Back after a break, more videos coming soon! Planning to switch between excavation and then rebuild videos. On a related note, I am considering doing landscaping work/projects for others, so if you or someone you know lives in southern part of UK and would be interested in a similar build in your own garden (from scratch, I am assuming you don't have ruins), then you can email me: afontirs@gmail.com. Until next time🙂
Are you going to finish excavating around the outside perimeter ??? The work you have done so far is absolutely beautiful. I am jealous ... I would love a retirement passion project like this one. What an amazing find. I'm seeing pergolas, archways, fruit trees and landscape fountains .... The only limitation is your imagination at this point.
I was wondering how you were doing just yesterday, I even checked to see if you had posted a video and then this popped up this morning. It looks terrific, your hard work is certainly on show.
@@jamesbell8861 I will excavate around the perimeter on the downhill side (the side with the doorway) but not the uphill side I think. and yes I am planning an archway build, but I'm doing a video to talk about my vision for the place.
I love your new outdoor kitchen! You did a beautiful job with the stone work. What a wonderful way to honor the past and you get a barbecue space with a view! Thank you so much for sharing the process.
Amazing! When you think of the original home, the people who lived and cooked there, and the years it sat hidden under the ground, it's incredible how it's come full circle to a useful space again!
THIS is a prime example of the beauty of European architecture, structures made generations ago and finding repurpose meaning that makes it timeless. Structures like this should be prided more, it’s less wasteful, very economical, there’s a historical connection, and it’s maintaining function while being more aesthetically pleasing than 90% of modern structures these days. Beautiful work! Hopefully spring and summer comes soon enough to enjoy this outdoor kitchen.
Think about it for just a minute. Someone used to live there, a long time ago. They did their cooking there and put their blood, sweat and tears into making it. And just when it seemed like time and the Earth itself was going to erase it, someone has come along to restore it--and that memory of those who were there before. It's incredible.
Wow! Well done. You are very talented and it's hard to fathom that you were a novice stone cutter. I also admire the amount of research you've done to bring your project to this stage of completion. Looking forward to seeing videos of the next phases of your journey to rescue history and make the house and kitchen a place meaning and warmth once again. One day I hope to see you bake sourdough bread in your beautiful oven. It's not just a pizza oven. Bakers from Pompeii would recognize the function of your oven immediately. Thanks for the video.
Thank you. I became a lot better at the stonework as I went on, plenty of time to practice! It will definitely get used for cooking different things, not just pizza. Pizza is just the starting point.
Fantastic!!!!! You should be so proud of what you accomplished! It's beautiful! And you preserved a bit of history that was almost forgotten. Thank you for sharing!
You must be SO SO proud of what you have made of this old home. The beehive bread ovens set into the side of an Inglenook are a standard feature of the older farm houses of the north, Meirionydd, Dwyfor I know for sure. In the early 1970s Builders Merchants of Pwllheli - Huws Gray, still had stocks of the wedge shaped firebricks for relining these (once upon a time ) essential features of a well designed house. In some villages there were communal ovens that cottagers could use. There used to be a complete one (rusted but intact) at Nant Gwytheryn the Welsh Language School near Chwilog and Trefor on the Lleyn Peninsular. So much history. Thanks to you another piece of it is given a new life. Many happy barbecues to you over coming years.
Thanks for the info. I am starting to think that this building may have been a communal kitchen/utility space for a row of cottages and they shared this one. as there were 3-4 other buildings in the row, described as cottages on the map.
@@afontirs Welcome. Again congratulations ! We bought a 3 in 1 up in Ardudwy in the 1970s. It was attached to a newer more substantial house at one end. Formerly road workers cottages from the turnpike days (1830s) The 'free' end dwelling had all 3 privvies behind her kitchen. with a narrow crack of an access passage serving the 3 units. A small patch c. 10 feet square attached that that end cottage was originally some sort of squat utility area , backfilled to wall plate from the field above. I dug it out. Remains of leather buckets with zinc bindings, fire residues aplenty and a barrow load of (mostly ) limpet and tellin shells . This property was a clear mile uphill from the beach. I was puzzled until an ancient quarryman passing by told me that around 1920 there was a tremendous strike of slate workers which brought on a lockout by the quarry owners. Starvation followed. Children were sent to the shore for shellfish. These were boiled often in laundry 'coppers' and used as food by families. The shells were then burned and crushed to be fed to poultry as chicken-grit (makes egg shells) Similarly small springs and ground water seeps were harvested and used as a communal water supply. At our place the water was also collected (for three houses) in a redundant cast iron 'copper'. Citizen archaeology has much interest. Ardudwy has a vast store of very ancient built environment which 'experts' like the National Trust are only beginning to realise. It is a heartland of Welsh language so perhaps there has been reluctance to share with a less than popular incomer. There used to be a learned society for "Study of Welsh Vernacular Architecture" Also recommended reading is Oxford Agrarian History of England and Wales Vol. 5 With a masterly section on old Welsh farmhouses. This would fascinate you. Unfortunately now wildly expensive on second hand book market but very likely on shelf at your county library. NLW at Aberystwyth will certainly give reader access to you. Thanks for a marvellous series. Hugely popular !! and deservedly so.
