We've Bought an Historical Old Vicarage!

[OneKuhlChic]

Holiday was complete Paradise. We didn't lift a finger & all just switched off lying in the beautiful sunshine, swimming in the warm ocean, drinking & eating too much & all getting a bit sunburnt on Day 1. That Caribbean heat can take you be surprise when the breeze is so strong & refreshing!

The house is still ticking along. The legals haven't been completed yet as a couple of searches have been delayed, they're expected to be returned by 5th May. At that point we shall head into the Solicitors to sign the papers & complete the sale. And then it will be ours!!

We spent the afternoon with the Architect on Monday which was brilliant. Just to see the offices, meet the team & watch how their fantastic software brings a pencil sketch to a virtual reality visual that you can walk around & understand better was amazing. We bashed around some initial ideas & are back later next week for the first official meeting to start to get stuck in.

Whilst we were away we had a slightly concerning email from the Solicitors to list some new covenants that the Diocese are slapping on the new Title Deeds. Nothing is a deal breaker, but it is very dictatorial & almost offensive. We're not allowed to ever use the property as a religious school, sell alcohol, rent it out via Air BnB or any other similar short term holiday letting, or, and this is the best, use is as a brothel or anything similar that will bring it into disrepute. This is going to be a family home!!! We're also not allowed to disrupt the vicar or parishioners attending church. As if we're going to sit outside on a Sunday morning with placards saying God isn't real?!

As I say, non are dealbreakers, but we've gone from never removing the gate posts or foundation stone, so not being able to prune back some of the huge trees in the garden as they've slapped Tree Protection Orders on them. So we'll have to apply to the local council for permission should we need any tree works. There are a LOT of trees & we planned to thin some areas out. It also means our new garage block can't be sited where we wanted it to be.

But! None of that will put us off. We felt much better when we found one of our neighbours here has a covenant on her 1710 cottage that dates to 1840 something, saying she can never sell salted fish from the property

As no one lived at the Old Vicarage for a time and the gardens off the kitchen are in ruins, why should the church care if some trees are thinned out? Sounds to me like they continue to have a sense of ownership. Although they want your $$$ they do not want to relinquish total control!!

 

[Ally T]

As no one lived at the Old Vicarage for a time and the gardens off the kitchen are in ruins, why should the church care if some trees are thinned out? Sounds to me like they continue to have a sense of ownership. Although they want your $$$ they do not want to relinquish total control!!

They will definitely be relinquishing control - the deeds are watertight.

But due to the age of many of the trees (hundreds of years) & the historical importance, they have preservation orders. That doesn't mean we can get the crowns taken down & trim to maintain, it's just that we have to inform the local council before we do. It was the council that put the orders in place back in 1976, as we have the supporting documentation. Still a complete ball ache though

 

[AnastasiaBeaverhausen]

We've been at the house all afternoon with the interior designers, and the gardens are in full bloom with beautiful flowers wherever you look

All the beautiful colors just dials everything up to an 11! I imagine you'll spend many wonderful days out in your yard(s).

 

[AnastasiaBeaverhausen]

They will definitely be relinquishing control - the deeds are watertight.

But due to the age of many of the trees (hundreds of years) & the historical importance, they have preservation orders. That doesn't mean we can get the crowns taken down & trim to maintain, it's just that we have to inform the local council before we do. It was the council that put the orders in place back in 1976, as we have the supporting documentation. Still a complete ball ache though

Ugh, that sounds like the rules over by where I live. I had to apply for a permit. I think they even had someone come out and take a look at the tree wanted to take out before signing off on it. I'm pretty sure we got permission only because the tree was diseased and had become a hazard.

 

[OneKuhlChic]

This is my new favorite thread!!! Love it!'

Ally; as I read your descriptions, I can picture everything as though watching Grantchester or even Outlander!! Over the Christmas holidays, I watched every Charles Dickens series I could. And now you're living it!!! Oh, this makes me so happy for you!!!

Thank you for letting us share in the reno of your new home!!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I want to drink lashings of ginger beer and eat sticky buns in that back yard
(I have no idea what a sticky bun actually is )

 

[Ally T]

I want to drink lashings of ginger beer and eat sticky buns in that back yard
(I have no idea what a sticky bun actually is )

I shall make sticky buns for when you come & stay!

