Very sorry for your loss. Your comment about knocking down and rebuilding using old material resonated with me. I renovated a 200 year old cottage in Scotland with my father (a builder) and he said to me “son it would be much quicker if we just knock this down and build it back up using new materials but we’ll make it look old and original” I of course panicked and said “no way” but 3 months by God was he right!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi 👋 Thank you so much for watching 😊 Thank you for your kind words. It is by far the most romantic, difficult and expensive to renovate. And by far so much more efficient to start from scratch…. You have also learned that the hard way 🙈 Ciao Cath

Really fantastic work. So sorry about your loss.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Rob, very kind comment. Warmest regards, Erik

Wow, what you made of this ruin is absolutely stunning!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much Isabelle 🙏🏼 And thank you for watching Ciao Cath

Stunning! Posh is not warm and inviting. Yours are understated elegance with style and warmth. I think its a lovely reflection of you both. Genuine down to earth people.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Ohhh thank you so much Gabriella 🥰 And thank you for watching 🙏🏼 Ciao Cath

Sorry, for your loss. You both did a beautiful job!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you ❤️ Ciao E

You did a beautiful jop keeping some of the old and adding the modern look 👌🏻to it. It's beautiful. I wish I could a afford to do something like this it's gorgeous, and quiet. So peaceful ❤.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much Leane - we do our best to get the best out of everything. And hopefully also without overdoing it. Thank you so much for watching 😍 Ciao Cath

Beautiful villa, great job! Welcome to Italy!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank so much 🙏🏼 And thank you for watching. Ciao Cath

Gorgeous!!! Im obsessed w stone buildings!!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Yeah stone houses are crazy cool. And when you consider how these are made it just gets even more fascinating. It takes skills, manpower and a lot of time. The stones are really heavy as some also are pretty large. 💪 Ciao Cath

It's, absolutely beautiful.

What a sad but a wonderful story to tell, the renovation is wonderful and you must be very proud, I had the same situation my husband passed away 3 years ago now, and I was left with an old school to renovate, Pandemic hit and I decided to do the renovation myself as the builder here in Norfolk UK charge so much, now it is nearly finish maybe another 6 months to go and I can move into it, very happy to have achieve it. A big congratulation on the renovation you did and it is truly beautiful, I love Italy too and often visit. Thank you for sharing this I have now subscribed to your channel so I do not miss any more video. I used to work in Genova which is not far from you but I did not get to visit that area but may be one day I will adventure there.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much 🥰 So sorry for your loss - I am amazed by what you have achieved. You must be very proud too. Thank you for watching and subscribing. Ciao Cath

Wow sorry to hear about her passing. I'm happy she could see the home finished

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Ray ❤. And thanks for waiting. All the best Erik

It is stunning!

It would be great to see an episode about the renovation costs to achieve this look and style. Another one about the Italian bureaucracy and how long it takes to get approvals, what kind of paperwork is required, how to avoid delays, etc. would be helpful. What do they allow you to change? I've heard almost nothing can be changed without a long wait, and even then the answer is no.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi and thank you for watching and your input. That could also be interesting - we will keep it in our mind. Ciao Cath 🙏🏼

Great renovation from a wreck!! Wonderful to see a stone house restored and with such style. Love stone walls, beams and views. Would like to see more of the surrounding areas… next video?!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Anne 😊 Thank you so much for asking. We have the material but were afraid that this episode would be toooooo long. We have a plan for something in the surroundings - it’s not just a garden but several terraces on “half a mountain”. And thank you so much for watching 🤩 Ciao Cath

Beautiful home. And the stones are gorgeous and that table, nice very nice.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much 🫶🏻🙏🏼 And thank you for watching. Ciao Cath

How beautiful, the love and deep thought is apparent in the design. ❤

Renovating is always an adventure. We know! Our 12th century was an exciting challenge! Thank for sharing it's beautiful! Bravo

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Annette 😊 Yes an amazing adventure 🤩 And thank you for watching Ciao Cath

I love your style. It is simplistic, yet beautiful and comfortable, like something one can live in.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much 🤩 And thank you for watching 🙏🏼 Ciao Cath

Italy is the king of architecture.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

You are so right and thank you so much for watching. Ciao Cath

Oh very hard job to achieve such a beauty congratulations for enormous achievement,previous owners will be proud of finished projects .My hart is in pain for losing your wife ..form Canada the best for yours family,children fantastic job.Wish to be part of that dream project just to old (70)

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much. You are very kind. And thank you for watching.

