Stone Fireplace, Stone Staircase, Limestone Fireplaces

Can you believe that Facebook could be work about £100 billion? And it’s only about 7 years old or something ridiculous! It’s the sort of thing that has happened in the Internet era, and I doubt it’ll be the last. It sort of makes a mockery of ‘tradional’ business models, but perhaps it’s no different to when other world changing inventions emerged?  I suppose Henry Ford was no different when he started mass producing the model T, though I imagine that employed many thousands more people directly and indirectly and it mobilised a previously not very mobile population. I doubt facebook employees anywhere near the same number of people, and nor do they really produce anything useful?

It was minus 7 when we arrived at the stone yard this morning. But the sun is shining and it’s a beautiful day. We were about to start cutting the blocks for a pair of big stone fireplaces, but not surprisingly the stone is frozen solid, so we’ve had to forklift them into the stone shed, and in front of the heater blower. The sun is also shining through the doors, so I reckon another half hour or so and the stone should be thawed enough.  There is a little gaggle of black bantams sitting on the fence outside the shed. They’re in a very sunny spot out of the breeze, and I think their lovely black plumage probably absorbs the sun’s heat very well.  They look very pretty and are getting some crumbs from one of the masons.

We’ve just had a very nice commission for a house in Surrey. We supplied all the stone for the same client about 10 years ago, when he built a similarly lovely house, and he’s always said he’d come back to us when he did another stone one. This one will be fully stone clad (not the horrendous ’stone cladding’ of the 70s and 80s) and will have a similar look in stone terms, as Buck house.. though clearly not as big. We should be starting in April, which is going to come round very quickly!

There so useful to so many small businesses! The ubiquitous Transit van has been made in the millions, and has been the backbone of thousands of businesses large and small all around the World. Not all Ford transits of course as all major motor manufacturers make similar vehicles, it’s just that in the Uk the transit has always been king. We’ve had quite a few of them over the years, and the later incarnations are very civilised vehicles with comfortable seats; good audio; air conditioning, and they drive like cars. But their beauty is of course their carrying capacity. We have put thousands of stone fireplaces into transit vans over the years, and they’ve been delivered all over the UK and Europe. We have stuff delivered to us in vans, and our customers own or hire vans to collect from us.

We’ve driven transit vans to France and Spain to deliver stone fireplaces, and to collect stone blocks

Our fork lift took a bit of starting this morning. It doesn’t like really cold weather, and that’s certainly what we have this morning. There’s a very thin layer of snow on the ground, and everything is frozen up, though there’s not as much sun so we’re feeling the cold! We’re still out in the stone yard though, as it’s nicer to work outside. We’ve all just had a big mug of hot coffee, and we’re now working away on our stone fireplaces. We’ve loaded three into a van first thing (hence need for forklift) and we’ve got some more stone coming this afternoon. The farmer needs two of us to help load some lambs for market, and then I’ve got to go and measure up for a stone staircase in a new shopping centre in Nottingham.

The water is frozen again, and we’ve lit a fire under our water butt to give us some emergency supply. Just got to hope we don’t get any bursts anywhere! The ducks are being very funny this morning as they’re skidding about on the frozen pond opposite the stone yard!

Our cycling obsessed stone mason, road to work this morning along the local canal, and says it was the best cycling day so far this year. Lovely sunrise over the woods, and a very frosty but wind-free journey. It takes him about half an hour, or ten mins in the car, but he hates using his car, and his mood is noticeably better when he’s come on his bike!

We’re still all working out in the sunshine, but it’s still only 1 degree above zero. The sheep are steaming and pressed up against the fence, but look very happy to have the sun on their backs.

We’ve just unloaded a consignment of stone. Some lovely limestone, and a bit of sandstone for a client’s repair job. Although the construction industry is still generally quiet, there is plenty of activity in the specialist sector, and it’s more the bad weather that hampers progress at this time than the economy.

We’ve just made a lovely stone fireplace for a little village house in the Cotswolds. We were supply only as the customer said there was a retired mason in the village who they wanted to install it. He didn’t make anything any more, as he hadn’t got the space, but he still likes to do a bit of stone work, so that he doesn’t forget how to! The village is just near Cirencester, and is one of those that is largely populated by people with a Chelsea accent, or at least it is at the weekends, whereas it is nice and quiet (deserted even) during the week! You can quite often see the likes of Kate Moss, or similar wandering about.

It’s very frosty here this morning, but a stunning clear blue, cloudless sky, so it’s lovely to be working outside in the sunshine. It still says minus 3 on my car thermometer, but it’s amazing how the sun on your face makes it seem so much warmer. Breakfast news this morning says it is minus 36 in parts of Serbia and Russia, and that homeless people are freezing to death, and there’s tons of snow too. Sounds terrible, and makes us realise how lucky we are in this country.

The chickens look very happy this morning. They’re all sitting on one of our big stone blocks, fluffing up their feathers in the sunshine. There are a couple of the regulars missing, and the farmer says he thinks the fox had them early this morning. Maybe that’s why the rest are sitting up high on that stone block, in the vain hope the fox won’t get them up there, but he’s wiley, and can easily outsmart a dozy chicken!

The pond is frozen, so the ducks are looking a bit miserable, but I’m going to break the ice for them in a minute.