 

[Neptune]

We've been at the house all afternoon with the interior designers, and the gardens are in full bloom with beautiful flowers wherever you look

The climbing roses have strong fragrance? So dreamy!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Im watching that Ghosts program on tv on demand
I think its bbc
A comedy
you know the couple that inherit an old home from a distant aunty and it has a range of ghosts from prehistoric times right up until the 1980s with victims of the plague burried in the celler

.....just thought of you

If only houses could talk

 

[Ally T]

The climbing roses have strong fragrance? So dreamy!

Yes, they do! Everywhere in the garden at the moment has a sweet floral scent & I love it!

 

[Ally T]

Im watching that Ghosts program on tv on demand
I think its bbc
A comedy
you know the couple that inherit an old home from a distant aunty and it has a range of ghosts from prehistoric times right up until the 1980s with victims of the plague burried in the celler

.....just thought of you

If only houses could talk

I love that programme! And I completely agree - I wish the walls could tell me their stories. And antique jewellery too.

We did find out an interesting snippet a couple of weeks ago. On the grand staircase there is a little central section half way up, that my youngest refers to as her Preachers Pulpit. There isn't a banister rail, which is odd, and instead a later addition has been bolted across the wall side where the huge window is. Originally it would have been a decorative turn with a huge palm plant or similar in the middle.

So it turns out the first Vicar to occupy this 'new' house in 1904 was a bit of a tyrant. The servant girl, who according to records was 15, quite often used to nip up & down the main stairs if in that side of the house, instead of using the servants stairs at the far end. The Vicar used to rage if they ever met on the main stairs, so he had a carpenter come & remove that little section of inner banister rail. If they ever met on the stairs again, she used to have to jump into the central section & bow her head whilst he passed. How awful!

You can see the central section I'm talking about on this picture. For size perspective, you can just see my mother in law coming up to the bottom right.

 

[RMOO]

I love that programme! And I completely agree - I wish the walls could tell me their stories. And antique jewellery too.

We did find out an interesting snippet a couple of weeks ago. On the grand staircase there is a little central section half way up, that my youngest refers to as her Preachers Pulpit. There isn't a banister rail, which is odd, and instead a later addition has been bolted across the wall side where the huge window is. Originally it would have been a decorative turn with a huge palm plant or similar in the middle.

So it turns out the first Vicar to occupy this 'new' house in 1904 was a bit of a tyrant. The servant girl, who according to records was 15, quite often used to nip up & down the main stairs if in that side of the house, instead of using the servants stairs at the far end. The Vicar used to rage if they ever met on the main stairs, so he had a carpenter come & remove that little section of inner banister rail. If they ever met on the stairs again, she used to have to jump into the central section & bow her head whilst he passed. How awful!

You can see the central section I'm talking about on this picture. For size perspective, you can just see my mother in law coming up to the bottom right.

I noticed this little platform in your original pictures. I love these types of idiosyncrasies in old homes! Knowing the story behind it is priceless (if not horrifying.) With that large window, wouldn't it make a great place to put indoor plants, or a skinny Christmas tree during the holidays?

 

[Ally T]

I noticed this little platform in your original pictures. I love these types of idiosyncrasies in old homes! Knowing the story behind it is priceless (if not horrifying.) With that large window, wouldn't it make a great place to put indoor plants, or a skinny Christmas tree during the holidays?

My orchids. They love a window where they get direct sun in the morning for a few hours, then shade for the rest of the day. They will LOVE this window

 

[Ally T]

This is the stuff of old romance novels

Were you permitted to read the letters? That sounds like such an amazing find!! And the letters seem very personal, insight into the daily life and dreams of a man hundreds of years ago How long do you think it’s been since the inside of that safe saw daylight!? Probably helped preserve the papers.

Will you get to keep the safe itself, even if maybe not its contents? Or has the safe gone for valuation too?

