It鈥檚 not everyone鈥檚 dream to live with their extended family in two houses that are next door to each other and linked by a breezeway, but that鈥檚 what four generations of Laurel Hibbert鈥檚 family have done on their semi-rural property on the outskirts of Duncan.
鈥淢y husband and I, and our two daughters, came here in 1989 with my parents. We lived in the little house next door and my parents lived here in the larger house,鈥� said Laurel.
鈥淚 raised my children there and when my parents died and my children were grown, we moved into the larger house, and my daughter raised her children in the other house. 鈥淪he lives there with her husband now, and [her] son and daughter-in-law, Matthew and Autumn, and our granddaughter Morgan.鈥�
They eat all their meals together, along with the Hibberts鈥� two international students. Laurel and her daughter, Meghan, take turns doing the cooking. 鈥淪he does about four dinners a week and I do the rest, and my son-in-law likes to clean up.鈥�
The international students 鈥� from China and Brazil 鈥� pitch in, too.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had international students for more than 12 years because I love having young people around. We import them for fun,鈥� she said with a chuckle.
Laurel, whose lineage is Scottish while her husband is from Wales, retired from teaching 10 years ago. When she put down the chalk, she picked up a paintbrush.
Her studio is once again featured on the upcoming Cowichan Artisans Open Studio Tour on Nov. 3 and 4, which she anticipates with glee: 鈥淚t鈥檚 the most fun I have all year 鈥� meeting so many marvellous people.鈥� (See sidebar below)
Although she paints full time, she and her playwright husband have undertaken numerous improvements to their home, including replacing all its plumbing and wiring.
They converted one small room into a bedroom by stealing some space from the living room, and turned another bedroom into a second bathroom.
Granddaughter Morgan, 19, is handy with a hammer and saw, and enjoys redesigning, too.
鈥淥ne day, she slapped down three drawings in front of me and said the big ugly cupboards in the pantry had to go.
鈥淚 was told I had to pick one of her designs,鈥� said Laurel.
鈥淪o I picked one and she built it. She likes power tools and is very much a House Beautiful kind of girl 鈥� very meticulous. She designs her own furniture, and the changes she made to the pantry have really improved my life.鈥�
Laurel鈥檚 son-in-law, Troy Goodwin, made many improvements, too.
One winter, he knocked out an unattractive window in the kitchen and replaced it with a mullioned one. 鈥淲e tend to do things when we feel like it, and it was a bit of a rush putting the new one in, but the new window is much prettier,鈥� said Laurel.
He also created a 2.5-metre-wide covered deck that stretches the length of the house. The family now gathers here for meals all summer long, and on warm days in fall and spring.
During the hot months, Laurel hangs some of her colourful tablecloths, like curtains, to cut the glare and heat. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very nice place to take a nap.鈥�
Her son-in-law, assisted by Meghan, also repaired and improved her studio, which used to be a garage. But his biggest effort was the massive job of rebuilding a bridge that leads to the houses across a nearby creek.
鈥淭roy has so many skills and the new bridge is a marvel of engineering,鈥� said Laurel, noting the original one was built by the same man who built their homes in the 1930s.
鈥淗e was a boatbuilder and quite well known in the area. His workshop was across the creek.鈥� Before he built the bridge in the 1940s, he had a gondola that he travelled back and forth on, she said.
鈥淭wo years ago, our son-in-law rebuilt it with a friend, following the same basic construction and making some improvements along the way.鈥�
The new span is about 20 metres long, four across. Depending on the time of year, it ranges from four to six metres above the water.
The stream, which is called Bings Creek, becomes 鈥渜uite the raging torrent in the winter,鈥� said Laurel. 鈥淭he level rises immensely and there is a lot of whitewater there.鈥�
The artist has an industrious family, which is perhaps why her canvases are often alive with characters busily accomplishing things. 鈥淚t usually looks like something just happened or is about to happen.鈥�
Not surprisingly, her favourite artist is Flemish Renaissance painter Pieter Bruegel, who was known for his strong landscapes filled with hardworking people. She loves both the activity and his colour palette.
The colours and textures in her environment inspire her, too.
鈥淭his property is idyllic. We were so lucky to find a one-acre place with two homes on it, and the idea of owning our own bridge was very exciting when we first saw it.鈥�
While it feels like they鈥檙e living in the country, they鈥檙e just five minutes from downtown Duncan, she said.
鈥淎nd we feel specially lucky that we all get along well enough to live this close. It鈥檚 been a dream of mine ever since we lived next door to my grandmother in Quebec.鈥�
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What: Cowichan Artisans Open Studio Tour
Where: Cowichan Valley
When: From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. November 3 and 4
Tickets: Free-self guided tour
The open-studio weekend is a chance to visit the small galleries and private working spaces of many award-winning fine-craft artisans.
It includes the Coventry Woodworks workshop of Karen Trickett and Cam Russell. He create tables, desks, cabinets, chests, beds, picture frames out of Cowichan Valley woods such as western maple, Garry oak, arbutus, fir and cedar. She is an expert in marquetry, the art of making pictures from small pieces of intricately cut wood.
Jennifer Lawson paints herds of fluffy sheep, meadow flowers, riotous country gardens and character houses, while Andreas and Naomi Kunert use stone to create mosaics, portals and portraits.
The tour will also feature John Lore of Live Edge Design; Ken Broadland of Heartwood Studio; Cathi Jefferson, who makes salt-fired stoneware; furniture restorers and painters Bonnie and Arwen Schmaus; Mary Fox, who creates fine pottery; Kilnart glass vessels by Jo Ludwig; glass jewelry by Peggy Brackett; and photos by Nikki Hollett.
Visitors can also savour other delights of the valley 鈥� food, wine and fresh produce 鈥� at numerous stops along the way. Maps are at cowichanartisans.com.
