Back from Black - Fabulous Beam Restoration

If you're a regular reader, you might remember that nearly a year ago we moved into a 

converted old barn and dairy.

One of the things we loved were the exposed beams in every room. 

What we didn't love was the treacly brown stain that 

had been applied to them...

This made them very oppressive and hid a lot of their characteristic features...

As you can see, this didn't bother some members of staff (Raffy the cat) but it really kept niggling at me. Originally, beams weren't dark (unless they got sooty), they were limed to keep away parasites so they were actually quite pale. But sandblasting or stripping them was out of the question because of the mess and time.... and then (cue angelic chorus) I found an advert for Renaissance Beams, a company who take any colour beam and restore it to its former glory...

In just two days the lovely Penny and her husband Ian (who were both delightful) came to us and returned every beam in the house to a beautiful light oak colour (I asked them to match the 

colour to a C17th French chest I own). 

Suddenly all the grain, wormholes and carpenters marks sprang back into life and 

every room looked lighter.

I knew I'd got it right when a friend saw them and immediately said  "they look like C16th beams!"

I'm afraid my photos don't do justice to the finished article, being taken in artificial light etc 

but I think you can see the difference...

So, a massive thank you to Renaissance Beams for achieving this wonderful transformation! If you want help with your beams you can contact Penny and Ian via www.renaissance-beams.co.uk where you will also find some fabulous 'before and after' shots of previous projects.