And about that outbuilding So what do we think is stashed in there…

I wasn't allowed to read the letters until the Parish Clerk had seen them. We had a rough look at them, the beautiful handwriting & signature, which gave me goosebumps, but when the warden realised when they were, he put them back into their envelopes so as not to damage them. They were in remarkable good nick considering their age, slightly yellow & a bit creased, but lovely really, tied in a bundle with a waxy type of string.

We keep the safe! It was bolted into the wet concrete when the house was constructed & it's definitely not going anywhere! Will get some pictures for you on Tuesday.

As for the final mystery of the outbuilding, I expect crusty old gardening equipment

 

[RMOO]

We keep the safe! It was bolted into the wet concrete when the house was constructed & it's definitely not going anywhere! Will get some pictures for you on Tuesday.

Ok, so am I the only weirdo that is thrilled that you get to keep the safe, and now actually have the key?!

 

[Ally T]

Ok, so am I the only weirdo that is thrilled that you get to keep the safe, and now actually have the key?!

Me! Me! I'm a weirdo too!

I am BESIDE myself over the safe, but to have the key as well & being able to open it & use it, is just a dream!

 

[yssie]

I wasn't allowed to read the letters until the Parish Clerk had seen them. We had a rough look at them, the beautiful handwriting & signature, which gave me goosebumps, but when the warden realised when they were, he put them back into their envelopes so as not to damage them. They were in remarkable good nick considering their age, slightly yellow & a bit creased, but lovely really, tied in a bundle with a waxy type of string.

We keep the safe! It was bolted into the wet concrete when the house was constructed & it's definitely not going anywhere! Will get some pictures for you on Tuesday.

As for the final mystery of the outbuilding, I expect crusty old gardening equipment

I hope you get those letters back to display in the church. They sound absolutely fabulous

And to keeping the safe!!!!

Our house has a pretty big prefabricated shed at the end of the driveway (the driveway extends past the house a few dozen meters). On our first house viewing we met the owners briefly - they said hello and when we arrived and then headed out. They were lovely and the house was lovely, love at first sight. I decided to walk around the property whilst my husband and his parents checked the shed out… When they came back my MIL looked like she’d seen a ghost… Former owner was an avid hunter and apparently butchered and preserved his own kills, and their realtor forgot to warn ours Apparently the interior looked like something out of a Criminal Minds set. Chains on the walls and tables, everything stained red, “torture tools looming over us”

All that to say - maybe let hubs go visit the outhouse first just in case

 

[Ally T]

I hope you get those letters back to display in the church. They sound absolutely fabulous

And to keeping the safe!!!!

Our house has a pretty big prefabricated shed at the end of the driveway (the driveway extends past the house a few dozen meters). On our first house viewing we met the owners briefly - they said hello and when we arrived and then headed out. They were lovely and the house was lovely, love at first sight. I decided to walk around the property whilst my husband and his parents checked the shed out… When they came back my MIL looked like she’d seen a ghost… Former owner was an avid hunter and apparently butchered and preserved his own kills, and their realtor forgot to warn ours Apparently the interior looked like something out of a Criminal Minds set. Chains on the walls and tables, everything stained red, “torture tools looming over us”

All that to say - maybe let hubs go visit the outhouse first just in case

That's utterly hysterical! I'd have been definitely looking over my shoulder in case Dexter was nearby

But, like, WHAT?? Did you manage to clean the shed when you moved in? Or did you just kill it with fire?!

 

[yssie]

We haven’t actually done anything with it yet!! And it’s been four years! By the time we’re ready to patch it up we’ll need to plan a tea time with the resident poltergeists lol.

 

[Neptune]

Yes, they do! Everywhere in the garden at the moment has a sweet floral scent & I love it!

Jealousy is REAL

 

[Ally T]

We haven’t actually done anything with it yet!! And it’s been four years! By the time we’re ready to patch it up we’ll need to plan a tea time with the resident poltergeists lol.

That's a lot of years of ingrained blood. Gonna have to get your best scrubbing brushes out!

 

[Matata]

Thank you @yssie and @Ally T for the blood and gore soaked nightmares I'll probably have tonight.

 

[canuk-gal]

Me! Me! I'm a weirdo too!

I am BESIDE myself over the safe, but to have the key as well & being able to open it & use it, is just a dream!

