Sanity almost restored

Well its been quite a week really but things are much calmer now. I spent an hour every evening last week, varnishing the attic floor. Obviously this then meant that I has less time to keep up with the house work. On top of this the washing machine blew up on Tuesday morning so I did begin to feel a little defeated by Friday morning. I looked at the house and wondered how I was going to sort it all out by next week. Anyway, that's it for the self pity for now!

Friday evening was busy to say the least. The new washing machine was due to arrive on Saturday so I decided that whilst I had one less item in the 'Sun Room' I may as well take the opportunity to lay down some cheap flooring in there to clean it up a little. (I have ambitious long term plans for this area so there is little point doing anything too expensive or permanent.) I called in to my second home aka B&Q on the way home from work and picked up some pre-cut Lino for £48 that was almost the perfect size. A few hours and bruises later and this is now my 'Sun Room' (named, as only estate agents can, when I bought the house) looked...

So as you can see, the new washing machine has now arrived too so at least we all have clean clothes. I don't tend to get that excited about laundry appliances however, when it reached the end of it's first wash and played me about 30 seconds worth of Schubert's 'The Trout' I was quite amused by it. I'm not sure next door's dogs were so pleased and I also think the novelty may wear thin over the coming months but it made me laugh at the time. You have to love the Korean's for their sense of humour!

Back to Friday evening then. With the attic floor varnished I was finally able to move out of the front room and restore that back to a living area again (I couldn't even get the hoover in there properly to clean it while it was a bedroom so you can imagine the mess!). I was so so so pleased to be able to sleep in the attic again with all its light, white walls and open window, it was bliss! 

So today, I was contemplating a trip to the Blakemere Craft Centre mostly because they have a lovely little wool shop there but I was very sensible and reminded myself about the bags and bags of wool I already had. I raided the cupboard and found one of many stashes that I had forgotten I owned and set about searching Ravelry for a suitable pattern.  I came up with a cowl ( a bit wintery but if I don't make them in the summer than it doesn't seem to happen until it's too late)...

It's a cheap 'Wool MIx' batch of wool from Aberkahn, its really soft and chunky but I just hope it remains so after washing it. It won't take long to finish though as I'm using big 10mm needles. 

I got a bit homely and baked a batch of cheese scones that I had been thinking about making all week.

Finally I have to show you 2 more pictures. The first is something I noticed about 15 minutes ago when I went to put some rubbish out...

Roses!!! I grew those! In a pot! The plant even had greenfly at one point too. Look...2 of them! It made me smile lots.

And this one, of 2 of the nest after a summer fayre at the school...

My eldest clearly proving that you are never 'too cool' to have a dalmatian painted on your face. 

Let's hope next week is a bit less busy! Enjoy your week. 

The Attic Floor!!

Short and sweet post just to show you this...

Yes, my brilliant Joiner who lives next door (everyone should have one - it's just so convenient), has spent his day doing this for me. I have since spent the last couple of hours sanding, cleaning, cleaning more and then varnishing. There is still more varnishing to be done but it already looks beautiful. The whole process, if I'm honest, is a bit of a mission, but every hour I spend working on it gets me a little closer to moving back up there and I CAN'T WAIT!!

Back soon x 

Completely in Love

It's true! I am completely in love. Who? A Man? Well I might be but that's not what I meant. I am currently, totally and completely in love with Vivod again. Just like when I first found it. I adore it . I, once again, want to make Vivod the most beautiful and loved home on the planet. I love coming home, love cleaning (! seriously), love just being here and love love love doing things to make it more beautiful. This weekend I have devoted a lot of time to doing just that.

My weekend project has been the stairs. It's taken a while to decide what to do with the stairs. I was planning on a stripy carpet but then somebody suggested stripping the bannister, and painting the spindles white. Initially I wasn't sold on the idea but then a little googling later and I extended that concept to the stairs too. (Stripped and varnished steps with white risers.) I think the arrival of all the flooring for the attic may have helped this idea along too. It is beautiful, after all.

So let me remind you. This is how my stairs have looked since I moved in...

Grim really. So I dug out the heat gun, the sandpaper, sanders, and even purchased a little corner sander too. I made a start, there is plenty more to do but I already love the stairs that are done (that's very much the minority too!)...

Plenty more to go...

It's not easy. The heat gun makes the whole area like a sauna and I've burnt myself about 4 times so far. The sanding with the electric sanders is ok but it's far from simple, and that paint and grime has been there for years and years so persuading it to leave isn't easy. The little sander for the corners and stubborn bits is ok but takes ages, and then the hand sanding, well, that just isn't fun and dries my hands out loads (not ideal for wool lovers!). But it's worth it. Each little sanded area is like a triumph. It's great.

