Domaine de La Ville Heleuc, un petit coin de paradis en Bretagne
The blog of La Ville HeleucHere you will find the latest articles and pictures about what is happening, what we have done, what we plan to do … To find older items, search or click on a category, a tag, a month in the archives, or just search a word of your choice. Leave us a comment, we will appreciate that. Enjoy! Beatrice
After two years of wondering if we were going to shut down, we discovered workaway, and hopefully found a solution for the Domaine de la Ville Heleuc. The year 2002 began with a heart attack, then a broken shoulder, not to mention other small sores, the desire to get involved elsewhere, advancing age and the impossibility of finding help on the spot, so we turned to the international market and we found young people there who are ready to help us. Since the beginning of February we have welcomed our first workawayer. They are young people who like to travel, discover other cultures, and in exchange for room and board, are ready to share our life for a while and help with the maintenance of the grounds and buildings. At the moment it is Martin, a young Spaniard, who is staying with us. We communicate in English, French and German, and he is even learning a little Esperanto. We learn what he eats at home, how life in his region, … Michel likes to share his know-how as a retired craftsman, and I cook recipes, germinate seeds, … Work on the path to the parking, play ground and sanitary garden. […]
We are already almost at the end of January… We were pretty shaken up health-wise last year, and the start of this year hasn’t been easy either. Despite all that, we’re trying to stay on course and keep our heads up, and we’re confident that things will work out. You will see that the year 2022 revolved a lot around the “swimming pool”: the now almost traditional seaweed fishing in April, a bacteria-based treatment and the establishment of aquatic plants in May, then concerns about drought, and finally the installation of a solar pump for water aeration and plant watering. The coming year does not exist. Ours is only the small present moment.Mahmûd Shabestarî A happy new year 2023,Beatrice & Michel
Quick, quick, quick… January 31 is already approaching – the ultimate limit for presenting your wishes in France! In your country it may already be too late, but we hope that you will still accept our wishes for happiness, joy and sharing for the end of this month and the 11 to follow! We wish you to spend time with each other, to taste the pleasure of being together and to keep joy in your hearts. Let’s banish fear, apprehension, judgement,…! Let’s wake up to the beauty of this world, of the nature that surrounds us, live the present moment and savor every moment! Let us be grateful for all that has been given to us, for all that we have experienced; no one can take it from us! Give thanks for the ray of the sun, for the drop of rain or for the snowflake. Let’s create our future by our positive thoughts, transform the negative into positive, the shadows into light. Looking back on the year 2021, despite the difficulties it has brought us, our hearts are filled with joy, and we wish to share these images with you. What you think, you will be.What you feel, you […]
Lacto-fermentation – what is that? Lacto-fermentation is a method of preserving food in anaerobic environment (without air). The salt inhibits the pathogenic bacteria and favors the lactic bacteria that will transform the sugar contained in the vegetables into lactic acid. Nothing to do with adding milk, it is the lactic acid bacteria that gave their name to lacto-fermentation. The best known preparation in lacto-fermentation is sauerkraut. Lacto-fermentation – why? This is an easy and safe method – failed jars are signaled by a foul smell. It’s sustainable, no need for energy except yours to prepare the vegetables. The prepared jars can be stored at room temperature for years. Lacto-fermentation avoids food waste by an easy and fast procedure. Lacto-fermented vegetables are enriched with vitamins, enzymes, nutrients and pro biotics. They help to assimilate food, to digest, to strengthen the intestinal flora and the immune system. What can be lacto-fermented? The range is large and goes through vegetables, leaves, fruits, sprouted seeds, beverages, dairy, up to meat and fish. My favorites are the different cabbages (Chinese cabbage, white cabbage, red cabbage, cauliflower, …), root vegetables (carrots, beets, turnips, …) and leaves (wild garlic, basil, …). How to proceed? The material The […]
This is a strange army that has been marching through the forest since the last school vacations! And if you look closely, you can see a few red spots here and there, which don’t look very natural… If you look closer, you discover small dwellings – or entrances into the trees? And with a little luck you can sometimes see one of their inhabitants… But where is this? Where is this forest? We don’t want to give anything away, you have to find out for yourself! Keep your eyes open during your walks!
The population of goblins being aging, we decided with Till, Maud and Nils to start making a new generation during the February vacations. A tour in Michel’s workshop to see what had been put aside and what could be useful: an old badminton racket, an old headlight, sunglasses, an archaic toaster, a washing ball, a frying pan, … It’s so cold outside that we decided to turn the kitchen into a workshop. Buttons, wire, a glue gun, and soon six new goblins were born. We dress warmly to take them to the forest, introduce them to their elders and show them their playground. Soon everyone finds their favorite place.
