Sunday, October 10, 2010

My new little rabbit

My new little rabbit, waiting for Régis
I wasn't looking for a rabbit when I wandered through my favourite brocante in Rennes last spring, but when I found this special ridge tile-- a terracotta petit lapin-- I couldn't resist.  I took him home and painted him black, to match the slate tiles on the top of Breton houses.

Putting the new roof on the barn
   Régis, my roofer, was scheduled to come to replace the roof over the barn part of the main house in May.  Replacing the roof of the stable that became 'Le Petit Lapin' was one of the first things I had to do back in 2001, but the roofs over the two parts of the main house were, Régis told me, O.K., 'Vous pouvez attendre... un peu.'  I replaced the roof on the original house in 2006, but held off re-doing the former barn until this year.  The barn roof was one of the first Régis worked on as a young apprentice over thirty years ago and he was very proud of its quality, so I felt confident in putting off what I knew would be a big job.  

And a big job indeed it was when (in the way of French workmen) Régis finally got round to doing it in September.  But Régis is quite the artist and was happy to secure my little rabbit on the roof of the cottage that bears its name.  So there he is now, waiting to welcome the next guests to 'Le Petit Lapin'.
The little rabbit in place at last

2 comments:

  1. Well, I think your little rabbit is happy with the outcome. Your new barn roof looks great! The roof color matches the overall design of the house. I’m glad that you were able to fix it before the holidays. Indeed, it’s a big project, but the results look amazing.

    - Chantay Smithingell

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  2. Great idea! That rabbit statue looks pretty good up there – it looks pretty much like the gargoyles and statues that were usually seen on top of cathedrals. The black color matches the slate tiles and the color of your roof too, so kudos to that! With that in place, you wouldn’t have to worry about squirrels and birds settling on your roof and turning it into their home.


    Lakisha Autin


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