You are a gorgeous couple!!! Congrats on the 2 outstanding villas!!🥂💗

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Ohhh thank you thank you thank you You are very kind 🥰 And thank you for watching Ciao Cath 🫶🏻

Benvenuti in Italia. Meravigliosa casa

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Grazie mille 🙏🏼

Questa villa e veramente straordinaria… un lavoro davvero splendido. Complimenti 🌺🌸🌺

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Grazie mille 🙏🏼 Ciao, E

I'm sorry for your loss 🙏 🌹 🕊️

Thank you so much for sharing! You did a beautiful job with this renovation / build project.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Tammy Thank you so much 🙏🏼🫶🏻 And thank you for watching. Ciao Cath

truly amazing work. thank you so much for sharing

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you Roxy 🙏🏼 And thank you so much for watching. Ciao Cath

Beautiful

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks 🙏🏼 and thank you so much for watching. Ciao Cath

Looking forward for the next episode!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Alex 👋 Thank you for watching. 👌 Glad that you like it 😍 Ciao Cath

Amazing.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Harry And thank you so much for watching 🫶🏻 Ciao Cath

You have created a beautiful place for yourselves. Congratulations! What a challenge to start with a ruin. It has taken many years. I really enjoy the part where you can see the division between the old house and the new. My son has just purchased a home not far from you, just north of the town of Asti. We worked for a month to plan the remodel and will return after receiving the permits from the municipality. So in the spring our own Italian Piedmontes home restoration shall begin. Such a beautiful area.

Stunning. Such a lovely place to live out your days.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much we really also appreciate it a lot. And thank you for watching. Ciao Cath

OMGosh ... your renovations are awesome! love love love!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you thank you thank you 🙏🏼 Thanks for watching Ciao Cath 🫶🏻

Show more the outside area and surroundings please

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Daniel 👋 Thanks for watching 🙏🏼 That must a next time - thanks for the input. Actually we had the material for it - but time was running 🙈 Ciao Cath 🫶🏻

Absolutely beautiful!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much 🤗 And thank you for watching Ciao Cath

You did a wonderful job, very tasteful, professional and beautifully done.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for your kind words and thank you for watching. Ciao Cath

Thanks for sharing 🙏 yr challenging experiences and ideas ! Our Siena Summerlin 1 story 2240 sq ft on 1/4 acre lot built 2001 was best i can do. I will continue to follow yr videos & share❤!

@livingthevillas

3 ай бұрын

Thank you 🙏🏼 we all do our very best 💪 Ciao, Cath

Magnifico Piemonte🇮🇹👍👍

Thank you for the in-depth tour. I am building a house in merida that I bought as a ruin.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot. Sounds exciting with your project. Good luck. Thanks for watching our channel. Ciao, E

So beautiful! E siete persone molto simpatiche!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Grazie mille 🙏🏼 Grazie per aver guardato il nostro canale Ciao Cath 🫶🏻

Stunning villas, love it!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much 😊 And thank you for watching 🙏🏼🫶🏻 Ciao Cath

I love the modern lighting with the rustic construction....beautiful! I have the same chandelier :)

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much 😊 And thank you for watching 🙏🏼 Ciao Cath

Thank you for sharing part of your life story so openly. Overcoming the challenges you describe must have taught you a great deal. Do you find yourselves longing for water whenever you are away from the Lake or the sea?

