Lagoon Eco Villa

26/01/2024

Progress pics from this week ✨️ Approved by our dog!

24/01/2024

Hello and happy this year! 👋🏽

You probably couldn't have guessed it but the house is basically inhabitable by now! 🥳 The work has been progressing painfully slowly, but the last bits are finally coming together. Last weekend we got the final installations for the solar water heater, which means that in theory we could now move in. 📦🏡

However, what's still on its way is the habitation licence, which we've been waiting for since last July. This week the house was inspected by the energy certif**ate officer, who confirmed that we'll get a B certif**ate - after installing some missing air vents and 🥁drumroll🥁 blackout curtains! We have double-glazed windows, but apparently it's mandatory to be able to block all sunlight from each and every one of them in some way 😂

Our blackout curtains turned out to be a tad too small to block the light 100%, plus we don't have them for our horizontal windows (or the big staircase window), so we'll have to come up with some creative solutions for the next inspection... 🌚 Please comment if you have any cheap and non-invasive suggestions! 🙏🏼 Right now our best bet is black carton or textile with some double-sided tape or blu-tack 😅

This weekend we are also planning to install a fence and gates to close off the property. What a relief to be on the last stretch after almost 6 years of construction project! 🥲

30/07/2023

The toilet seat is on its place 🚽✨️ Not ready to use yet though, but almost. The washbasin will be opposite to the toilet and there will be a shower in the other corner. 🚿

The bathroom feels very spacious thanks to the wheelchair accessibility! It's mandatory to have enough space in the middle for the wheelchair to turn around. ♿️ Because of this, the toilet seat has to be quite close to the wall, but it's still comfortable to use.

28/07/2023

The trees got a good trim today 🌳🌴 They look a little thin now but will grow back even more beautiful than before 💚

18/07/2023

Kitchen 3.0 🍳

We have finally scheduled the installation of our kitchen! 😭🙏🏼🥳

This is the final version, after a few changes along the years... Some of which were due to the measurements that were not quite the Ikea standard and some due to the rising prices. 🙃

There will be white matte doors, oak worktop, backsplash panel with marble pattern, black pulls + faucet and the dream farmhouse sink! Everything from Ikea except the faucet (and the pre-existing fridge). 😄

We will also have a wooden slate wall by the fridge and some open wooden shelving above the window and the fridge. And no, the walls are actually not tiled like in the image and the window is not like the one pictured 😅

Two weeks and we should have a kitchen! ⏳️

11/07/2023

Some progress: we hired two guys to clear the overgrown yard of weeds. Swipe to see the result! 👉🏼

First pic: 18th April
Second pic: 8th July

SOON we will get the build moving again! It's been way too long but will hopefully be worth the wait 🥲

12/04/2023

Here's the ceiling! 🖌 We decided that it's best to paint the pine paneling white, leaving only the wooden beams visible, and couldn't be happier with the result! It's much lighter, cleaner and makes the space feel higher. ✨️

The Finnish pine beams are actually treated with Finnish UV protection with a transparent white color, which we ordered from Germany. 📦 Apparently there is no product available in Portugal to achieve this kind of light Scandi-style result, but luckily we managed to get this quality product here! 😄🙌🏼

They still need one more round of sanding and a layer of treatment, but the overall look is already there. We were also positively surprised how well the integrated LED lights fit into the ceiling! 💡

06/04/2023

Summer is coming to Portugal and the crystalline waters of the Atlantic are waiting 🐠🌊🐬💦🦀

This amazing beach is in the Arrábida Natural Park, just a 30 minute drive from us! 🩵

04/04/2023

Hello and... happy year 2023! 👋🏼

The house build has been standing still since November, looking like this. So close yet still a lot to do. Because of bureaucratic and financial issues with our constructor. But now we should be starting again and hopefully this would be the last push over the finish line. 🤞🏼

It's been 2 years since the building started and that's kinda crazy! But as another spring is here, we can proudly say that all the structures have survived already two winters without a single water leak and that's a win in itself in this country! ☔️

Slowly but surely is the motto of this sturdy little house. 🏡 Here's to getting back to reporting some progress on this account!

23/11/2022

Lights on 💡

It's a special moment seeing the house lit up for the first time, and that's what we witnessed today 🥺 I mean how cozy does that look?

21/11/2022

Wall color appreciation post ✨️ Which one is your favorite?

Also can you see the baseboards? They are hand made with solid wood 😍

06/11/2022

French balconies 🫶🏼

Our west side bedrooms have glass doors as windows, which together with the thick walls and wooden railing work perfectly as tiny French balconies.

What a feeling to wake up and enjoy some fresh air while looking out at the green landscape. You can even catch a glimpse of sea view from up there! 🌊

05/11/2022

Floor tiles 🧱

The downstairs bathroom floor is currently being tiled. We ordered the tiles from Spain and seeing that beautiful herringbone pattern come to life made the extra effort and spenditure so worth it! 😍

It's also interesting that the tiles first looked grey and on the floor they changed the color completely!

The seams will be sealed with rubber sealant to make the floor watertight. It will be black to create a nice contrast and to require less maintenance to look clean. 🖤

21/10/2022

Kiinnostava artikkeli olkirakentamisesta Suomessa! 🌾

Ekologisen kyläyhteisön taloja rakennetaan mahdollisimman vähän energiaa kuluttavilla ratkaisuilla. Rakennuskustannusten nopea nousu on hillinnyt innokkuutta uudiskohteisiin.