@@afontirsAs a PS. Try the brief Wikipedia entry for Rural Historian Joan Thirsk. A most interesting academic. She was editor of the Cambridge series , Agrarian History. Much is there 😊
It turned out so beautiful! I'm so glad you found a good way to use the ruins, and to breathe new life into the space. You're going to have so much fun when the weather warms up again, and you can start cooking in the new kitchen.
If I had to make an educated guess, they have a victorian era range, meaning they were alive and using this building between 1800-1920s most likely. The average home back then also die not typically have an oven and a range combination, unless this building was much more larger, a small building like this was most likely used for cooking and serving food, so potentially business owners.
I’ve been watching this project and am always happy when a new video pops up. I was wondering what you would end up doing with this area when you finished digging it out and it looks like you’ve come up with an excellent plan. It’s a great way to honor the history of the old kitchen and make it useful again. Great idea!
Wow! I love that you didn't ignore it as an original work of art that 'shan't be messed with' and used it again, refreshing it as I wish more folks would do, to be used.
watched this from the first, from the look of the land we are almost neighbours, love the whole idea of an outdoor kitchen, you are a very hard worker and have a great sense of adventure and imagination, keep up the awesome work, well done.
I can only imagine the satisfaction you received from doing this project. It sure makes me happy watching you do it, and a bit jealous. Well done Mate!
I too have been watching your progress with this project,so cool what you have done so far.great that something lost to time has been brought back to life.well done mate.
We talk of healing generational trauma, to be able to dig up the bare bones of our ancestors dwellings and to discover a place for it in modern times, is heartening and so hopeful. Kudos and good luck.
My cottage in Gloucestershire has both the iron range and bread oven in place. When I bought and renovated the house I was careful to restore both to working order after many years hidden behind fibre board walls. It is always a joy to get the fires lit and use them as they were designed. You did a great job of reusing the materials to make something special.
One warning mate; you may want to cover that flue knob with some petroleum jelly over the winter. It's cheap, you can get it at the chemist, and it'll give you a good barrier so it doesn't rust up before you get to use it. Maybe a bit of mesh over the chimney too so the squirrels don't get in.
Easily got me and my wife's thumbs up. You put a lot of planning, time, and hard work. Its turning out very nice and we love your country side view of the valley
Uncanny. I'd just recently been wondering how you were getting on and then this video popped up. Love what you have done with the area. Looking forward to more videos.
I love how this has progressed from "huh there's some stone here in my garden" to full on functional outdoor kitchen. And I can't help to think that making a few corner pillars and a roof on the thing would be a great progression. And maybe some big window panes to keep the view but keep it useful for longer in the season. Then it's time to start adding rooms until you have the hill covered :D
Hello from Montreal Afon. You did a really nice job here. Well Done. A nice al fresco Pizza Bakery/BBQ area, it will be beautiful when it warms back up outside.
I found your channel when you had first begun digging out the old foundation. What a difference time and hard work makes! Looking forward to seeing further projects to bring the old place back to life!
I'd love to see a very minimal outline of the old house. You could make a structure of steel tubing. It would be nice place to have outdoor string lighting or let vines grow. It would be a great homage for the history of the house
I remember when you starting exploratory digging and finding the floor and walls, but then I stopped following you. Then, I just stumble on this. Wonderful!
Back after a break, more videos coming soon! Planning to switch between excavation and then rebuild videos.
On a related note, I am considering doing landscaping work/projects for others, so if you or someone you know lives in southern part of UK and would be interested in a similar build in your own garden (from scratch, I am assuming you don't have ruins), then you can email me: afontirs@gmail.com. Until next time🙂
Are you going to finish excavating around the outside perimeter ??? The work you have done so far is absolutely beautiful. I am jealous ... I would love a retirement passion project like this one. What an amazing find. I'm seeing pergolas, archways, fruit trees and landscape fountains .... The only limitation is your imagination at this point.
I was wondering how you were doing just yesterday, I even checked to see if you had posted a video and then this popped up this morning. It looks terrific, your hard work is certainly on show.
