January Jobs

Making the decision to sell up and set up the Long Barn was the second best decision we’ve ever made.  For those of you wondering, our best was to agree to go out for a date together when we met many years ago at Leeds Uni.

We feel very lucky to have made these two decisions, especially at this time of year. The media is full of articles of resolutions, suggestions and manifestations of how to change our lives. And this week is full of angst as many people head back to jobs they want to change and routines they want to avoid. Our January’s since becoming self-employed feel very different. The exception was when we were in the middle of covid; luckily at that point we had no idea that the Long Barn would be closed for 2 years.

We feel very lucky to love what we do, and hope that it shows when you stay at the Long Barn.

January for us is about taking stock and giving some extra special TLC to the barns after a busy year of celebrations, reunions and holidays. This January is no different, and we have a bigger than ever job list which seems to grow every time we walk round the barn. After the snow this weekend, today is one of those crisp big blue-sky days. And tempting as it is to head for the hills, we are applying ourselves to getting stuff done in the Long Barn. It’s all the easier to see what needs to be done in bright natural light (note to self, chase up window cleaner)

Mike, previously our builder and now our decorator (and friend) arrives every January for a couple of weeks to work his way through our to do list of painting jobs. We touch up the paintwork every time we have a gap, but Mike’s skills mean that entire rooms can get a refresh of paint as needed. It’s always the kitchen, hallways and stairs along with several bedrooms/bathrooms on rotation.

Our wonderful team of girls have begun to deep clean every room from top to bottom. They all love a check list and especially the final point – “Anything Ian and Jackie need to do?” Wardrobes get pulled out, insides of drawers get dusted, paintwork gets washed. All crockery and glass gets an extra special check to remove any which are not 100% sparkling. We pride ourselves in our cleaning standards, but it’s great to really be able to take our time.  6 hours between guests leaving and arriving is a tight turn around for a place as big as the Long Barn.

Ian is on maintenance/repairing jobs from light pulls to radiators to coffee machines. Jackie is on laundry with all cushion covers and throws washed for the new year. We do this in rotation between changeovers. But there is something really satisfying about washing everything in one go so that it is all ready for our returning guests. Jackie is a big fan of no nonsense Nancy Birtwhistle who is her guru for cleaning tips and solutions for removing stains. Her cleaning hacks have saved our bacon several times in the last year.

This year we are replacing another two bedroom’s carpets (two were replaced last year) along with the main stair and landing carpets. Our local carpet firm Calverts, must love us when we wander in and decisively order the years replacements. We’re also getting one of our sofa’s re-sprung as well as replacing a rug or two. So moving furniture about later in the month will certainly help work off some of our Christmas excesses.

January is also the month to strip, sand and oil the oak floors in the kitchen and dining room. It takes several days with both of us on our hands and knees but is the final job that signifies the barn is back and ready for action.

Then it’s on to those other less physical jobs; refresh the web site, reinvigorate our digital welcome guide and plan the next few months social media. However, we have promised ourselves that we will fit all our January jobs around some much-needed market research. Which may involve some long walks, lunches and the odd café stop. After all, we need to keep our local knowledge as up to date as possible for all our guests.

We hope that you all have a wonderful 2025. And that we may be welcoming many of you back to the Long Barn, or some for your first ever visit in the months ahead.