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Our adventure began in August 2018 as we settled into our new farm in the enchanting Périgord countryside. We moved there with our four children and numerous animals, dreaming of nature, dreaming of a radically new and inspiring life for our family. We were hoping that this experience would offer us the opportunity to change our approach to life from the inside out… and that is what we got. Our calm and easygoing life transformed completely; it offered us so many enriching and unexpected challenges that we were forced to dive into our dormant potential !
We arrived with such a gigantic project, hoping that this dream would come to life in just a few months. How could we be so unconscious? and yet… had we known, we wouldn’t have come, we wouldn’t have tried. We fell several times, regularly got overwhelmed with discouragement but life generously invited us back up and got us to realise that we would not renovate 900m2 of old barns, open the relaxing and retreat center of our dreams and launch a permaculture farm in just a few months. That it was more likely to take a lifetime.
So we rolled up our sleeves and put our enthusiasm and boldness at work. Step by step we began renovating our charming old buildings, doing our best to select noble, natural and nature-friendly materials every time we could. We decided to let nature take care of water treatment issues thanks to a phytoepuration installation. We planted many trees and bushes, making sure they would help feed and support birds and pollinating insects and designed as many spaces as possible that would remain wild and free of human intervention so as to protect our local biodiversity. We still have a long way to go and so much to learn… but we do our best and are confident that we’ll get better over time. Our planet has so much to teach us.
And today ?
We are still at the very beginning of our adventure… but our first guesthouse is now ready and is just waiting for you to come and spend some good time. We dreamt to make it warm, cosy, soothing and relaxing and worked at giving this place a soul, hoping it would offer you peace and delight. Making environment friendly, sustainable and conscious choices in terms of building and equipment was another way for us to illuminate this house with a special intention and we truly hope it will contribute to making your stay pleasant and inspiring.
You can also unwind and cool down in our natural pool.
Our Adventure
Welcome to the farm
Beings of all kinds are already occupying the place...
We arrived here with Helios, our dog, the guardian of light with his beautiful and soft blond coat and with Merlin, the most cuddly cat we have ever met! And although we were very…. very busy, we wished to invite a few more animals into our life. The fox kept chasing our hens and roosters so Constantin, a vietnamese pig, moved in to protect the barnyard (very successfully !). Julien, our Cameroon ram and his beloved Juliette have given birth to a quite extensive herd who takes good care of the grass, with both enthusiasm and gluttony. As for Suzon and Suzette, our two beautiful slightly bossy geese, they give Constantin a hand in frightening away reckless foxes. Everyone is now safe and although our fences need some fixing – our animals like adventures too – we are hoping to create comfortable paddocks for every one.
I’m sorry, I forgot to mention Léon, our duck to whom we offered a very charming lover called Lune. And two more, Céleste and Socrate, who recently joined the team and are in charge of welcoming our guests.
A heart team
None of this would have been possible without the amazing people we met along the way and who encouraged and taught us everything we had to learn about building and gardening - we the town mice who barely knew how to use a hammer or a spade!
Bruno, our coach in self-building, Romain the carpenter, two wonderful men who pushed us into the experience and helped us keep going when things became overwhelming; Gil our gardener friend who designed the pool terrace and who generously went on instilling new ideas when inspiration was short or solutions were needed.