I love this! You could have easily made this into 12 videos. So much work involved! Thank you for sharing!
❤ Very cool video I liked commented and shared. I look forward to more.
@@jamesbell8861 I will excavate around the perimeter on the downhill side (the side with the doorway) but not the uphill side I think. and yes I am planning an archway build, but I'm doing a video to talk about my vision for the place.
I love your new outdoor kitchen! You did a beautiful job with the stone work. What a wonderful way to honor the past and you get a barbecue space with a view! Thank you so much for sharing the process.
Thank you, glad you liked it.
@@afontirs great work, looking forward to seeing more progress!
Amazing! When you think of the original home, the people who lived and cooked there, and the years it sat hidden under the ground, it's incredible how it's come full circle to a useful space again!
THIS is a prime example of the beauty of European architecture, structures made generations ago and finding repurpose meaning that makes it timeless. Structures like this should be prided more, it’s less wasteful, very economical, there’s a historical connection, and it’s maintaining function while being more aesthetically pleasing than 90% of modern structures these days.
Beautiful work! Hopefully spring and summer comes soon enough to enjoy this outdoor kitchen.
👍
Think about it for just a minute.
Someone used to live there, a long time ago. They did their cooking there and put their blood, sweat and tears into making it. And just when it seemed like time and the Earth itself was going to erase it, someone has come along to restore it--and that memory of those who were there before.
It's incredible.
I felt this too, there was once a time when that structure was literally the entire livelihood of a small family.
Imagine if that old kitchen could talk and tell you its stories. Now its got a second life and more memories to make.
Eg. Remember when they burnt the toast😂😂😂😂🤡
That would be scary 😂
Wow! Well done. You are very talented and it's hard to fathom that you were a novice stone cutter. I also admire the amount of research you've done to bring your project to this stage of completion. Looking forward to seeing videos of the next phases of your journey to rescue history and make the house and kitchen a place meaning and warmth once again. One day I hope to see you bake sourdough bread in your beautiful oven. It's not just a pizza oven. Bakers from Pompeii would recognize the function of your oven immediately. Thanks for the video.
Thank you. I became a lot better at the stonework as I went on, plenty of time to practice! It will definitely get used for cooking different things, not just pizza. Pizza is just the starting point.
Very impressive 👍. Will you add a seating area?
I love what you've done here. You have brought something back to life with skill and sympathy for the old. Very well done indeed.
It's really cool you did this Afon. Excited to see whats next!
It's obvious what's next.... 🍕 Pizza 🤣
Fantastic!!!!! You should be so proud of what you accomplished! It's beautiful! And you preserved a bit of history that was almost forgotten. Thank you for sharing!
You must be SO SO proud of what you have made of this old home.
The beehive bread ovens set into the side of an Inglenook are a standard feature of the older farm houses of the north, Meirionydd, Dwyfor I know for sure. In the early 1970s Builders Merchants of Pwllheli - Huws Gray, still had stocks of the wedge shaped firebricks for relining these (once upon a time ) essential features of a well designed house. In some villages there were communal ovens that cottagers could use. There used to be a complete one (rusted but intact) at Nant Gwytheryn the Welsh Language School near Chwilog and Trefor on the Lleyn Peninsular.
So much history. Thanks to you another piece of it is given a new life. Many happy barbecues to you over coming years.
Thanks for the info. I am starting to think that this building may have been a communal kitchen/utility space for a row of cottages and they shared this one. as there were 3-4 other buildings in the row, described as cottages on the map.
@@afontirs Welcome. Again congratulations !
We bought a 3 in 1 up in Ardudwy in the 1970s. It was attached to a newer more substantial house at one end. Formerly road workers cottages from the turnpike days (1830s) The 'free' end dwelling had all 3 privvies behind her kitchen. with a narrow crack of an access passage serving the 3 units. A small patch c. 10 feet square attached that that end cottage was originally some sort of squat utility area , backfilled to wall plate from the field above. I dug it out. Remains of leather buckets with zinc bindings, fire residues aplenty and a barrow load of (mostly ) limpet and tellin shells . This property was a clear mile uphill from the beach.
I was puzzled until an ancient quarryman passing by told me that around 1920 there was a tremendous strike of slate workers which brought on a lockout by the quarry owners. Starvation followed. Children were sent to the shore for shellfish. These were boiled often in laundry 'coppers' and used as food by families. The shells were then burned and crushed to be fed to poultry as chicken-grit (makes egg shells)
Similarly small springs and ground water seeps were harvested and used as a communal water supply. At our place the water was also collected (for three houses) in a redundant cast iron 'copper'.
