A fairytale French chateau under restoration

This is the stuff that dreams are made of...

An Australian couple has undertaken the massive task of restoring a 94-room 18th century neoclassical French chateau, in a small village in the Midi-Pyrenees. Following their hearts, Karina and Craig Waters are renovating this hauntingly beautiful chateau, to make it their family home. 

The Chateau de Gudanes, in the village of Chateau Verdun, was designed by Parisian architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel, known for the neoclassical architectural symmetry in his designs, including Petit Trianon and Place de la Concorde. The chateau was famous, in its heyday, as a place for lavish entertaining and rural ambiance. Built for Marquis Louis Gaspard de Sales, the stunning home was spared during the Revolution, and later bought by a local family. It sat uninhabited for many years, left to decay.

The Waters family were nearly out of hope for finding their dream home in rural France, when they finally discovered the chateau. The crumbling yet alluring chateau cast its spell upon them. They bought it in 2013, and waited a number of months to have building permits approved. Now that work is progressing, the chateau is coming back to life.

Karina has been writing a blog about the chateau's restoration, so we can all follow the journey of this home, alongside the Waters family. I'm very excited to see how this enchanting fairytale ends!

{sources: Messy Nessy Chic and the Chateau de Gudanes blog}