Originally, the first floor had a main entrance into a reception area with an ancient stone cupboard to the left of the front door. To the right was a doorway to a living area, which was the centre of family life. There was a huge fireplace where meals were cooked, an old stone sink in the wall and a wooden staircase leading up to the second floor.

Later the original front entrance was bricked up and the reception area was divided into two bedrooms, one with a tiny bathroom. The old entrance door became a wardrobe and the stone cupboard was painted over and hidden by the dividing wall. A new front door was built which opened straight into the living area.

The terracotta ceiling and chestnut beams were painted over and the terracotta floor was painted a deep red colour to make maintenance easier. Later a second floor was laid over the terracotta floor tiles. At a certain time the staircase was enclosed in wood panelling making storage space and the stone sink was made into a small cupboard.

Restoration of the apartment meant striping out the old wiring system, rewiring and putting in a central heating system. One of the first jobs was to sandblast the beams and ceiling revealing beautiful oak and chestnut beams and terracotta ceilings. In two of the rooms, a single flower can be found embossed on the terracotta ceiling tiles as a mark of the maker of the tiles.

The floor in the bedrooms was pulled up so that the original terracotta tiles were revealed. Some of the ancient timber crossbeams had to be renewed and then the terracotta tiles were carefully replaced. An insulation layer was put down and tubes for plumbing and wiring were laid on top of this, held in place by a layer of cement. Next, terracotta tiles were laid on top bringing a wonderful glow of colour to the apartment.

The floor tiles in the living room were cleaned using acid and most of the red paint dissolved, leaving 300 year old terracotta tiles exposed to view. Some of these had to be lifted temporarily to allow the heating and wiring tubes to pass through but were then re-laid.

Sandblasting revealed that the huge fireplace is also made of pietra serena and a restoration project is underway for the winter of 2006 to bring the fireplace back to its former glory.

Camera Audrey
The wall between the tiny bathroom and bedroom was torn down, the doorway into the bedroom bricked up and a new doorway opened up to the right hand side. A new bathroom was built incorporating the original front door as the recess for the shower and the old doorway as a niche for the sink. The sandblasting revealed the stone cupboard to be made of pietra serena and is now a wardrobe in the bedroom.

Camera Gregorio
Much of the old plasterwork was chipped off and a new dividing wall built to make an ensuite bathroom in the second bedroom. All the old original doors were striped of their paint, treated and varnished giving a traditional Umbrian farmhouse look. New doors for the bathrooms were made out of age-old wood to retain the traditional feel.

The windows too were taken out, striped, treated and reworked with wax, then put back in place. Finally the shutters were restored and painted deep green as is the Umbrian way...

The kitchen had been built on at a later date, so a contemporary kitchen with traditional lines was chosen to stay in keeping with the rest of the apartment.

Eventually, the walls were replastered and painted a welcoming and cosy creamy colour.