Citizen archaeology has much interest. Ardudwy has a vast store of very ancient built environment which 'experts' like the National Trust are only beginning to realise. It is a heartland of Welsh language so perhaps there has been reluctance to share with a less than popular incomer.
There used to be a learned society for "Study of Welsh Vernacular Architecture"
Also recommended reading is Oxford Agrarian History of England and Wales Vol. 5 With a masterly section on old Welsh farmhouses. This would fascinate you. Unfortunately now wildly expensive on second hand book market but very likely on shelf at your county library. NLW at Aberystwyth will certainly give reader access to you.
Thanks for a marvellous series. Hugely popular !! and deservedly so.
@@afontirsAs a PS. Try the brief Wikipedia entry for Rural Historian Joan Thirsk. A most interesting academic. She was editor of the Cambridge series , Agrarian History. Much is there 😊
It look awesome 👌
Nice to see someone who tries to preserve and ancient building rather then doze it
It turned out so beautiful! I'm so glad you found a good way to use the ruins, and to breathe new life into the space. You're going to have so much fun when the weather warms up again, and you can start cooking in the new kitchen.
really nice to see you back i wondered what had happened to you glad you still keeping up wit it
I'll say it again, Afon you are a treasure. This is amazing! 😊
Woo hoo, barbie at Afon's!
That is fantastic! It's wonderful seeing how much original history is left in place while still making it useful today
👍
Impressive. Very well done, Sir.
What a wonderful transformation 😍 you did magnificent
Excellent job mate! Much love from germany!
It's looking so nice now, can't wait for the other wall to be exposed.
Good job, well done. From a retired mason/builder.
Thanks, I appreciate it.
Afon, you did a great job; it was well worth the wait! I’m already looking forward to what you’re going to do in the Spring. Happy Holidays!
I like the idea that its possible that in the area you live there are living relatives of the ppl who used to live there.
Beautiful job! You are honoring the history of this site!
I loved the tansformation!! I can't wait to see more.
Nice bro, it looks beautiful. Can't wait to see you improve it more and show us some cooking.
Absolutely beautiful, cant help but imagine the people who once lived there too.
If I had to make an educated guess, they have a victorian era range, meaning they were alive and using this building between 1800-1920s most likely. The average home back then also die not typically have an oven and a range combination, unless this building was much more larger, a small building like this was most likely used for cooking and serving food, so potentially business owners.
Very nice! I'd say a BBQ on a cold day is very nice. And when it's snowing out it's a huge treat :-)
I’ve been watching this project and am always happy when a new video pops up. I was wondering what you would end up doing with this area when you finished digging it out and it looks like you’ve come up with an excellent plan. It’s a great way to honor the history of the old kitchen and make it useful again. Great idea!
👍
I applaud you for taking on this project. As I grow older I see history being erased or covered up. Thank you for allowing it to remain.
How fun! I wish I had some old foundations to dig out too!
although id have liked to see the little stone cottage rebuilt, this is the next best thing and quite a cool little bbq area
Absolutely AWESOME work Afon, what an amazing transformation, from a ruin to a beautiful outdoor barbecue area 😎👍👍
Excellent idea to repurpose for an outdoor kitchen guaranteed a solid foundation! 🩵😊
Great job! You could have a party to celebrate what you've done so. Make hamburger buns in the new oven and hamburgers on the grill. 😊
I love that you did this and that you kept the original front metal to the oven
This is amazing work. Well done.
Wow! I love that you didn't ignore it as an original work of art that 'shan't be messed with' and used it again, refreshing it as I wish more folks would do, to be used.
Nicely done! Real traditional stone work!
watched this from the first, from the look of the land we are almost neighbours, love the whole idea of an outdoor kitchen, you are a very hard worker and have a great sense of adventure and imagination, keep up the awesome work, well done.
Thanks very much. 😊
Good job, dude! 😍
I can only imagine the satisfaction you received from doing this project. It sure makes me happy watching you do it, and a bit jealous. Well done Mate!
Buried treasure. How magical for you my friend.
wow that looks awesome, keep us updated, and share your thoughts after using it for a while
Really looks good!
This has been an amazing journey and adventure! Does me old heart good to see the old made new.. Cheers from the high desert 🏜
Great job, been waiting for a new video . Love the history and the new start.
I too have been watching your progress with this project,so cool what you have done so far.great that something lost to time has been brought back to life.well done mate.
amazing, keep restoring! :D
We talk of healing generational trauma, to be able to dig up the bare bones of our ancestors dwellings and to discover a place for it in modern times, is heartening and so hopeful. Kudos and good luck.
