Restoring an old French farmhouse is never quick, cheap, or predictable, and this project proves it. After three years of slow, hands-on renovation, we’re finally giving our rural stone house the care it deserves using traditional lime mortar. The building had suffered decades of neglect, but now the walls can breathe again, and the house is slowly coming back to life.
This video follows the real process of renovating on a tight budget in France, and it shows the mistakes, the delays, and the moments of genuine satisfaction. If you’re thinking about buying a rural property in France, or already tackling an old stone house, this renovation story will feel very familiar.
Removing Cement to Let the Walls Breathe
The first major step involved removing old, crumbling cement render, and that alone transformed the house. Cement traps moisture, but lime mortar allows stone walls to breathe, which is essential for traditional French buildings. Once the cement came off, the granite could finally dry out, and that immediately improved the look and feel of the house.
Working with lime mortar takes patience, so timing matters because heatwaves, storms, and humidity all affect the finish. Some days feel productive, but others stall completely due to weather or missing tools. Renovating in rural France often means adapting on the fly, and learning to accept that preparation can take as long as the work itself.
Working with Lime Mortar on a Small Budget
Using traditional lime mortar sounds romantic, but the reality involves shortages, substitutions, and a lot of manual labour. The mix we used proved too coarse for a grouting gun, so we worked everything in by hand with trowels. That slowed the job, but it gave better control and a deeper fill in the cracks.
Budget renovation means using what you have, and sometimes that means scraping mortar off scaffold boards and reusing it elsewhere. Lime is forgiving, but it still demands care because poor timing or rushed work can cause cracking later. Working slowly saves money, and it avoids costly repairs down the line.
Deep Cracks, Wildlife and Unexpected Problems
Old farmhouses hide surprises, and this one came with cracks deep enough to swallow a forearm. Filling them properly mattered because insects, wasps, bees, and even bats used the walls as entry points. Sealing these gaps helps protect the house all year round, not just in summer.
Wildlife adds charm, but it also adds challenges, and discovering bats flying through the bathroom is not ideal. Renovating old homes in France means respecting nature, but also setting boundaries so the house remains liveable. Every filled hole felt like progress, even if the wall seemed to drink the mortar faster than expected.
Traditional Lime Techniques That Really Matter
Taping down, also known as brushing down, is one of the most important lime mortar techniques. Timing makes all the difference because starting too early pulls lime to the surface, but waiting too long makes the job harder. Done correctly, it flattens trowel marks, feathers the edges, and cleans the stone faces at the same time.
This stage brings the wall to life because the colours in both the lime and the stone finally appear. Weather changes affect drying, so experience grows with every wall completed. Lime work rewards patience, and mastering this step improves durability as well as appearance.
The Witch’s Window and Small Details That Count
Many rural French farmhouses feature a small round or square opening known locally as a witch’s window or fisherman’s eye. Ours needed careful lime rendering and a custom glass tile, but fitting it meant shaping stone and mortar slowly. These small architectural details add character, and they connect the house to local tradition.
Working on features like this breaks up the hard labour, but it also reminds you why old houses are worth saving. Even when progress feels slow, these moments make the effort worthwhile.
Clearing Land and Undoing Years of Neglect
Renovation doesn’t stop at the walls. Clearing ivy, scrap metal, and overgrown hedges revealed dry stone walls and long-buried features. Years of neglect hid wild beauty, and once cleared, wildflowers quickly returned.
Removing old fencing felt symbolic because the house finally stopped looking like a prison yard. Small wins like this restore motivation, especially when budgets stay tight and work never seems to end.
Life Lessons from Renovating in Rural France
Renovating a French farmhouse on a budget teaches patience, resilience, and humour. Progress rarely moves in straight lines, but each finished section builds confidence. Lime mortar, traditional methods, and slow restoration may not suit everyone, but they suit old stone houses.
If you’re dreaming of rural France, or already knee-deep in renovation dust, this project shows the reality behind the dream. The work continues, but the house finally feels alive again.
👉 Watch the full video: ▶️French Farmhouse Renovation – 3 Years of Toil & Cracks!
🧱 Video Timeline: French Farmhouse Renovation
🔨 The Reality of a Long-Term Renovation
00:00 – 3 Years of Toil & Cracks
Three years into restoring our French farmhouse, and the truth is written in the cracks. Decades of neglect, tight budgets, and slow progress set the scene for a very real rural renovation in France.
💦 Preparing Old Stone for Lime Mortar
01:53 – Prepping & wetting down the old granite wall for lime pointing
Proper preparation is essential when working with lime mortar, and wetting down granite walls helps prevent moisture loss during curing, especially in changing weather conditions.
🧱 Traditional Lime Mortaring by Hand
02:04 – Traditional lime mortaring by hand (no grouting gun in sight!)
With the mix too coarse for a grouting gun, everything is applied by hand using trowels. It’s slower, but it allows lime mortar to be forced deep into historic cracks the traditional way.
🐝 Wildlife Has Opinions Too
03:43 – Swarming wasps discover their wall is under renovation
Renovating an old farmhouse in rural France means sharing space with wildlife, and the resident wasps make their displeasure very clear during the work.
🪟 A Curious Feature from the Past
04:39 – The mysterious “witch’s window” – will it finally fit?
This small traditional opening, often called a witch’s window or fisherman’s eye, needs careful lime rendering and patience to get the fit just right.
⚪ When Lime Mortar Does Its Own Thing
06:32 – NHL 3.5 lime mortar dries whiter than expected – C’est la vie!
Natural materials behave in their own time, and lime mortar often dries lighter before settling. Experience helps, but acceptance helps more.
🛠️ A Brocante Win for Renovators
06:55 – Antique trowel treasure found at the local brocante
A lucky find at a French brocante delivers the perfect matching trowel, proving that renovation tools sometimes find you when you need them most.
🦎 Sealing the House for All Seasons
07:33 – Sealing lizard, wasp & cluster fly hideouts with mortar
Deep holes used by insects and lizards are finally sealed, improving comfort and reducing long-term maintenance in this old stone farmhouse.
🦇 When Renovation Gets Personal
08:25 – Keeping bats out of the bathroom
Some gaps lead straight indoors, and sealing them becomes essential when bats start using the bathroom as a night-time shortcut.
🪣 Strengthening Lime with Proper Timing
09:01 – Tapping back lime mortar for fewer cracks & better protection
Tapping back lime mortar at the right moment reduces cracking, improves durability, and enhances the look of stonework.
🌿 No Lime Mortar Goes to Waste
12:37 – Garden wall gets all the leftover lime mortar magic
Scraps of lime mortar are reused on the garden wall, filling deep voids and reinforcing hidden areas that still matter structurally.
🧲 Clearing Decades of Hidden Junk
13:15 – Dry stone wall… or just a scrap iron collection?
As ivy is removed, a dry stone wall reveals decades of buried metal, tools, and forgotten debris from the farm’s past.
🚧 Removing the “Prison Yard” Look
17:16 – Prison yard fence finally bites the dust!
A rusted fence that made the property feel closed-in is removed, instantly opening up the space and lifting morale.