Charlotte3

Hi Mike, I did a Google search and found the website syntilor.com. What you have bought is actually a polyurethane varnish (lasure), not a paint so it won't give you a solid white finish. According to the website it has a pearlised satin finish. Is this what you are looking for? If yes, you could use a white undercoat first and then 2 coats of the varnish, but I think the finish might be a little odd looking. Your other alternative ( and this is what we do in work) is to give the shutters a good coat of undercoat and then follow with 2 coats of gloss or satin finish oil based paint. You could of course buy the undercoat, try it with the varnish, and if you don't like it then buy the paint. If you need help, pm me, Aly

You are quite right about what people can do well without formal qualifications, my point was that you can't legally do it for money. I know all about the loopholes used by many foreigners (having researched this myself while searching for work!) but an interior designer is NOT a decorator and is still liable to prosecution if caught decorating professionally, as is the person employing them. I did think about it but felt that it wasn't for me. I'm not a good liar and would hate to be constantly looking over my shoulder! I know some Brits who have taken this route and they constantly worry in case they are reported. For me it's illegal, immoral and just not decent to flout the rules like this.  My fellow colleagues in work can't understand the attitude of the Brits locally who refuse to obey the rules on this. They can't understand why they don't learn the language and do the jobs they are qualified to do, the same as the French.  Well done to your OH, I hope he enjoys the challenge as much as I do! Aly

Obviously not! Aly

Don't forget those ridiculous TV shows as well! Aly

Well done Roger, exactly the right attitude! Aly

Cerise, I never mentioned 10 year guarantees - that has nothing to do with decorating being a metier. By all means pay cash for services which are not a metier ie cleaning, gardening etc. The chequed'emploi scheme is for non metiered occupations so can't be legally used for decorating. Nobody says you must have your diploma to hang wallpaper in your own home, but to do it professionally, ie for payment, you must have the appropriate qualification....it's the law. Why do I get so worked up about this? Simply because I was told by the authorities that I couldn't work in France as a self employed decorator, in spite of many years experience simply because I didn't have the appropriate piece of paper. Eventually I persuaded my now patron to let me do a stage for a week. This was unpaid work and at the end of the week he would have the choice whether I to employ me or not. I nearly killed myself that week to prove not only that I could do the work, but also that I knew how to use the various machines which are heavy and awkward if you are a woman. Needless to say I got the job, but I have had to fight every day since to prove to the men that I can do everything they can do. (You try to build scaffolding 3 storeys high when you are nearly fifty and female!!) Incidentally there is a great deal more to decorating than hanging a bit of wallpaper! (But then, if you aren't  qualified you won't know that). All my colleagues will do work at the weekends etc for cash, but they declare it as other income on their tax returns, it's common practice within our trade but not illegal and not on the black. It is quite possible that the gendarme in question did his apprenticeship before joining the force, so there fore he is legally entitled to decorate professionally. Aly

Yeah, classy. Aly

Just a thought, our big fella, the Mayennaise canine equivalent of Brian Ferry (sleazy beggar!) kept fighting and getting abcesses (the last one was enormous and burst in the car on the way to the vets which may have influenced me somewhat). Our vet had kept recommending he be castrated and i kept saying No! but enough was enough and I gave in. He was a very sorry sight when he arrived home, it was funny (for me) because my OH kept wincing in unison with the cat! However, he hasn't looked back, is still the wimp he always was, but doesn't seem to get picked on as much and certainly  hasn't had an abcess for the last 2 years. I do hope he recovers quickly... you always suffer with them, don't you,  the poor wee soul! Aly  

Not if you have a "European" style licence, pink coloured with photo etc. As your main residence is in Britain you need to have a British licence. If you move to France permanently you don't need to change if you have the above. There should be no problem with insurance. Aly  

Welcome Faye, "I have spoken to people that claim to get extra cash doing odd jobs, cutting grass, painting - that kind of thing." Sorry, but painting and decorating is a metier in France. Anyone found doing this without the appropriate qualifications can be prosecuted. As for cutting grass etc, surely the market must be saturated by now? How many brits are actually doing this in sufficient amounts to earn an ( honest) living? I know several Brits whoclaim to do this, but actually they supplement their very meagre earnings by working on the black, which is really a dodgy (never mind immoral) thing to do. What you need to do is learn the language adn take it from there. Can your hubby plaster? There is an accute shortage of metiered people capable of actual plastering here, because new builds are always dry lined. I work in the construction industry and when they have to actually plaster an old property the quality of workmanship is absolutely terrible. The poor guys know this and panic terribly in case we aren't able to decorate the walls!  He may well be able to get work here in Mayenne, but he really must have at least some French. Good luck with everything, and don't give up... we didn't! Aly

Hi Sandra, I have an even better and more productive answer for you. Your local ANPE office has leaflets giving you templates for letters of motivation. They also have a big file with examples of CVs for you to photocopy free of charge and change to suit yourself. Register with Assedic, then take your letter of rejection (assuming you haven't worked for an employer in France) to your local ANPE office and register with them. You then have access to all their resources, including help in your search for employment. Easy! Good luck, Aly

