Skip to main content

DeJoux House blog first birthday

Almost exactly one year ago, September 27th, I wrote the first blog entry to the DeJoux House.
There is a link to that first entry at the top of every page.

It seems hard to believe that a whole year has gone by so fast and in just 52 weeks there has been so much pleasure and discovery for Daniel and I. (and a number of our friends too).

Although we haven't begun the main construction yet, we are waiting for the Eightpoint to make time for us. (I am happy they are busy because they do such a good job, but hope my active promotion of their business hasn't contributed to them being too busy for us!!!). But, although I am impatient, have my moments of WTF, we have no real tangible reason to hurry. The summer was wonderful without the house. We had dinner parties, swam in the pond, enjoyed the landscape and grounds in a way we would not have done if the house was usable. We've become very fond of the peninsula and I think that will always be a very special place for us because of this first year.

The use of the property will not stop.

We are planning to do something for Halloween. We have the spookiest house in the Hudson Valley, as published in the book "Spooky Hudson Valley" with a tale of Maria Deyo and the murder suicide of Springtown Road. We simply have to capitalize on that. You can read the news report of the day on my blog post of May 7th 2010 .

Later in November, we are planning a Guy Fawkes night. "Remember, remember the 5th of November, with gunpowder, treason and plot." The field seems like the perfect location for a huge bonfire party. Funnily enough this used to be the specialty of my parents in the house I first lived in called The Boatman's Arms which was an old pub by the Leeds Liverpool Canal.
We used to host one of the best bonfire nights. Because we were in Lancashire this would include huge pots of Lancashire Hot Pot, Treacle Toffee, Toffee Apples, Parkin, Potatoes roasted in foil in the fire and as many fire works as we could get our hand on. We have enough wood and cut down trees to make a wonderful bonfire that will keep us all warm in the November night.

Then, as the winter gets colder we will hopefully be hosting skating parties. Daniel and I skated on the lake last year around January 10th and it was wonderful. We quickly learned the need for a small fire to keep your feet warm but this year we will be inviting everyone to come join us (at your own risk...waivers will be distributed!!!).

So, take a look back over the last year of the blog. I just did. It's the best house in the world and I truly believe this first year will be one of my favorite years. It couldn't have been better.

See you at the DeJoux.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Paradox farm

If you wander along Springtown Road, past DeJoux House, you will see our mailbox opposite the front door.  It's not especially distinguishable except it is rather large and sits on an old tree stump.  It's a rusty old thing but it seems to have survived the snow plows and drunk drivers of Springtown Road. It has always bothered me that on the side of the mail box you can see the vague outline of the words "Paradox Farm" which was clearly a name that DeJoux House was more recently referred to.  Occasionally when wondering the fields I would stumble across some incongruity and wonder if that was indeed the "paradox" that the farm was named after. Yesterday morning, for some unknown reason, I decided it was time to resolve the paradox.  I sent a quick email to the previous owner June Finer to see if she knew anything of the Paradox Farm ghost on the side of the mailbox. This was her reply: once upon a time we, (myself and russell gilmore---my ex), met a

Inspiration for the future look

Daniel has found some wonderful reference materials for keeping the history and character yet not making it a museum. I love the big kitchen table plan for the kitchen inspired by Lutyens and some "behind the scenes" pictures of victorian kitchens. He also showed me some country houses from Axel Vervoordt that I really love. http://bit.ly/uX1eW Simple, authentic yet modern. We discussed putting a full length plate glass window in the old hay loft window on the end of the house. Wow. I can't wait.

DeJoux House to be published

Reclaimed Doorway  Our house has been watched over the years by a couple, Susan Daley and Steve Gross who create amazing books of old houses and Hudson Valley (each name below is a link to Amazon).  They knew the house and had been watching our progress. As we came close to finishing they reached out and asked if they could photograph the house for a book of cottages: Catskill Country Style Book , Old Houses , Farm House Revival , Homes With A Past , Gardens of Hudson Valley , Time Wearing Out Memory ...to name but a few. All of these books are beautifully produced. I can't wait to see our home in one of them later in 2015/16. I won't reveal all of the amazing photographs that have been taken of our house, you'll have to buy the book to see them all....but here is a little taster. Summer patio Kitchen Stools Front Door Open