Rotavating

The above photos are a bit misleading. Today I decided to rent a rotavator and make a real stab at the ground on the allotment. My folks came down for the day to lend a hand and we were so happy and positive with the sun shining and a picnic ready for our lunch time break. What we didn't anticipate was how hard the ground was! We presumed that the turf would be able to be worked into the ground, slowly rotting and adding nutrients to the soil, but the turf was so tough that we soon realised we would be better off doing it by hand. So after a combination of petrol rotavator and spade and fork power the plot looked like this...

The plus side was, when we arrived at the allotment we had a very special surprise waiting for us. A juicy delicious ripe strawberry!

I hope you all have a lovely weekend. My plans are a nice lunch in Lacock on Saturday and more bathroom preparation on Sunday.
xx

Allotment Update!

I got told off! With all the moving and working and markets, etc. etc. the allotment got abandoned! And what happens when you ignore your plot? The grass grows and you get a letter from the Allotment Association telling you to cut your grass or you will be kicked out!

So I begin cutting the grass with a push along lawn mower (no electric at the allotment and a petrol mower was too heavy for me to carry down) and I give myself lots of blisters and tears, until a neighbour rescues me and cuts it with their petrol mower! And after some additional toiling the plot looks like this...

...our progress is probably considered slow.

But we finally have a water butt and a completed base for a shed. The soft fruits are coming along and my potato bags are looking healthy. I have covered over some areas of grass ready for beds and added some nice reclaimed wood around the completed one. Next addition will be a compost bin!
xx

The First Project: The Bathroom

So, we have decided to tackle the bathroom first. It was really the only room that we didn't do anything to before we moved in. But now that we are here I feel we need to have somewhere we can escape to after a hard day DIYing. The above image is a reminder of what we were dealing with when we first moved in, but after a weekend of hard work (not to mention removing an electric shower and water pipes!) the bathroom now looks like this...

We have removed all the wall tiles, the airing cupboard and the ceiling. Basically we are at the bare bones stage. Now that we have an opportunity to assess the condition of the walls, we are thinking that we need to replace/insulate some of them with plaster board and carry out some heavy duty fills before we can take the next step. But my hope is by the end of August the bathroom will be complete!
xx

House Tour: At First Sight

So we got the keys and this is the sight that meets us as we opened the door for the first time...

The Porch

The Front Room

The Kitchen

The Garden

The Stairs

The Bathroom

The Bedroom

The Studio

It obviously needs a lot of cosmetic work but it was also lacking hot water and a central heating system. So hot water we now have, central heating we now have in most rooms and slowly we have stripped back to reveal the bare bones of this house. I'll try and give you more detail room by room as things develop - this weekend we are removing the bathroom tiles!

xx

The Hardest Month

Hello! I must apologies for having been so long, but this last month has been the hardest month I have ever experienced.

Never mind trying to maintain my 2 part-time jobs, whilst doing markets, (a wedding and 3 birthdays thrown in for good measure) and completely overhauling the new house -  in between everything we had some devastating news that shook my family to the core and a second scare which involved hospital visits to intensive care.

I have cried a lot this month and been reflecting a great deal.

But with every last breath there is new life and my strawberries on the allotment, producing beautiful flowers and tasty treats to come, bring a smile to my face. We are still not fully back up and running but the blog will hopefully be returning to normal, and the shop will soon follow suit (once I have unpacked everything!).

Also, stay tuned for the house tour which will be coming soon!
xx