I don't mean to be nasty, but if your girlfriend is working, and your formation with afpa is being paid for (with perhaps a little extra on top), why can't you manage financially? Surely if something is worth doing it is worth a small sacrifice? At the end of the day, the French government is not at fault because you came to France ill equiped to work? (not what I think personally, but what the beurocrats must surely think every time one of us turns up expecting the government to bale us out) My partner did the basic written French course, then a second higher one along with mathematics (in French). He now has certificates for the equivalent level as the Bac in both subjects. At the time I was on sick leave for almost 6 months so we had 6oo euros per month to live on for a family of 4, along with various credit commitments I had taken on because I was in a salaried job. If you want something enough you will go through hell and high water to get it, if not it's just so much hot air. So you starve for a while, so what? Sorry, I don't mean to be offensive, but sometimes I get so fed up with people moaning about having "no money"when actually they have a salary coming in. We lived on about 200 euros per  month for 8 months when we arrived (because we were totally ill equiped for work here), almost 6 years later we are still here and I have employment and my partner has his own business. To be a little lighter ( in pocket as well as in body) is a healthy thing. Or perhaps that's just a Buddhist thing? Good luck whatever you decide, Aly

Exactly Val_2, well said! Sage words as always. Aly

I hope you remember to employ someone who is legally registered as "peindre en batiment" and not a person who does property maintenance, which is not the same thing at all. It is illegal to wallpaper a room without a metier. Sorry, I feel a short time on the old soapbox coming on!!!! Aly

I've been living in limbo for a long time now, sometimes it can be very lonely. I suppose you will all ignore me now (again)! Aly

I don't think so - my employer pays for our lunch if we work over 10 kms from the atelier and we don't pay income tax on the equivalent amount. It's tax deductable for him, so everyone wins. (not the norm in France I know!) Hope this helps and good luck in the new job. Bon appetite (?sp), Aly

But John has bought the house, not sold it.  Surely the vendor would have to pay any tax due, and not John. Aly

Hi Tag, Ours was adorable, but a handful too. When we decided to move to France we advertised and subsequently interviewed prospective new owners for Louie (2). He went to a family who lived in the country (like us) but kept horses, had 5 kids and a very hectic lifestyle. You've guessed it... he never looked back and fitted in perfectly. I think there was so much going on in the house already that it was just like having another kid in the house, and they loved him to bits. We couldn't have been happier for all of them. I do still think of him though! We had our  (male) cat castrated on the advice of our (French) vet because he was fighting......now he's just like Dillon from the Magic Roundabout, so laid back he has actually fallen asleep mid stretch! He is a lovely boy though, like a feline Brian Ferry...sexy and soooo sleazy. (Am I showing my age?......oh, yes!) Might be worth thinking about.....it stops the alpha male thing. Let us know how you get on, Aly

My son used to call all our pets Blackie, OH always wants to call cats Toby (we've had one, two AND three) and dogs Louie (only one and two so far) At one stage we had Toby3 and Louie2 at home, which just served to confirm our neighbours fears that we were really weird! Aly

Thanks for that guys, Mike is very like the photos ofthe roughhaired teckels, but he's black, grey and white which isn't mentioned, so I suppose I've been "had" by the owners!! ( just anothr dumb Brit, ha, ha). As for agility, Mike just loves interaction with humans (obviously we're all equals) climbing things, learning new tricks etc etc.....like a really intelligent only child. He's just so energetic, and no he's not a puppy! I've tried the appero and tennis ball thing, but our garden is small.....I've no sooner thrown the ball than there he is, all merry eyes and waggly rear end wanting a repeat performance, while the glass hasn't had time to reach my lips.....very unfair! The result...one very sober owner and one overexcited dog. Not a happy combination! Mind you... would I change him? Not for a million apperos...well perhaps..... Cheers, Aly

Hi Tag, Try this site....http://www.companyofanimals.co.uk/halti.php       I used the Halti head harness on the recommendation of my vet and it worked a treat from day one. I had a very intellegent lurcher who thought she was the boss and walks were a nightmare. Within a week she was used to it and we both enjoyed our walks. She also became more receptive to commands when off the lead. I had a lab cross before we came to France and he was the most challenging dog I had ever owned..... a lovely boy, but VERY exuberant. Good luck, Aly

Hi Tag, Try this site....http://www.companyofanimals.co.uk/halti.php       I used the Halti head harness on the recommendation of my vet and it worked a treat from day one. I had a very intellegent lurcher who thought she was the boss and walks were a nightmare. Within a week she was used to it and we both enjoyed our walks. She also became more receptive to commands when off the lead. I had a lab cross before we came to France and he was the most challenging dog I had ever owned..... a lovely boy, but VERY exuberant. Good luck, Aly

By the way, the patterdales are lovely, but why is he called red when he's actually black? Aly

Very amusing, Hoverfrog..... We're both bored with the tennis balls (including chasing the ball while my OH and I try to play tennis)/finding the 3 differently coloured rubber bones /chasing (or trying to sh*g) the two cats etc.etc. It was actually a serious request for help.....it's like living with a miniature regimental sergeant major!!! I love him to bits, but he's a bossy little s**t!! Aly

Hi Guys, I have a Teckel (well that's what the farmer called him as I parted with 30 Euros!) and he is a very active little fellow. I think both he and I would enjoy agility classes or something similar. (Our courtyard garden is too small to manage anything). Does anyone know of anything similar in the north west of Mayenne or western Brittany? Any serious suggestions would be most gratefully received by both of us! Thanks, Aly (and Mike)