Vaca Flaca, skinny cow (also the name of a clothes shop I frequented in 90’s Madrid), has been subject to a substantial re-org. The bathroom, single bed and balcony are at the top, my bedroom (optimistic, when the boys are there) is on the first floor, and the kitchen remains at ground level. Its now four and a half years since I bought the house and this was the year to make some meaningful changes and make it work as a tiny, three floor property of 27 square meters. Juan was happy to do the work, and whilst I had little to go on but his enthusiasm, step ladder and word that he’s done this before, I’ve always had confidence in his ability and vision. And yes, he’s pulled it off. The tiny tower is still standing with less internal walls, more room to manouevre and is a place we can comfortably live.

Top floor – where I had a king size bed for 4 years. The same space holds the bathroom, day bed and the balcony (out of shot).

The second floor – yellow paint and dirt was the original colour scheme. I’ve painted it white for now but an on-going issue is paint blistering in the winter damp, so, nothing yet on the walls.

We managed with a single electric ring, George Foreman grill and downstairs bathroom for four years. Now that the ground floor has been opened up, a kitchen with induction hob, a sofa bed, fridge freezer and storage make this little house far more liveable. We took the entire front door off to get the sofa in; as ever, nothing is a problem. A bonus of three small floors stacked up in a tiny tower are that even though you’d think in a house this size each occupant would be jostling for their share of the 27 square meters, the reality is that the house happily accomodates three people, and allows each to have their own space/floor. Next stop, an additional toilet.