The unsanded ones look so dirty now though. It's probably a good thing because it will motivate me more to get on and finish them. This week I also hope to be busy varnishing the attic floor so that I can move back up there. 

So other than the stairs I have spent the weekend hooking along with the blankets (some of which was done in the park while child #3 launched himself off ramps on a BMX - still scary). I've cleaned, tidied, and spent time googling other ideas for Vivod. 

Hopefully I can show you the finished stairs quite soon.

Sunny creative days

I LOVE summer. Lately I've spent the majority of my spare time outside, mostly in my own garden now I have my little 'Pocket of Paradise' at the end of it...

This was Sunday pretty much...

Sat amongst my blooming pots and hanging buckets...

Rippling away...

Reading magazines and, at the end of the day, drinking a nice chilled glass of wine.

I'm being very creative lately, I feel the need to do homely things too and 'make pretty things'. Of course, as usual, I have lots of things on the go but nothing finished to actually show you. 

I have done lots of Ripples and Stripes...

This was taken before the weekend so its actually quite a few ripples bigger now.

I'm beginning to adore this one too.

I've also found a use for one of the places in Vivod that has bugged me for 2 years because it seemed like such a waste of space. It's the landing, beneath the attic stairs. Since we moved in its only ever been a dumping ground and it's driven me mad! Then I realised that if I cleaned up the old dressing table that was left in the house, and reorganised it all it would make a lovely little work area (or blogging area as it's being used for right now) so I made the effort and look...

I have a few more plans to make it nicer but its functional as it is now which is making me happy. (It's also handy for sitting at while I make sure that Child #3 stays in bed when he is suppose to be - its practically right outside his bedroom door!)

See that chair? I have plans for it. It was £10 from the second hand furniture shop just at the bottom of my road. The best thing was that when I went there to get it I also found this...

I have been looking for a rocking chair for AGES, and it was nearly my birthday, and I did haggle the price down a bit too - so quite justified really. Obviously, though, it needed a little bit of attention, and currently looks more like this...

Its far from finished but you will see the final product shortly (when it stops being so sunny and I actually want to stay in and paint).

Anyway, I think that's it for now. Hope you are enjoying the sunshine as much as me!

Attic Renovation Part III

Well it's been a little while since I gave you an attic renovation update so I figured it was time. 

Since my last attic post I have vacated the attic, and my 'bedroom' is currently the front room downstairs. This is far from ideal...no privacy, noise, too hot and can't open a window, barely any space etc etc. It's all for a good cause though and lots of progress has been made upstairs.

First of all the plasterers arrived. When I first met the Plasterer and asked "What are you like at curves?" he responded ... "Well I can do 'em".  Hmm. I wasn't convinced but he was recommended and I decided that the worst case would be that the work was a disaster and an agreement reached on the payment following this. I left them to it.

Turns out the man does curves. Really well...

Ok, so it's not painted yet. I thought that when I painted it I would maybe see that it wasn't quite so perfect. I was wrong.

Still perfect (not that the camera really liked capturing purely white walls!)

I've not finished painting yet although I am impressed with this first coat considering this was B&Q's value paint at £6 for 2.5 litres. I did hover to the slightly more expensive stuff at double the price but I decided that as I was only using it as base coat that I'd stick with the cheap stuff. Good decision.

We now have heat in the attic thanks to Flintshire Plumbing and Heating. (Not that I have it switched on in this current heatwave but it will be a luxury this winter.)

So, its the floor next and hence on Wednesday all of this arrived...

22sq yards of reclaimed pine, pre sanded. I love Vivod but it is a standard 1900 terraced layout. Consequently there is no way that 9ft floor boards can make it from front door to attic via the inside of the house. Child #1's bedroom window was really the only option. I think the process amused passers by and a couple of the neighbours. 5ft 2" woman Vs 9ft plank I guess is sightly comical to watch. Anyway 2 hours later the above wood has been relocated to the attic or here...

(The Landing)

So now I am getting a little excited at the prospect that once the floor is fitted and I've varnished it I can actually move back upstairs again, I can't wait! The downside is that I have to do the second coat of paint in the attic as soon as possible, and this weekend I should be relaxing and celebrating my 35th birthday instead. I'm sure I can find the time to do both though if I try.

Outside Space

At the beginning of this year I said that I would make the effort to so something with my outside spaces this year. The front garden isn't too bad, just a bit boring and normal but its tidy and the shrubs and rosemary I planted last summer are doing well. The back garden, however, is a different story...