@livingthevillas

2 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for your kind words 🙏🏼 No matter where we are we try to embrace what we do and where we are instead of longing to be somewhere else 🙏🏼🫶🏻 Ciao Cath

we had stone walls like this in our house in Brindisi when I was a child; my brother was standing on the couch and fell back and split his scalp open on it. Fun times.

@livingthevillas

9 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching 🙏🏼 Sorry to hear about your brother - but if it was fun times I guess he got ok? Ciao, Cath

Great video! I just wish they would let each other talk… They kept interrupting each other the whole time when they were together, as they were competing to see who could take the lead on the video.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Marcello, Thanks for following our channel. We hear what you are telling us, but we think our conversation is a part of our style in the videos. Ciao, Erik

Fantastisk 💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Tak Allan Og tak fordi du ser med 🤩 Ciao Cath

Потрясающе!!! Нравится все.!!👍

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks and thanks for watching, Ciao

Beautiful congratulations and sad to hear about the wife but you are living her dream, greetings from mexico

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Grazie mille Jose. And thanks for watching. Ciao, E

Just a dream house beautiful

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much pat 🙏🏼 Thanks for watching Ciao Cath

@patcardiff2563

Жыл бұрын

@@livingthevillas cath I lived not far from cefalu forty years ago cefalu is just beautiful and the beach wow but my ex husband I will say no more I have been free ever since but I have two bellisimo figlio your very lucky living where you are Xxx

Thank you for sharing, I ran into your channel since I am always looking up stuff on Italian houses, to purchase or to rent or air bnb. My dream is to own a little stone house in Italy. I like the area that you guys are in, since i've been looking around this area. So are you saying it's best to buy a land and just build? or find an old house and buy that and rebuilt it? Anyway, I will watch your videos from now on, to learn more.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Christine Thanks for asking. If you want to build a house in the mountains here in the area then you can be 99% sure that you must find and old house to renovate/tear down an rebuild. It is very rare to find land where you are allowed build a house on it. There are MANY restrictions. And thank heaven for that. That is the way to make sure Italy keeps on looking like Italy 🙏🏼 Normally you will only be allowed to increase the square meters of the original footprint by 15-20%. So the only way is to by an old ruin or house. Ciao Cath

xo from New Zealand

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Right back at you 😉 Thanks for watching Ciao Cath

wow

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

🙏🏼 Thanks for watching Ciao Cath

Sucesso!

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thank you 🙏🏼 And thank you so much for watching Ciao Cath

What an amazing achievements. You should be very proud of yourself. Its our dream to move to italia. Your story really inspiring and gives us a hope. We are thinking to buy a land and build our dream house and live in italia. But we're not sure where to start . We would really appreciate any recommendations you might give . Many thanks Filiz 🥰

Which is more costly/ land in Tuscany or land in Piemonte? What is the size of this property/ reason for these questions, is I'm interested in the growing of grapes/ since this is in the heart of the best wine region of Italy/

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Abraham That’s a very fine question. Farm land for grapes can be extremely costly. If you go 27km in direct line from here (52 km driving, 1h 20m) you end up in Barolo. Don’t know about the price per m2 but I know it’s a lot. And then there are other areas where the price per m2 is less than an euro. And then if you go to Tuscany the average price for land can be a little higher. But I guess that Barolo takes the price for the highest price? 🤔 Villa dell’ Orso has 30.000 m2 of land. Thank you for watching. 🤩 Ciao Cath

Whats the downside of having a concrete inner casing?

@livingthevillas

4 ай бұрын

Hi The downside can be if the terrain moves a bit then it can crack over time… Ciao Cath

