Based in Cornwall we specialise in conservation, restoration and applying traditional techniques to new builds. We have managed sites from ruin to homes, working to an extremely high standard and quality, working closely with building control and conservation officers
The drapery Redruth

The drapery Redruth

When Stephen told me he had bought the old drapery in Redruth I was keen to get involved with the Renovation. The garden was badly overgrown as you can see from the pictures. Once they had striped back the foliage the stonework revealed was fairly unsightly and in poor shape....
Repair to powder house.

Repair to powder house.

This powder house had fallen into disrepair. Many years ago somebody replaced the roof and forgot to put collars on the truss. Over time this caused the building to move and crack. We repaired the cracks by infilling and rebuilding sections using helbar to stitch it all back together. We...
Hobbit hole.

Hobbit hole.

We were asked by a fantasy writer if we could build him a garden wall that wouldn’t look untoward with a golem standing on it or a hobbit walking through. The door is designed around hobbit hole in The lords of the rings. The alcoves and stone work are beautifully...
Vine Cottage. Cob Repair

Vine Cottage. Cob Repair

Vine cottage is one of the oldest cottages in Newlyn. When the present owners applied for a mortgage the surveyor discovered that the cob had been cement rendered. As a condition of the mortgage he specified that the cement was removed and replaced with lime mortar. At this point the...

Swan Pool St. From pebbledash with love.

This property was in a rather sorry state prior to us removing the pebble dash and fully Renovating it’s exterior. In the 1960s it had had a cement based false Georgian facade created. Everything was cement including the cills. We had to stitch together a reasonable amount of cracks with heli bar. We decided to repair the window reveals as the brick underneath was weak and removing the mortar would have destroyed the reveals. Around the back we had to rebuild the reveals and replace lintels. We replaced all the window cills with natural slate. We replaced the windows on the higher property and fitted new rainwater goods. These were plastic cast iron effect gutters and down pipes and plastic black wood effect facia. We also removed an unused damp chimney between the two property’s. The remaining chimneys we have two coats of a mesh reinforced polymer coating. This is...
Country mansion house

Country mansion house

A few shots from a line render job on a beautiful country house near Truro. All hand formed corners onto brickwork. High end finish
Bag rub render.

Bag rub render.

Bag rub render or ragging is a brilliant way to create a beautifully traditional breathable render. It can hide a multitude of sins such as previously botched opening infills, damaged stone work, cement lintels or even block extensions. Historically almost all Cornish granite buildings were ragged then painted in milk...
Lower Town

Lower Town

View from kitchen Lime and timber Natural slate floor. Master bedroom with reclaimed victorian fire place. All the timber in this property came from a locally fallen tree. All structural timber, stairs and porch out of the same tree. the second room downstairs with a new opening to the courtyard...
Colenso Cottage

Colenso Cottage

This was a lovely little project . We worked alongside a standard builder. ragging the outside and pointing up the stairs and the Inglnook. The areas of lime pointing and the use of lighting have really worked giving this house a lovely feel. The sunlight on lime pointing up on...
Rosevidney Manor. Pointing job.

Rosevidney Manor. Pointing job.

 We are hacking out and repointing two sections of different ages. One section was built in the 17 hundreds. The other is Edwardian. We are attacking the Edwardian section first. This is challenging due to the hardness of the point being removed. And the small size of the stone.
Balwest Church Rooms

Balwest Church Rooms

We lime ragged this old Sunday school. Then Painted it with beeks beakasil hydrophobic lime wash.      The methodist committee and the architects were very pleased with the result   Six months on and you still need sunglasses when looking at the building in a sunny day. 
Trevorgans surf shack

Trevorgans surf shack

This was a a beautiful but damp little property. We repointed and ragged the exterior, Rebuilt the steps, And Lime grouted the walls.            
The Old Post Office St Erth

The Old Post Office St Erth

On this project we repointed the whole building. We also rebuilt a chimney with a lead tray and a lead skirt to match the existing chimneys to the front of the property.                                      ...
Cathy and Pat's farmouse renovation

Cathy and Pat’s farmouse renovation

  This has been one of our most challenging jobs to date . It has involved the complete renovation of a beautiful farm house situated in a very exposed position. We have replaced the roof, removed all external pointing , re pointed and rendered with lime then clad it in...
Cob Mill

Cob Mill

This was a lovely little project. Using lime render and Ragging. We had to remove a fig growing in part of the wall.
Tim and Ruths Barn

Tim and Ruths Barn

Tim and Ruths barn was lovingly restored by the Cornish Lime Builders
Lime Pointing

Lime Pointing

We at the Cornish lime builders pride ourselves on being at the height of our game when it comes to lime pointing. Our finishes are both beautiful and expertly finished. Being both durable and consistent. We focus on getting the stone as clean as possible ,hacking out and properly cleaning the joints...
Latest entries
St Leven Church

St Leven Church

Last year we were chosen to repoint St Leven church tower. We were asked to point this grade 1 listed church last year. It is a beautiful historic building and we were honoured to undertake the task. Some sections are over 800 years old. We have to be extremely careful when breaking out as we...
Little Keigwin in Moushole

Little Keigwin in Moushole

The oldest cottage in Moushole Cornwall. This property was lime rendered into Cellnit lime render boards externally. Then painted in Beecks Beeckacil tinted hydrophobic tinted mineral coating. It was built to conservations requirements and ended up Looking truly beautiful for many years to come.
Returning a Cornish cottage to its origin.

Returning a Cornish cottage to its origin.

Renovating a dilapidated Cornish cottage using hydraulic lime mortar to rejuvenate the aesthetic and cure the damp issues. Carefully hiding years of neglect and botched renovations to create a beautiful family home.
A quirky little place on 3 streets.

A quirky little place on 3 streets.

When the owner acquired this hidden gem it was suffering from years of neglect. A once fine merchants residence had fallen into severe disrepair along with botched diy and flood damage. The first step was to bag rub 2 sides and point the front. We found dry rot, so once that had been treated a...

Hot weather for lime

A great article by Adam Brown from the Cornish lime company in Bodmin

A great article by Adam Brown from the Cornish lime company in Bodmin

Hot Mixed Mortars Advantages and limitations ‘Hot mix’, ‘hot limes’ and ‘hot-mixed mortars’ are all terms used more frequently within the conservation industry. But what exactly are they? A hot-mixed lime mortar is one based on three components; quicklime, water and an aggregate such as sand. In a conventional mix, aggregate is mixed with lime...
A quaint little cottage in St Ives

A quaint little cottage in St Ives

We repointed the front in lime to cure a damp issue. And bag-rubbed the rear. The rear faced the beach but due to conservation requirements, we treated the bare lime with a hydrophobic treatment rather than painting. The damp was cured and a little character restored to St Ives. Front. Back.
The copper works Trewellard

The copper works Trewellard

We have recently been working on part of the old copper works in Trewellard. We started breaking out prior to the scafold being erected. The stonework on the back section was a mishmash of alterations. Watch this space for the finished product. It’s still under wraps. Since this photo was taken the steps and the...
Repairing the Ramparts.

Repairing the Ramparts.

Basset St

Basset St

A few pics now it’s settled in.
St Bridget’s house the wharf St Ives.

St Bridget’s house the wharf St Ives.

We were asked to lime point this three story building right on the front in St Ives. We had to point it out of season due to it being mostly holiday let’s. But despite the weather we managed to get it done in time. We removed all the cement and repointed in lime. We then...
Been a busy year.

Been a busy year.

Ive neglected my blog this year but I’ve been a busy bee.. Newly sign written vans are a nice new addition to my business. More to follow…….