Now you need to fill it it Tiffany, Cartier and some VCA!!!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

My orchids. They love a window where they get direct sun in the morning for a few hours, then shade for the rest of the day. They will LOVE this window

I'd be naming one those orchards after that wee servant girl

 

[Ally T]

I'd be naming one those orchards after that wee servant girl

I would love to! But I can only get as far back as the 1911 Census & she lived there from when it was built (& possibly with the Vicar & his family at the older house that was destroyed before that) in 1904.

However, she was a local girl & there are descendants in the village going WAY back who have stories, plus the vast amounts of stuff the Warden had to remove from the attics that he now has at his home. The Church were only interested in churchy things, so all the old photographs from tea parties & family events at the house over the many years are currently boxed in the Wardens cellar. He felt he couldn't throw them away, and rightly so. We are planning to go through them with him over the coming weeks, as I'd like to keep them with the house where they belong. I don't want anything creepy on display, but I would maybe like a small area to get some of them framed & hung.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I would love to! But I can only get as far back as the 1911 Census & she lived there from when it was built (& possibly with the Vicar & his family at the older house that was destroyed before that) in 1904.

However, she was a local girl & there are descendants in the village going WAY back who have stories, plus the vast amounts of stuff the Warden had to remove from the attics that he now has at his home. The Church were only interested in churchy things, so all the old photographs from tea parties & family events at the house over the many years are currently boxed in the Wardens cellar. He felt he couldn't throw them away, and rightly so. We are planning to go through them with him over the coming weeks, as I'd like to keep them with the house where they belong. I don't want anything creepy on display, but I would maybe like a small area to get some of them framed & hung.

I dont like everything she does but Mrs Strawbridge - i can't remember her first name- on escape to the chateaux dedicated one of her turrets to displaying history of the house - they also had lots of old stuff in the attac and outbuildings
I think its wonderful the house gets to keep its history

Now im thinking of that Nicol Kidman movie 'The others' - and the death photos of the servants
Mind you that movie - for a scary ghost story did kind of had a not unhappy ending

I can't help thinking how horrible that one vicor was
The kind of person you would want to say to "and what would Jesus do?"
And then slap him with one of those church prohibited fish things

 

[Jambalaya]

Just catching up, having been away from PS (just busy) for a few months. All I have to say is....WOW! And...thud *faints*

I knew that you'd have a lovely house to show us at some point, @Ally T, since we all knew you've been looking for a long time, but I never expected such wonderful side-stories as well! The trunk! The safe! The Bibles! The letters! In ADDITION to a wonderful renovation project!

Well, I feel thoroughly spoiled! I will truly enjoy catching up on this thread several times a week. We need all the updates and lots of photos. And info. about the architect's plans, plus all the decor ideas. Don't disappoint us!!

*buys popcorn maker from Amazon"

And I forgot to say the most important thing of all......MANY CONGRATULATIONS! Wishing you and your family a long and happy life in your new-old Vicarage!

 

[Ally T]

Just catching up, having been away from PS (just busy) for a few months. All I have to say is....WOW! And...thud *faints*

I knew that you'd have a lovely house to show us at some point, @Ally T, since we all knew you've been looking for a long time, but I never expected such wonderful side-stories as well! The trunk! The safe! The Bibles! The letters! In ADDITION to a wonderful renovation project!

Well, I feel thoroughly spoiled! I will truly enjoy catching up on this thread several times a week. We need all the updates and lots of photos. And info. about the architect's plans, plus all the decor ideas. Don't disappoint us!!

*buys popcorn maker from Amazon"

And I forgot to say the most important thing of all......MANY CONGRATULATIONS! Wishing you and your family a long and happy life in your new-old Vicarage!

Thank you, kind lady! What a really lovely post!

We are itching to get the keys on Tuesday & be do e with all the faffing around that has bubbled for a long time with this sale. We understand it & appreciate the care the Dicoese have taken to ensure the right family were chosen & all documents found & dug out of the archives etc, but it's now been 8 months after we first viewed it, to finally completing the sale.
You could say we have the patience of a Saint We have been very lucky that the building is empty & we've been given access whenever needed. That means that everybody is ready to start straight away, rather than completing on Tuesday & only THEN getting an Architect to view.

