Page 33 of A French Country Escape
‘I’ll need to see the orangery,’ Sasha said. ‘To get an idea of size and what plants are in there.’
‘No time like the present,’ Penny said, jumping up. ‘Come on, it’s this way. Won’t be long, Mum.’
Sasha sighed as she saw the orangery for the first time. ‘What a beautiful space. I love those arched windows with the French doors beneath. They need some floaty muslin curtains. We could do with a couple of taller, bushier plants; a big decorative bamboo would look good in the corner against the wall, and another bigger lemon or orange tree.’
‘Freddie did warn Dad the orangery would take time to re-establish, but time is something we haven’t got before this wedding,’ Penny said ruefully.
Sasha walked over to the back wall. ‘A fresh coat of white paint would be good. How do you feel about creating an optical illusion? Atrompe l’œilrather than a simple mural the length of the wall would look wonderful, I think. I could do threetrompe l’œilshere – three windows spaced to face the real ones, tropical birds and flowers maybe… No, I think swallows would be better, and either hydrangeas or camellias, they seem to be everywhere in Brittany. Maybe a horse, too, as they are part of the château’s history.’ She tried to rein in her mounting excitement at the thought of painting three scenes in such a wonderful space.
‘We’ll need to find a few second-hand things and shabby-chic them for decoration. Things like mirrors and birdcages with candles. What about overhead lighting? Have you got a spare chandelier or two anywhere? There are two ceiling sockets. They would look brilliant in here at night.’ Sasha could feel herself almost babbling with enthusiasm and turned to look at Penny. ‘What d’you think?’
‘I’ll ask Freddie to paint the back wall and then you can have a free hand with your idea oftrompe l’œils, they sound brilliant. As do all the rest of your ideas. You think you can do all that in a fortnight? – it’s a lot.’ Penny gave her a worried look.
Sasha nodded confidently. ‘Doing threetrompe l’œilsshould make it easier than spreading a big one the whole length of the wall.’
‘Let’s get back and tell Mum it’s all systems go on the orangery,’ Penny said. ‘We will of course pay you.’
‘We’ll talk about that later – you might not like what I do,’ Sasha said. She hated the thought of charging Ingrid anything, but on the other hand she couldn’t afford to work for nothing either. Maybe she’d just charge for the materials and add a nominal sum. She’d worry about it when it was all done.
Peter and Alice had joined Ingrid in the kitchen when Penny and Sasha walked back in.
‘I’d better get off,’ Sasha said. ‘Lots to think about and puppies to sort.’
‘See you in the village tonight? Eight o’clock? Sasha? Penny?’ Alice said.
‘I don’t suppose I’ll get much chance to socialise for the next couple of weeks,’ Penny said. ‘So yes, I’ll see you there.’
‘Walk down together?’ Sasha said. ‘Look forward to it. Bye for now, everyone.’
‘Before I forget, we’ve decided on 14 July for the fete,’ Peter said. ‘Seems like a good day to have a party.’
25
Back at the cottage, Sasha, excited at the thought of painting such a large commission but anxious at the same time, opened her sketchbook. It was a big project, the biggest she’d ever undertaken, and whilst she was confident she could do it, she knew it would take meticulous attention to detail. She’d have to measure everything out precisely on the wall, to make sure it was in proportion with the front windows of the orangery that she was reflecting in the optical illusion. The middletrompe l’œilwould be thepièce de résistance, unique and special, she decided, whilst the ones on either side would be simpler open views of the château grounds.
Sasha lost herself in sketching out possibletrompe l’œilscenes and the kitchen table was covered with discarded sheets of paper when Freddie returned at lunchtime.
‘Bread and cheese for lunch?’ Sasha said, closing the sketchbook and pulling all the loose sheets towards her. ‘I’ve lost all sense of time, sorry. You’ll never guess what happened this morning. Ingrid and Penny have asked me to dotrompe l’œilson the orangery wall in time for this wedding reception they’vegot booked. I’m so excited, even if I am shaking like a leaf at the thought.’
‘Brilliant news,’ Freddie said, walking over to the sink and washing his hands.
‘I’m also going to be helping on the wedding day itself.’ Placing the cheese and baguettes on the table, she glanced at Freddie. ‘You okay?’
Freddie nodded. ‘Yes. Just tired. Getting the fountains to work has been… let’s say… interesting. This afternoon, I’m going to do some twenty-first century plumbing and get your new shower in.’
‘I didn’t think the day could get any better, but you saying that, it just did,’ Sasha said. ‘I can’t believe we’ve been here for less than two months. Our old life in England almost seems like a dream that happened to different people.’
Lucas and Jean-Paul were already in the bar when Penny and Sasha walked down to the village that evening.
‘Where’s Alice?’ Penny asked, looking around.
‘She arrive late,’ Lucas answered, moving forward to greet them both with cheek kisses.
Jean-Paul, to Sasha’s surprise, followed suit and she murmured a quiet ‘Bonjour’ as his lips brushed her cheek.
‘We have been ask to keep you company until Alice arrive,’ Lucas said. ‘Now, what you want to drink?’
‘A glass of the local Muscadet for me,’ Penny said. ‘Thanks.’
