Next years buildings.

There are moves afoot to choose next year's building project. Our friend Hannah is drawing up plans to convert the steading, build a barn / studio, convert the squash court and to build a new / reconstituted Victorian bothy in the farm. One of them will emerge as the favourite, the precise combination of disposable funds, long term benefit, helpful friends and available materials being the deciders.

Anyone who fancies coming round here on a rainy afternoon and helping me pull nails out of this acreage of oak parquet would be very welcome. It came out of Cafe Mambos (under new management and being refitted) and it looks like there might be just enough to do the ground floor of a squash court....

And if anyone is in the market for an MGBGT we seem to have a surfeit.

The other bothy project.

There has been a years break on sorting out the other buildings at Inshriach. This one, known as the bothy has at various times been the estate laundry, the workshops, ski sheds and assorted gun and chimney brush cupboard, then it became a summer house, occasional music studio and a house again, by which point, externally at least, it was in a bit of a state. The back half of the building was painted with modern vinyl paint and on the front the limewash was worn thin in the places you wanted it thick and caked up in the mouldings and the details. Harry and I did a good go at taking the paint off the back half this time last year, at the same time removing all the smashed up gutters from this and the two adjoining sheds. The gutters got painted and now the rentals are quiet for the winter it's time to get back on it and sand and scrape the rest of the building. I dont recommend sanding whole buildings, least of all ones with fiddly battens all over them, but after 4 days solid it's finally making progress. The picture above shows the back half mid sand and the picture below is the front after the first coat of lime paint (a few more of those to come), and with some of the gutters finally back up.

Mr and Mrs Calmac.

Huge Congratulations to Calum and Rhiannon on their wedding last weekend. Not everybody can lay their hands on The Horndog Brass band, most (sorry - all) of the Banana Sessions, a fine wee ceilidh and such a lovely bunch of folks.

This great picture is by Ingrid Mur who also took a lot of brilliant photos at the various Insider festivals.

The wedding yurt.

Its been all hands on deck today to put up the 42ft yurt we are using for Calum and Rhiannon's wedding. Its the 4th time we have used it, it's always absolutely spectacular (especially now with the autumn colours around) and if you want to use it get in touch with Paul at Red Kite yurts (for he is a lovely chap).

Lloyd Kahn featuring the Beermoth.

If you happen to be a fan of oddball, handmade accommodation then finding this email from the author of the definitive tome on the subject (Home Work, a book which in no small way influenced the truck and which happens to be sitting next to me on this table) is a bit of a treat.

Hello,

How can I get in touch with the builder/owner of the Beer Moth Truck for possible inclusion in our next book?

Please see our website for the type books we do: http://www.shelterpub.com

Best,

Lloyd Kahn

Red Review the Yurt.

Here is another nice piece of press, this time from Red Magazine who came a few weeks back to stay in the yurt.

The Great British Adventure

Congratulations to Ed and Jenna, the winners of Canopy and Stars Great British Adventure competition. You can follow their progress as they continue round the country by going to this link.

When they were here they stayed in the Beermoth, had this classic MG courtesy of Bygone Drives, visited the Cairngorm Reindeer herd, went river tubing with Full on Adventure, had an outstanding meal down at The Old Bridge Inn, did a Sunday afternoon wood carving course here with Woodentom then happened to overlap with my birthday / our friend Hazen's visa expiration party and got properly involved with some committed late night boozing at the whisky bar out in the field.

We wish them all the best with the rest of their adventure (and hope they have recovered) and would like to say a massive thank you to everyone mentioned above for being so game and making this happen.