The sun is out for the first time in more than a week in our part of Mallorca – a very good reason to smile but, in fact, The Boss isn’t grinning from ear to ear, but up a ladder and painting beams. Now that’s what I call beaming.
After our finca was re-roofed last October we decided to start the long-term project of filling in the gaps between the terracotta tiles that make up our ceilings. So far, the kitchen and dining room have been completed. But, having done this, it was necessary to paint over the filler. Unfortunately, the paint we’d used originally was a slightly different shade to the new paint we bought to complete the job (due to a computer problem with the paint-mixing machine in our local decorating shop) so the whole ceiling has had to be done again.
Stepping Up to the Job
The weather’s been so bad for the past week that outside jobs have been impossible. On Sunday, we decided to tackle the ceiling job, which also included painting the beams. We had lovely wooden beams in our old cottage in Oxfordshire, but the ones here are cast concrete – not in the same league looks-wise, but they do keep the ceiling and roof above our heads! Wooden ones are more authentic, of course, but are at risk from woodworm and the dreaded formiga blanca – the white ant which, if it finds its way in, will eat away at wooden beams from the inside out.
When we moved here we didn’t like the appearance of the concrete beams, so we painted them brown. At a quick glance – or after a few of The Boss’s renowned G&Ts – any visitors who didn’t know otherwise, might just think they were made from wood. But rainwater and mould-cleaning products – as a result of the former leaky roof – had taken their toll on the paintwork.
Taking a break from the ladder
Decorating is a team job in this house. Usually I paint the walls and The Boss paints the bits I can’t reach from our wobbly ladder – and that includes most of the sloping ceilings and beams. So, while I’m writing this, and working on some articles for the next issue of the magazine for which I write, The Boss is reaching new heights . . . and beaming.
Jan Edwards Copyright 2013