Monday 27 February 2017

La Maison Bleu.


I have a friend who's father bought a job-lot of paint from British Rail. It was going cheap, so he bought several very large drums.

It was when British Rail were changing their livery from dark-ish green to light-ish blue (1960's ?). They had thousands of tons of the green paint still in stock, and they were eager to be rid of it.

My friend's father painted the house, the shed, the railings, the chicken run, all the furniture, and probably his pencils, in British Rail green.

Of course people started to address their envelopes to Railway Cuttings, or The Station Master, or The Waiting Room, or Platform 5, etc. Apparently he became incensed every time an envelope dropped through the door addressed as such. It was all good fun.


The house above has always been referred to as 'La Maison Bleu' for obvious reasons. It has had the same colour scheme for over 44 years, ever since I've lived in the village.

I wonder if the owner also bought a job-lot?



21 comments:

  1. Our trams used to be painted green and cream and the were a few houses near the tram workshops with exactly the same colours.

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  2. It's a beautiful blue.
    I guess there are no colour restrictions in your commune. In our village there is a very limited choice of permitted colours, for some buildings near the château there is only brown or reddish brown.

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    Replies
    1. No, no restrictions here, although there used to be 'recommended' colours for shutters etc.

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  3. It is a pleasing blue. A happy man who knows what he likes

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  4. It is a great colour. I wish we could have more colour here but the planners are so boring.

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    Replies
    1. I like to see plenty of colour around too; this house is one of very few.

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  5. Love that blue, and would have painted our two shutters that colour but for speed they were varnished instead. On the front two windows of our house we still have the original oak shutters. They will have to go eventually because they are not doing the job they are supposed to do. Perhaps then I will be able to have my blue shutters!

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    Replies
    1. Blue shutters are very bucolic; I believe one used to see them everywhere.

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  6. Is that the one on the crossroads that has recently been re-painted? Paul and me are arguing about it.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, on a sort of crossroads, exiting Lumberjack on the road to Moncabrier.

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    2. Paul was right then. There's a track that comes out alongside that we cycle along.

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  7. I like the blue and cream of the house behind the stronger blue of the gate. The effect is very nice.

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    Replies
    1. It's actually the same blue, it's just my photo which makes them look different.

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  8. I have a friend who runs a vintage clothing shop here, and when he began to open it he asked everyone for suggested names. The most popular was 'Dead Man's Jeans', and would have had a sign of a silhouette of a lynched man hanging from a tree. He had a load of bright yellow paint which he still paints the shop front with, and it is called 'The Yellow Shop'. The coward.

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    Replies
    1. Sounds like 'yellow' was the perfect colour.

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  9. Always a bit dodgy buying job lots of paint from big companies. Remember the plight of Del Boy? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5_pcaXJIo8

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    Replies
    1. It's dodgy buying any colour, let alone luminous yellow.

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  10. Half of Glasgow's houses were carpeted with the same carpet as was used in the Queen Mary.

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