One of our masons is writing a book! He’s kept it very quiet, but he’s been asking me about publishing recently, and it transpires he’s nearly finished his novel. It does sound very good, but I suppose, that’s no guarantee of publishing success?  He won’t let anyone see it (read it) yet, as he reckons he has a few more weeks to finish it, and make a few amendments. He was born in what was East Germany in the early seventies, and his book is a dramatised version of his life and travels from childhood to when he came over the west (after the wall came down) and worked his way across Europe, (stone masonry the whole way) and ended up here, living in England and married to his sweetheart. When he first came to work for us, we used to get him to tell us some of his stories about his travels and experiences, and they were always rivetting, so I expect his book could be similarly so. I hope so, although he seems very relaxed about it, and clearly isn’t expecting it to make him the next mega author, but you never know!

It’s very cold here this morning: Not as frosty, but there is an icy breeze, and we’re all wrapped up like eskimos. We’ve got a big stone fireplace to start today. It’s for an extension to a big old hall in the Derbyshire Dales, and we’ve copied some very old drawings that the owner is sure are of the fireplace that was there originally. It’s very heavy in section, but nice and plain, and will have a proper big open fire with big iron fire dogs, and no basket, just let the ash pile up on the hearth, in the traditional way. Logs then burn really well when they’re on a big  bed of hot ash, and it also looks fantastic.   The house should be finished by the end of the summer, and we’ll see if we can then get some pictures of the fireplace with a roaring fire going in it!

I went a lovely walk in the frost on Sunday morning. Across the fields from Melbourne Hall (Derbyshire) to a little village called Wilson (no sign of Tom Hanks on a raft though)  Melbourne hall is a beautiful house with a lovely lake called Melbourne Pool. Lots of walkers were out yesterday, and dogs; and ducks, and children everywhere. The pool is semi man made (or may be totally man-made for all I know). It has a lovely low stone wall along the end near the hall, and the stone and all the cottages are all built in beautiful Derbyshire stone. The Hall has had some roof repairs in the last near, but now most of the scaffold has gone, and it all looks lovely again. When we got to the pub, we had a couple of quick drinks then set off for our lunch.

It’s very cold this morning, but clear and sunny so we’re all working out in the stone yard, and we’re just about to load a lorry with some stone mullions, and a couple of door surrounds. It’s going off to Inverness, and will be installed by the end of the week. We have a couple of masons working up there.

The office is very chilly this morning. I think the storage heater is broken. The farm cat however has crept in here for a warm, as it’s not as cold as outside, and he/she is currently sitting on the mantle of our display fireplace looking very aloof!

So is it a good idea or not?  As ever with the UK government (of whatever party) they cock up everything, and so did their knee jerk halving of the FIT payments, and then are taken to court by the industry and end up having to go back on their decision, until March the 3rd at least!  God knows what the court costs were, but hey ho, it’s just taxpayers’ so who cares?  (certainly no one in Government as they already have their noses deep in the trough!)

Anyway, at the initial level of FIT of 43p per unit generated, does actually represent a very good return on investment, and so at this time, I think it probably is a good deal, although one can hardly trust the government these days, so they’ll prob go back on the deal again before long.

We’re all in the stone yard today, but it’s a bit cold and blowy and so we’re keeping busy to keep warm. We’ve palleted up a massive stone staircase this morning, it took about 10 pallets as it is very big and heavy, and due to it’s complex shape, some pallets only had one section on them. It will fill the whole lorry that is coming for it in the morning, but we told them to expect that anyway, and that they’d need a good forklift at the other end!

We’ve had some lovely limestone samples from a new quarry today: Lovely open grain and very nice creamy colour, Perfect for our stone fireplaces, and we’ve ordered some to make a few samples. I hope it arrives soon as I’m excited to see some.

it’s such a hard thing to do. We’ve made some big  stone archways for a house in Leicestershire, and the owner has a wooden door frame in each one. So that they look their best, and don’t ruin the overall appearance, he wants to paint the wooden frames the same colour as the stone. However, after many visits to a Dulux paint mixing centre, and about 20 sample tins, he still can’t get the colour right!  It’s driving him mad, but I know how he feels because I’ve had similar problems in the past. Those little swatches just never look the same as a large area of the same colour. I just don’t get it.

All very busy here at the stone yard. We’ve despatched a big stone staircase this morning, and by now it should be on the ferry to France. We’ve had a big load of stone blocks delivered for a job in Yorkshire. The yard is now very full, and the farmer was looking a bit concerned that we were going to completely surround him with a wall of stone blocks!  It’s warmer today too, so no hardship to be working outside.

Some of our masons have been doing a bit of recreational stone carving. Not just our standard moulded stuff, but a bit of the Michaelangelo variety (well sort of)  They just got some of the bits of old stone lying at the back of the yard, and have been carving various comical things. There are a few goblins and gargoyles, and some exotic looking animals and dragon-like thingys. The talent of these guys never ceases to amaze me, and some of this stuff is very good, and I’d imagine very desirable.  As with most artistic types, they don’t see why I’m so impressed and can’t see what all the fuss is about, but I just wish I’d got a hundredth of their talent!

It’s been a wet day, but we’ve done a lot… cleared all the stone yard up, and done a lot of re-organisation. The lad on the forklift does look a bit damp now though. We’d be knocking off and going home, but we’ve got a customer coming with some drawings about 4.00, so we’ve got to wait for him to appear and I hope he’s not late.