18/10/2022

Solar water heater ☀️

We had our first appliance installed - and it's the solar water heater! 🌡 That's right, with us your hot showers will be provided by the 🌞 itself! 🚿

And no need to worry about cloudy days either, because without sun the boiler heats the water up with electricity from the grid. 🛁

Feels good to know that this investment is both ecological and economical, like they often are! 🌱 Solar water heaters are also great for small spaces because the whole thing sits on the roof, not taking any space from the interior.

Ps. We had to take these photos from the street over the neighbor's yard, because the high roof is not visible when standing next to the house 😂

21/09/2022

Handrail progress 🤌🏻

The second version of the stairs handrail is so beautiful and made with sturdy pinewood. 🤎 The surface will still be cleaned and treated with hardwax oil.

You can see the first version in the 'Construction 3' story highlight - it was half green treated wood for the exterior and its "viking style" gave us a headache. But thankfully it's all sorted now and we have this more modern beauty to keep the staircase users safe. 🪜

20/09/2022

A natural paradise 💙

23/08/2022

Downstairs wall colors 🖌

While the upstairs bedrooms got brighter tones of lime plaster on the walls, we wanted to keep the ground floor's color palette more harmonious. 🤎

That's why we chose two neutral tones of beige: a colder greige shade for the bedroom and bathroom, and a warmer, slightly pinkish tone for the living room. The builders accidentally applied it in the hall and staircase walls as well, but it actually looks nice there! 😁

Some of these walls are still lacking the final layer of wax, so for example the bedroom wall will still change a bit.

This week we are supposed to get the lights installed, and we finally ordered our solar water heater as well! 💡☀️

20/07/2022

C o l o r s 🌈

Time to reveal the colors of the upstairs rooms! They are quite bold, but we love them 😍 Because of the inclined white ceilings, we chose to have the accent color on two walls instead of just one.

The master bedroom has a terracotta shade that is hard to capture perfectly in a photo. For the other two bedrooms we chose two different shades of sage green, paler and darker.

The upstairs bathroom has a slightly pinkish beige tone on all walls. (Actually only the shower area was supposed to be this color and the rest natural white, but this is how it had ended up when we went to see the results. 🙈) The window sills will be plastered as well.

The colors of the natural lime plaster are achieved with natural color pigments. 🎨 The surface is finished with a wax that creates a lively pattern and makes the walls completely waterproof. Some walls are still lacking the wax, so the downstairs wall colors will be revealed once ready! 👏🏼

18/07/2022

F i n i s h i n g s 🤎

This is how the house exterior looked on the 9th of June. The light wooden details are so cute!

14/07/2022

I n t e r i o r p l a s t e r 🖌🎨

Been in a bit of a holiday mode during the last month, but intending to get back to posting again!

Here are some interior progress photos from the beginning of June. The accent walls and bathrooms will be covered with a natural lime plaster from Fradical (fradical.pt) and here you can see the first layers of it. Stay tuned for revealing the colors! 🤩

02/06/2022

L i g h t & d a r k

While the upper floor walls are cladded with charred wood, the details of the house exterior will remain a lighter, natural pinewood color. The timber is so pretty it's nice to have it visible 🤎

Do you like the contrast or prefer uniformity?

01/06/2022

L a s t w a l l s 💪🏼

The last interior walls are rising and a bunch of other stuff is also happening every day now 🤩

There is a storage space under the stairs and the downstairs bedroom feels suddenly much bigger with its entrance space in place! Can you spot the rounded corner?

30/05/2022

P o r c h 🏠

Look at that tiny porch! Isn't it cute? 😍 It protects the entrance door a bit from rain and was an important feature to us. In Portugal it's really common to have no roof above the door, which is very annoying when it rains. 🌧

The porch also makes the house look somehow more balanced. It's covered with the same anthracite tiles as the rest of the roof.

28/05/2022

F i n a l l a y e r 🤍

Our building licence has been successfully extended and the works have finally started again! 🙌🏽

We couldn't be happier how the final layer of natural plaster is turning out, it's so pretty and looks like marble while it's still wet 😍 The plaster is based on calcium oxide (lime) and the oil coating makes it 100% waterproof and shiny. Love it!

Can't wait to see a similar surface in the bathrooms too ✨️

16/05/2022

S u n s e t m a g i c 🌅

These moments are precious - when the sky becomes pastel, one can hear the roaring waves and feel the air becoming more humid with dew 💧

11/05/2022

G e r a n i u m s 🌸

The only progress to report at the moment are the flowering geraniums. It's something, right!

29/04/2022

Vibing the magazine article 💗

Did you read it already? If not, you can find the online version (Finnish only) here: https://www.is.fi/menaiset/ihmiset-ja-suhteet/art-2000008668122.html ✨️

10/04/2022

Lagoa de Albufeira 💙

A paradise for beach and nature lovers, just 40 minutes from Lisbon 🏝 And it's only a 5 minutes walk away from us!

07/04/2022

S t a i r c a s e 🪜

We have stairs! Beautiful, sturdy pinewood stairs. They are still a work in progress but almost finished. So glad we don't have to climb a ladder anymore to access upstairs!

Just wondering where all those electrical wires hanging around the stairs will be hidden 🧐

There will be a storage space under the stairs that will be closed with walls and a door. But there is also lots of unused space above the stairs, which has given us ideas about installing a net for hanging out there without blocking the feeling of a high space - safely, obviously. 🥅

What do you think - yay or nay? Any other creative ideas for utilizing the space above stairs? 💭