Welcome to our brand new blog. I’m kicking off this one with news on the building work at our shop in St Albans, but over the next few weeks I am excited that we are going to be joined by guest bloggers too!
Cositas Renovations
Renovations of the shop are imminent! We’re not going to be back in there again for at least 3 months while the flat above the shop and the shop itself undergo major surgery!
The prospect of closing for 3 months felt terrifying at first, we were only just gaining momentum again since the disruption of the pandemic, and losing that and starting from scratch again after all the hard work we’ve put in to regain some traction felt so worrying.
But anyway, here we are and I’m working from home in the sunshine, working on the website and hoping that we gain the sales through the website that we were able to during Covid to help us be able to bounce back again this time!
I thought I’d give you the inside scoop on the renovation work and keep you up to date with the progress. Our landlords are St Albans Cathedral and they also own the flat above. We have a great relationship with them and have always known that work would get underway at some point to separate the flat so it would have a separate access and not have to share with us. I knew this 5 1/2 years ago when we first moved into the building, but finances, permissions (as it’s a grade 2 listed building) and then the pandemic put the plans on hold until now. The entrance to the Cathedral via Sumpter yard has been re landscaped beautifully this summer- it really does look lovely. The wild grass lawn is my favourite- I love sitting on the bench and watching the butterflies dancing around.
So with that in mind I’m sure the job on our building will be wonderful too. The contractor that our landlords have appointed is great and hopefully will be just as lovely when we get to the wallpaper/paint and decorative finishes! I’m not demanding and I can find a way to make most things work so I’m sure it will fabulous!
The flat upstairs is quite spooky, I must say! But its beautiful too; so quaint and historical. The floors (much like the shop with many of our original 18th century floorboards still in place) are so wonky and wobbly that you feel like you’re walking in one of those haunted house rides at the fairground! And I’ve been told that the wonky floor will be staying which I’m really pleased about!
It’s going to be such a beautiful living space when it’s all done- I want to move in there myself! Seeing historic buildings thoughtfully restored is really interesting to me so I’m going to be snooping around for sure! Let’s hope the ghosts don’t mind the disruption!
So even though all this work is going on in the actual shop, our online shop is still a hive of activity! We’ve arranged our lockup facility into a proper little warehouse where we can pick stock easily and get it out to you the next working day still.
Our lockup unit a whole story of its own with the BEST view of the Perigrin Falcons that are nesting in the Cathedral- the fastest animal on the planet no less!!
Love Emma