It was meant to be: a family friend told us his family was selling it just at the moment I was looking for a space to create my own yoga/retreat/holiday rentals space. The house had not been put on sale so far and the contact happened per pure chance, or as I would say, because it had to be that way! (thanks Universe!)
The day my parents and I visited the house we instantly fell in love with it.
Two months later we are signing the first papers and in the beginning of July, after moving out belongings of three generations, I move into the old house. The last major renovation had taken place in the Seventies. The house was charming even like that, but clearly it needed some work. Slowly it became clear to my family and I that the house needed a TOTAL makeover. It was a hard decision: it was tempting to leave everything the way it was to preserve the patina, the shine and the old charm. We start gathering ideas and thinking of solutions. That's were one of my best friends steps in, Alessandra is a talented interior designer and she has helped me so much taking the right decisions. We decided to build a Yoga Room on the ground floor, needed to take down walls that were almost one meter wide for that! Another decision was to make additional space under the roof for a beautiful attic and take down other walls on the second floor. The house has four levels, ground floor, first, second and attic. The first floor would become a Holiday Rental Flat, that can be used also during Yoga Retreats and Immersion. The second floor and attic would become my home. On the ground floor, we "saw" a spacious room that could be used for Yoga and other actives as well as Art exhibitions and small gatherings. It requires a certain amount of creativity and vision to see things that are not yet there. Besides Alessandra, I have to thank my father who even being more than 70 years old never lacks vision! Works begun in October 2016. The executive architect promised us that by Christmas everything would be done. I hoped he was telling us a realistic date, but knew that it was impossible. I lived in the house, moving from one floor to the other, until end of November, then dust and noise made it impossible. I spent months travelling and living at my parents and finally, in March 2017 I could move into my part of the house, second floor and attic.
