Journal

Notes from Casa Andrea.

Stories from three years of restoration in the Puglian countryside — the casale we found, the architect who imagined what it could become, the craftsmen who carried it through. Long-form notes, posted as we make them.

  1. The restored barrel-vaulted master bedroom of Casa Andrea's original casale, fresh white lime plaster, original arched window framing an olive tree.

    Heritage · 17 May 2026 · 6 min read

    Restoring a barrel vault, two hundred years later

    The vault was the only part of Casa Andrea still standing properly when we found her in October 2022. Bringing it back wasn't about making it new — it was about making it visible again. A few notes on lime, stone, and the lessons we got wrong.

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  2. Signed watercolour rendering by architect Claudio Monnini, April 2023 — Casa Andrea designed around a single centenary olive tree at the centre of the courtyard.

    Architecture · 17 May 2026 · 7 min read

    An olive tree at the heart of a house

    When Claudio Monnini drew the first sketch of Casa Andrea in August 2022, he placed one olive tree at the very centre of the courtyard. Every line of the project — the two new wings, the pool, the steps — was bent around that one tree. Why we did it that way, and what we learned about building around something older than the wall.

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