What a joy to wake up this Wednesday and discover the snow! A few hours later the sun awakens all the white beauty, and as we know that it will probably not last, we are off to enjoy it fully.
2020 shook us all, pushed us to our limits, but also allowed us to live differently, to discover other means of communication, to go more deeper to the essential of our lives, to appreciate the moments of reunion, … We wish you to continue the adventure of your life in 2021, to appreciate and savor it at every moment, to transform all the negativity around you by your thoughts of love and light! If you have zest and enthusiasm, you attract zest and enthusiasm. Life gives back in kind.Norman Vincent Peale We wish you a very happy new year 2021!With love from,Beatrice & Michel
500g flour,1 packet of dry yeast,1/4 liter of warm milk or water,1 pinch of salt,1 pinch of sugar or 100 g if you want the bread to be sweet. Knead the dough and let it rest. Knead again, then shape into small sausages and twist them around a stick or twig like a spiral. Bake on an open fire. Be careful not to burn your fingers! In the meantime we have switched to long bamboo sticks, so we don’t get that close to the fire. 🤪
2020 is already showing up! 2019 was a lot of travelling for us. But here too, there was some traffic: our hosts, family, friends and workshop participants came to see us. To the last year classes about bee’s wraps, soap, furoshiki and lacto-fermentation, there were new ones about ivy lye and stain soap. We wish you for this New Year 2020 to live fully the present moment, and to discover love, joy, and happiness at every moment of your life! Don’t stay in the past, don’t dream of the future, focus your mind on the present moment. Bouddha Happy New Year 2020, Beatrice & Michel
It is just bee’s wrap. The upper name is not quite right … Do not try to machine wash these wraps! You can wipe them off with lukewarm water, even with soap, but from 40 ° the wax softens, and from 50 ° it melts! These food wraps keeps food in the fridge or in the freezer and limits the use of transparent plastic or aluminum film. You can wrap sandwiches, cheese, washed salad leaves (keeps them good for at least a week), opened vegetables or fruits, or close bowls, plates or glasses, … At the beginning of 2019 we organized a few workshops in Ville Heleuc with the SEL (local exchange system) of Dinan. Then came others with friends, and the last one in date with my sister. The upper photo shows the latest samples. And it still is about recycling: old shirts, sheets, fabric scraps, furoshiki, … come to new life.
2019 already comes along! 2018 has been full of encounters, expériences, trips, organisations, … for us. You will find underneath some pictures of those moments in la Ville Heleuc: diy of bée’s wrap and soap, snow in february, fireplace outside, swimming in the natural pool, arrangements by joy in a japanese way, wrapping in furoshiki, and more. We wish you for this new year 2019 encounters full of joy, love and happiness! Any new encounter is likely to awaken the unthinkable. Jacques Salomé A very happy new year 2019, Beatrice & Michel
We wish you for this New Year 2018 very much happiness, joy and good health! And a lot of goblins to help you in your daily life, so that your head is free for the really important things – the others! As in the last years, you can watch beneath a short video of last year pictures in La Ville Heleuc. Happiness is determined more by one’s state of mind than by external events. The Dalaï Lama A happy New Year 2018, Beatrice & Michel
After classic hives in square boxes and horizontal hives, Michel offers this year a new type of accommodation for our small friends. At first it should have been a simple trunk hive offering them a natural habitat, as they can find it in nature. The purpose of these hives is to ensure and protect biodiversity without interfering in the life of the swarm – so there will be no harvest on these hives. In a trunk, Michel first marked the interior space before emptying it with a chainsaw and a chisel. Then the openings were drilled for the take-off holes. After Ninon’s visit, the project was transformed, and from simple hives trunks, these hives began to resemble Moai – the famous stone statues of Easter Island. With the flight holes showing the mouth and the shape of the nose suggested by the shape of the trunk, there were only eyes missing. Grandpa got caught up in the game and after a first Moai, he went on with a second one, carving it’s nose. For the installation, Michel uses the mini excavator – and now they just have to wait for the tenants. The Moai hives will be reserved for black […]
Our best Wisches for this New Year! With some pictures showing you what happened in La Ville Heleuc in 2016. May joy accompany you during all this year, may it illuminante you everyday life and may you divise it with your family and friends. Train to feel it in the small things, in every moment, everywhere! Joy is power! Cultivate it! Dalaï Lama A very happy New Year 2017, Beatrice & Michel
We would like to present to you our best wishes for 2016. Click on the picture to have a look back and see what happened in 2015 in La Ville Heleuc! 2016 will surely reserve lots of new events, surprises, and visits in La Ville Heleuc – perhaps you… Any case we wish you lots of joy, love, luck, dividing, health, … for this New Year! Beatrice & Michel
