — projects to finish, gardens to tame, guests to welcome, endless lists, and always something needing attention. But this long weekend, we managed to do something we don’t do nearly enough…
We stopped.

A slow morning under the trees, long apéros, children playing between conversations, glasses raised with friends, laughter echoing across the terraces, and those simple moments that somehow become the ones you remember most.

There’s something the French understand beautifully about long weekends: they are not meant to be rushed. They are for gathering, sharing, lingering a little longer at the table, and appreciating the people around you.
To all our new followers — bienvenue. We’re so happy you’re here to share these moments with us, not just the grand rooms and beautiful stones, but the life that happens in between them.
Santé from our little corner of France 🏰 🥂

🇫🇷
Un week-end un peu hors du temps au château ✨
La vie ici est souvent bien remplie — les projets qui s’enchaînent, le jardin qui ne s’arrête jamais, les invités à accueillir, les listes interminables… et toujours quelque chose à faire.

Mais ce long week-end, nous avons réussi à faire quelque chose de rare :
prendre le temps.
Des matins tranquilles sous les arbres, des apéros qui se prolongent jusqu’au dîner, les enfants qui jouent pendant que les conversations continuent, les verres qui se lèvent entre amis, les éclats de rire sur la terrasse… et tous ces petits moments simples qui deviennent finalement les plus précieux.

Il y a quelque chose que les Français savent particulièrement bien faire : profiter des longs week-ends. Ralentir un peu. Rester plus longtemps à table. Savourer la présence des autres et la douceur des soirées d’été.

À tous ceux qui nous ont rejoints récemment — bienvenue au château. Merci d’être ici pour partager avec nous non seulement les belles pierres et les grands espaces, mais aussi la vie qui les habite au quotidien.
Santé depuis notre petit coin de France 🇫🇷🥂

07/05/2026

Hello everyone,

It has been a very difficult week here at the château, filled with many challenges. But by far the hardest has been saying goodbye to our beautiful Weimaraner, Shadow, at 13 years old.

Last week, Shadow suddenly became very ill. Initially, the vet discovered a parasite in his blood and began treatment, but just a few days later an aggressive tumour was found in his abdomen.

On Tuesday, we were able to spend some final precious moments with him before helping him peacefully go to sleep.

Shadow lived an incredible life here in France at the château. We brought him home at just 6 weeks old nearly 13 years ago, and from the very beginning he was full of personality. He adored zucchini and carrots, and always kept us smiling.

Some of you may remember the YouTube video from a few years ago when he went missing, and the adventure we went through to find him. He was such a special part of our lives and our journey here.

He will always be deeply loved and never forgotten.

Rest peacefully, our beloved Shadow ❤️

Hello folks! The plasterwork has now been repaired and here is a little sneak peek of the heritage floor tiles have been...
27/04/2026

Hello folks! The plasterwork has now been repaired and here is a little sneak peek of the heritage floor tiles have been laid in the chapel! The second photo is the same space before we started the renovation.

Bonjour les amis ! Les plâtreries sont désormais réparées et voici un petit aperçu des tomettes patrimoniales posées dans la chapelle ! La deuxième photo est le même espace avant de commencer la rénovation.

Hello folks!For the chapel renovation, once the room had been cleared of years of old debris, the first step was repairi...
26/04/2026

Hello folks!
For the chapel renovation, once the room had been cleared of years of old debris, the first step was repairing the plaster. We believe a previous owner had been using the chapel as a kind of pool house, as there was even a small toilet cubicle here for easy access from outside.
With all of that now removed, I could finally turn my attention to restoring the old walls — mending crumbling plasterwork and filling the large gaping holes, so the chapel could begin to find its dignity again.

Bonjour les amis !
Pour la rénovation de la chapelle, une fois la pièce débarrassée des débris vieux de plusieurs années, la première étape a été la réparation du plâtre. Nous pensons qu’un ancien propriétaire utilisait la chapelle comme une sorte de pool house, car il y avait même ici une petite cabine de toilettes pour un accès facile de l’extérieur.
Une fois tout cela supprimé, j’ai enfin pu me concentrer sur la restauration des vieux murs, en réparant les plâtres en ruine et en remplissant les grands trous béants, afin que la chapelle puisse retrouver sa dignité.

26/04/2026

Hello folks!
For the chapel renovation, once the room had been cleared of years of old debris, the first step was repairing the plaster. We believe a previous owner had been using the chapel as a kind of pool house, as there was even a small toilet cubicle here for easy access from outside.
With all of that now removed, I could finally turn my attention to restoring the old walls — mending crumbling plasterwork and filling the large gaping holes, so the chapel could begin to find its dignity again.

Bonjour les amis !
Pour la rénovation de la chapelle, une fois la pièce débarrassée des débris vieux de plusieurs années, la première étape a été la réparation du plâtre. Nous pensons qu’un ancien propriétaire utilisait la chapelle comme une sorte de pool house, car il y avait même ici une petite cabine de toilettes pour un accès facile de l’extérieur.
Une fois tout cela supprimé, j’ai enfin pu me concentrer sur la restauration des vieux murs, en réparant les plâtres en ruine et en remplissant les grands trous béants, afin que la chapelle puisse retrouver sa dignité.

This little pub room has given us one headache after another! We have tackled each challenge as best we can - the number...
12/04/2026

This little pub room has given us one headache after another! We have tackled each challenge as best we can - the number one issue was making the room breathable again (see previous posts on this room!)

The next stage of the renovation was to tackle the floor - previously it had been bare boards laid on earth - and they had rotted of course - we wanted something more manageable and practical for the pub. Yet it had to breathe, and we still wanted it to look like a pub!

One limecrete floor and more late nights from Julian in February … and we had the makings of a room again!

Cette petite salle de pub nous a donné mal à la tête après l’autre ! Nous avons relevé chaque défi du mieux que nous pouvions - le problème numéro un était de rendre la pièce à nouveau respirante (voir les articles précédents sur cette pièce !)

L'étape suivante de la rénovation consistait à s'attaquer au sol - auparavant, il s'agissait de planches nues posées sur le sol - et elles étaient bien sûr pourries - nous voulions quelque chose de plus maniable et pratique pour le pub. Il fallait pourtant qu’il respire, et nous voulions quand même que ça ressemble à une publicité !

Un sol fait de chaud et encore des nuits tardives de Julian en février… et nous avions à nouveau l'étoffe d'une chambre !

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