Generational trauma?? Bro it's not that deep, nobody traumatised by living next 200 year Old societies.
Hurrah! another video, and a very nice outdoor kitchen
A beautiful job. I love watching such positive and creative videos.
👍
Well done. I like it.
My cottage in Gloucestershire has both the iron range and bread oven in place. When I bought and renovated the house I was careful to restore both to working order after many years hidden behind fibre board walls. It is always a joy to get the fires lit and use them as they were designed.
You did a great job of reusing the materials to make something special.
One warning mate; you may want to cover that flue knob with some petroleum jelly over the winter. It's cheap, you can get it at the chemist, and it'll give you a good barrier so it doesn't rust up before you get to use it. Maybe a bit of mesh over the chimney too so the squirrels don't get in.
Good idea for the jelly. I'm getting a thick waterproof cover for the oven so that will stop the squirrels.
I'm so happy you were the one to find this. Most people wouldn't have the fortitude to take on such a project. You did such a wonderful job.
Awesome, breathtaking. You did a beautifull work.
Easily got me and my wife's thumbs up. You put a lot of planning, time, and hard work. Its turning out very nice and we love your country side view of the valley
Fantastic job! Thank you for posting.
Really beautiful! I’ve enjoyed watching the whole process, so far!
Uncanny. I'd just recently been wondering how you were getting on and then this video popped up. Love what you have done with the area. Looking forward to more videos.
You can also use your pizza oven to do regular baking things. :) Bread and beans and everything our ancestors would have used it for!
Thats a lot of work, but so unique.
I love how this has progressed from "huh there's some stone here in my garden" to full on functional outdoor kitchen. And I can't help to think that making a few corner pillars and a roof on the thing would be a great progression. And maybe some big window panes to keep the view but keep it useful for longer in the season. Then it's time to start adding rooms until you have the hill covered :D
OMG! What a beautiful outcome! Stone-novice no more! 😄😄😄
Totally amazing (and hard) work - thank you for sharing
That is so cool!
I've been waiting and checking back from time to time for this one! You should be proper chuffed! WONDERFUL JOB!! Looking forward to more videos.
Oh what a great outcome. Even my son says that you did great. Love watching you finding this and then making it into this.
This project is awesome man! Inspires me to leave the big city and start an actual life ❤
Great job, well done!
What a great discovery. Just beautiful. Good job at restoration
Excellent job fella. P.s. it's never to cold for a BBQ. You just might need to eat it indoors 😂
That's so cool! You did a great job creating an outdoor kitchen whilst preserving the history of the old cottage 😊💚
Oh, I’ve got visions of fresh herbs growing in the nearby gardens and you out there with your apron entertaining your lovely family
Wow! Cheers to a job well done! It’s a beautiful space. I wonder what the original occupants would as about it. I think they would love it.
I would like to think so too! thanks
Well done,!❤
Well done, great to see an old building brought back to life. I hope you get lots of enjoyment out of it, I know I would!
Absolutely love the repurpose of the old house.excited to see future vids.
👍
Great job, brilliant use of the existing structure! 👌🏻
Wow! Amazing! Good job! 😁👍
You did such a fantastic job, I'm so glad there are others who love to fix up old things they find rather than trash them!!
Hello from Montreal Afon. You did a really nice job here. Well Done. A nice al fresco Pizza Bakery/BBQ area, it will be beautiful when it warms back up outside.
I found your channel when you had first begun digging out the old foundation. What a difference time and hard work makes! Looking forward to seeing further projects to bring the old place back to life!
Hard, diligent work. Pay-off is priceless.
I'd love to see a very minimal outline of the old house.
You could make a structure of steel tubing. It would be nice place to have outdoor string lighting or let vines grow.
It would be a great homage for the history of the house
Beautiful.
It's nice to see these ruins no longer ruined.
Wow! What a cool project. That was clearly a TON of work.
Brilliant! I’m looking forward to seeing what you do next. Thanks for letting us follow your progress.
Great work! I can envision an old cast iron dining set in the middle, what a great place to go to cook and relax with a beautiful valley view.
Looking good brother. Very tasteful and a great use for this ruin. It looks the buisness.
Thanks!
Beautiful !!!!!
Beautiful reuse of the space! Well done!
I remember when you starting exploratory digging and finding the floor and walls, but then I stopped following you. Then, I just stumble on this. Wonderful!
That's inspiring, well done - looks fab!
Haven't been here in a while so what a surprise it was to see how nice the renovation was. Outstanding work and attention to detail
well done fella its looking good cant wait to see what you do next 👍
Fantastic job, you will no doubt be enjoying this outdoor kitchen for decades to come.