I understand how foreigners who buy a house in Italy have many difficulties (really too many), you've to interface with the municipality, the region, the state, etc (basically the bureaucracy it's a inextricable labyrinth), so it's obvious that all this is frustrating but what I can't understand in any way *(in addition to English that I don't speak, sorry)* it's their astonishment when they find out that they CANNOT build or renovate their property the way they want, this thing is (for me) incomprehensible. Italy is a very old country, with magnificent architecture (I know, it sounds pretentious but that's what I think) who is different from region to region (even from city to city), how can one think that there are no laws, rules that regulate what can be done? These rules are apply to everyone (foreigners and Italians) and serve precisely to protect the architecture and the landscape, you cannot buy a villa in Tuscany (I'm giving an example) and make it as if you were in Puglia or in the Dolomites (or even worse as if you were in another country). Do you want to make your house pink because your wife likes it that way? Sorry, you can't do that here. Do you want to build a wooden cabin on the Amalfi coast? Sorry again, you can't. I know my examples are "extreme" but are useful to understand why (at least in Italy, elsewhere I don't know) owning a house doesn't mean being able to do what one wants just because one likes it that way, it doesn't work like that (as an Italian I add: thank God for this). *PS Congratulations for the great work done.*

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Yes exactly and that is one of the things we love about Italy 💚🤍❤️ We also explain our clients and viewers that all these things must be respected and that they will never get a building permit if the don’t go by the rules. And thank heaven for that 🙏🏼 We always advise our clients to use a local architect or geometra because they know what will be possible in the area. So thank you for (as an Italian) explaining the importance of this matter. 👌 I do understand that you are so proud of this fine country - you have everything here history, culture, art, food, wine, architecture, fashion and style, beautiful landscape you have an amazing clima and on top of that you are amazing people. And not to forget “Bella figura” I really hope that everyone who wants to have activities in Italy do it for the right reasons. Buonasera Cath Grazie per il complimento 🙏🏼

Hello, Cathrine and Eric! We are actually looking for a house in Piemonte . My husband is there right now , looking at the houses. We definitely could use help . How can we contact you ? Thanks in advance . Alissa

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Alissa, Thanks for watching. Of course we can help you. That’s also our business. Just send us an email: Erik@erikbjorn.dk Cathrine@erikbjorn.dk Ciao Cath

The real problem is how to finance and be 100% dedicated without working for a boss. Technical solutions and choices of design and taste are interesting but these projects are only possible with tons of money and spare time. I know, renovating over 5 years with a daytime job is exhausting.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Rayer, thanks for watching. Must say I renovated this house, Villa dell'Orso with a full time job (self employed, with 13 employees). And for my own money!! Also therefor Cathrine and I startede up the business helping other people buling in North Italy. Ciao, E

@rayerscarpensael2300

Жыл бұрын

@@livingthevillas thanks for the reply. If you had a full time job that means you had the work done by local craftsmen and had the money for it. Your renovations have costed several 100thousands per house with lots of unforeseen expenses at every corner. Maybe a time lapse progress of your project would be enlightening. You have made beautiful homes with respect of history and tradition but it seems as if building process was just we did this tralala then we did that tralala and so forth with not much obstacles and easy schedule, like the first home you’did in 2 years. With money everything can be done but with your own physical ressources, not so.

With no rebar within what happens to the stone in an earthquake? Humpty-Dumpty comes to mind.

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Hi Thank you for asking. This area in Piemonte is a “No earthquake area” Problem solved Thank you so much for watching. Ciao Cath

@equatorialjourney4478

Жыл бұрын

@@livingthevillas Oh oh ....that sounds like a dangerous challenge to old Mother Nature 😂. Hope she doesn’t have the last laugh . She’s certainly letting the whole world know right now that she is still well & truly in charge over us mere mortals . Jokes aside , is it hard to get insurance in that part of Italy ?

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for your concern. Insurance is no problem. Also because Piemonte is a “no earthquake zone”. Ciao, Erik

@patcardiff2563

Жыл бұрын

Those light fitment are so lovely wow😊

...but if you're in T-shirt in november... in august usually get naked? 🤣🤣 , welcome in IT ! ciao🍷🍷

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Haha yes 🤣 true!! We are from the cold north. And the t-shirt is Marino wool… Yes we also love the the weather, in Italy ❤️

Bellissima casa,lo stile e' perfetto,BRAVI!🙂👏

@livingthevillas

Жыл бұрын

Grazie mille molto gentile. Cath