I shall update often with progress pictures & any other little treasures we discover along the way. I do have some preliminary design info I can share, so will do that now.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Its like reading George Clarke

I watched him tonight and thought of yiu

love the colours
definatly some rooms ive never seen or know anyone with?.so as you progress i want pictures of everything !

 

[lissyflo]

DESIGN UPDATES - DOWNSTAIRS.

The interior designers have amazing ideas & proposals, so I shall share what I have. We are trying to remain authentic Edwardian with the colours.

The main hallway, stairs & landings will have panelling added to the bottom section of walls to mirror that oak paneling alongside the bottom section of the stairs. This will be painted a dark grey with a light, off white pebble grey above on the main walls. From the picture rails upwards & the ceilings, will all be bright white throughout every room. The floors are oak parquet. The staircase & bannister rails will be painted white but the newell posts & handrails will be stripped & re-varnished, remaining oak. The carpet will start on the staircase & run upto the landing & throughout every bedroom the same, a marl grey. I want a reclaimed Church pew & a couple of arm chairs & small table in there.

The main lounge will be painted a deep royal blue, with white from the picture rails & above. We are thinking deep emerald green sofas with golden cushions & a large rug to tie the 3 colours together. The floor is oak parquet. The fireplace will be removed to make way for a huge TV on the wall. The fireplace in here was replaced in the 1940's & is ugly red brick. Yuk!

The next reception room will become a gaming den. My husband makes video games & my girls are gaming geeks, so whilst at the moment they have a playroom crammed with technology, it will be nice for them to have a proper, large designed space with funky lighting & cool gaming stations & sofas. The fireplace wil be removed (& sold, as it's original & very unusual but not in keeping) & a big TV will be fitted to the chimney breast. There will be lots of bespoke cabinetry in here & nobody has agreed on wall colour yet.

The sitting room is going to be a haven of tranquility. There is a huge floor to ceiling bay window & it's really bright, so I want to keep this room all white with the parquet floor. They will build window seating across the bay. The wooden fireplace will be removed & sold (it maybe authentic, but it's really ugly!) & replaced with an ornate carved white marble one. It won't be a working fire as the chimney breasts in the bedrooms above are being removed, but it will be a lovely feature, with lighting inside & lots of green pot plants in the hearth. The sofas will be a rich red with a deep red & marl grey rug, bespoke shelving along one wall with a mixture of cupboard doors & open recesses, some back-lit, some with books. My antique walnut piano will also be in this room.

The current kitchen will be extended quite significantly into & completely over the courtyard to the side - the outbuildings here are crumbling. There is a small window in the current kitchen looking into the back garden, but from the outside you can clearly see originally it was a huge arched window that has been bricked up. This will be opened back up & replaced with a huge arched window again. There will be a long dining table in this original kitchen area, flooded with new light.

The kitchen extension is going to be AMAZING. It will be fitted to the gable end of the house (the new dining area) by a glass section, like a narrow 3 foot wide corridor. This will enable the extension to stand away from the original house & provide a gap before the new tiled roof pitch. If the new roof was directly against the gable, it would rise too high & we would loose visual on the ornate hanging tiles on the upper gable wall. The kitchen will have a pitched roof with exposed oak A-frame beams in the ceiling & sky lights. We've agreed a Shaker kitchen in a dark navy with white marble worktops. There will be a circular booth seating at the end of the central island, looking towards the new doors into the garden. The whole end wall will be glass & oak timber. Fixtures & lights will be brass.

The utility room will be completely refitted with reclaimed scaffold plank shelving, giving it an old fashioned industrial vibe. The wall tiles will be white & they are going to move an original large wall cupboard that's in the pantry (that will become a new downstairs bathroom) into here so that I can keep it. It's huge & has glass paneled sliding doors - it's beautiful & definitely needs to stay.

The cold cloakroom to one side of the main front door recess, which is also stone & very cold, will become a boot room. Under the grand staircase is where the safe is, and this room will become the new cloakroom. All the heavy curved iron coat hooks will be re-sited into here from the original cloakroom.

Phew! I need a break!

This all sounds amazing! How lovely to design exactly what you want but in the shell of an older building with some history and character.