Elderflower champagne – cuvée 2015 Flowering of elder started already at the end of may in La Ville Heleuc – it’s time to start the 2015 vintage of elderflower champagne. The moon calendar showed up flower days on sunday and monday. Ideal to start. Unfortunately the sun did not show up sunday and wether was rather wet, so I had to wait for monday to pick up the 78 required elder umbels (see recipe below).. Fortunately the spring harvest of honey was over and the extractor available. It is made of stainless steel, has the good size and a tap to extract on the bottom. Once the elderflowers covered with water and lemons, sugar and vinegar added, I just had to turn the whole vigorously. For 5 days the preparation will be turned three times a day, then we will filter and bottle the champagne (best is a fruit day in the moon calendar). Three weeks later we should be able to toast! Here are the quantities for about 30 bottles 26 elder umbels 6 organic lemons cut into 4 2,4 kg of organic sugar 6 tablespoons of organic cider vinegar 24 liters of water
After two nights of frost, it was still very cold in the evening of December 28th. We decided to prepare ice sculptures with the children. We picked up some fruit and dried flowers, twigs and leaves. Then in the kitchen everyone prepared its setting in a bowl. We put all the bowls on the terrace, placed a link of raffia or string in each, filled them with water and just waited. The next day we unmolded the sculptures to hang them on branches. In the shade they resisted a bit longer, but they looked much nicer in the sun. To get a nice ice sculpture without the mark of the plate, use a bucket or deep bowl. It is then necessary to ensure that the decorative elements float on the surface and do not sink in the water. Except in extreme cold, only the top layer of the water will be frozen. If you don’t have a garden, you can hang these ephemeral sculptures at a window, on a balcony, …
All the members of the tribe of La Ville Heleuc wish you a happy New Year 2015! Health, joy, love, happiness, sharing, … everything you want, and also beautiful holidays! Beatrice & Michel
Not long ago we discovered those little houses in the woods near the mirror of the fairies. We had tried to have a look at the habitants through a window or an open door, but without any success. Opinions differed – were they elves or fairies or other creatures? … but in this sunny last day of the year 2014 we had the pleasure to see some of the inhabitants fly and dance in the sun among the few remaining leaves of the trees. Now there is no doubt anymore – they are indeed fairies!
50 g of cream 100 g of dark chocolate 100 g of milk chocolate 150 g of chestnut cream Heat cream and chocolat and mix well. Mix in the chestnut cream. Conserve in the fridge. Now, what do you think about this? Everyone loves it here!
This year we chose an ecological Christmas tree. The visit of Mahery and Justine of Hopineo was the opportunity to make it together and in less time than it takes to say the tree was made, set up and decorated. And some hours after Mahery finished this short video. A bit later came up the question about what Christmas tree for the family. After some hesitation about the reactions of the children, we finally decided to have a similar one in the house. And finally everyone loved it. Have a look here. By now the décorations are gone and the tree has been put away. Next year we’ll get it out again, unfold the branches and decorate it again. PS: for those of you who want to get started, take a rod of at least 1 cm in diameter to prevent the tree swaying to much. In the house we attached the tip with a nylon thread to prevent children overthrow it accidently. The candles were stuck with small pellets of wax and a fire extinguisher was always at hand – please watch out very very closely.
At noon today, our guests have discovered a small owl at the entrance of Le Fournil. It seems to be a tawny owl, although usually barn owls live in the nest box in the Manor… It sometimes happens, that little owls do not manage to get back into the nest box when they learn to fly. This is an opportunity for kids to watch young owls. Michel gets the great ladder, puts on his leather gloves, and climbs up to the top of the ladder with the baby owl. The little owl is quickly back in the nest together with its siblings.
After more than 12years bees are back home in La Ville Heleuc! Four swarms were installed upstairs in Michel’s workshop shed. The hives will be well protected from hot weather in the summer and cold in the winter. In addition the installation height allows to pass underneath without danger. We hope to collect honey from next year on, but for now the priority is the installation of our some 100,000 new guests in their homes.
L’été est presque fini, alors qu’il commence à vouloir vraiment faire beau. Nos vacanciers se relaient et nous apprenons à gérer deux gîtes en même temps. La ronde autour du feu du dimanche soir est déjà devenue une tradition – l’occasion de faire connaissance avec les nouveaux, de discuter ensemble, tout en dégustant une Duchesse Anne accompagnée de gateaux maison. Un vieux lit en sapin a trouvé sa place dans notre forêt de sapin – rempli de cônes de sapin il invite à se coucher, à percevoir la forêt autrement, à écouter, à sentir, à regarder les pointes des sapins bouger dans le vent. Plus dans la rubrique Expériences…
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