Renovation of Our Premises

In 2022, Rustique Living secured a new premises that is part of the Harrowby Estate in rural Staffordshire. Its idyllic surroundings mixed with the character of the building made for a perfect match with our business. Despite this perfect match, it was necessary to carry out extensive renovations to this early 19th-century blacksmith's cottage - due to its lack of occupancy in recent years.

History of 'The Old Smithy'

Prior to work commencing, the building's exterior was overgrown and unkept but showed potential due to its architectural features.

The Building

Internally, much of the building's character had been concealed with whitewash. All of the walls and beams were painted, which did not help the damp that was seeping through the walls.

Internal

In order to restore a more natural look to the building, it was decided to sandblast all internal walls and beams. This was a particularly messy job that the professionals at Blast Cleaning Renovation Services carried out.

Sandblasting

The upstairs beams were also blasted back to the natural wood - revealing this structural feature's true beauty

Sandblasting

For the building to be suitable as our base - electrics was a crucial part of this restoration. Therefore, the electrical rewire was carefully thought out to work around the building's features.

This included the use of industrial lighting and metal conduits to complement the exposed brick and wooden beams.

Electrics

One of the final jobs that was part of this restoration was the laying of the flooring. The natural oak finish really completed the restoration and made our base feel homely.