It has potential but requires a bit of investment really and I guess that's one of the reasons I haven't given it too much thought over the last couple of years. Lately it seems to have bugged me a bit more though and yesterday must have been the final straw. Yesterday I sat out there, crocheting, and all I wanted was a table. Just a table. To put a drink on, or a hook, or book etc. It just annoyed me that I didn't even have a table out there!

Its the space at the bottom of the garden (where the bins and chairs are above) that I have the most inspiration for because that's the spot that you get the sun for the longest in. Its not there first thing because the back walls block it. By late morning, though, its sunny and remains so all day until the sun starts to set at the front of the house. In my head I picture myself sat there at the end of each day surrounded by colourful plants and pots, at varying heights, reading or knitting, or just doing nothing for once.

I like cluttered gardens, full of interesting pots and recycled containers. I hate contemporary gardens, especially in a house like mine, like those you see on TV, or in garden centre brochures that just have a bench, pergola and water feature. I just don't see the point. A garden is suppose to be alive and vibrant, I don't understand the minimalist thing outside at all but each to their own.

I have a whole pinterest board dedicated to the kind of stuff I like, but recently I watched an episode of 'Amazing Spaces' on Channel 4 that featured a flat in London with a brilliant garden. The flat itself is actually a converted underground public toilet block. Sounds revolting but when you see it (google it - there is loads about it on the internet but here are some photos) it really is amazing. However, whilst the flat is lovely, its the outside space that impresses me the most. They turned the entrance (stairwell) of one of the sets of toilets into a 'garden'...

I know it won't impress everyone but I love it because it's a tiny space (my garden is small), the designer retained bits of the building's original use within the renovation, like the tiles and security gate, and its cluttered with plants in pots. That's all I really want.

I looked at it again this morning, and realised that it wouldn't actually take much to turn that section at the end of my garden (which was once an outbuilding, probably including the toilet, and remains of it still exist) into something a lot better. So much for my nice relaxing weekend of doing nothing (this always seems to happen though). Within a couple of hours I was on my way back from B&Q armed with a table and chairs, plants and various other items.

To be honest there wasn't that much work involved but the main task this was to remove all of the old floor tiles that had been down for decades. They were stuck down really well (well I guess that's obvious from the amount of time they have been there) so removing them wasn't easy and I am already feeling the aching in my arms, hands and shoulders - tomorrow will be agony at this rate. I still have a few to do but I did as many as I could before I finally gave in at 5pm. I was then able to sit and appreciate this...

I do have further plans for the walls and floor but this will do for now - and I have a table!

I just had to have the dragonfly...he blends in so well with the look.

I love that the original gazed bricks are visible, albeit a bit worn. I love that the perimeter walls of the old outhouse are still a brick high in most parts around this area. I also love that this little window that I retrieved from the attic clear out last month now seems to just blend in here - I'm not really sure what else to do with it but it's a little bit of Vivod history that I don't want to skip just yet.

So my day ended with me sitting in the sun, crocheting, glass of wine (on the table!), appreciating the calm around me while the birds sang. Ok, not quite, at 5pm I sat at the table, with a nice chilled glass of vino, and the ripple blanket, crocheting away whilst listening to the 'entertainment' from the local pub, alongside my neighbours arguing, and the birds trying their best to out do the lot. Thankfully, I generally live with a 'live and let live' philosophy and a sense of humour helps so it all just made me giggle. Despite all of it, I was happy and sat there smiling like a lunatic for a short while just looking around. It clearly doesn't take that much to make me happy.

Now I am longing for a nice long hot summer so I can make the most of this but I will settle for the odd day or two here and there as usual. Rain tomorrow though apparently...nevermind!

Ok...where did May go??

I'm such a rubbish blogger lately! To be honest, apart from my antics last weekend I have done nothing but work and paint the attic so it wouldn't really make for very exciting reading.

Anyway, the funding deadline at work is out of the way, and next week is half term so no (or very little anyway) work for me. I'm seriously in need of some playtime I think. 

Last weekend was good though. Recently Child #2 has been rather challenging to parent resulting in meetings at the school regarding behaviour and commitment. During such a meeting it was suggested that Child #2 should be offered a reward as an incentive to stick to her promise of good behaviour and attendance. That's all well and good for her (should she stick to the plan) but I realised that Child #1 attends every lesson without any issues, never causes me any problems with the school, and has spent the last couple of weeks with her head in GCSE revision and coursework. It seemed only fair that she should be rewarded now, for doing what child #2 needs to work towards. One purchased River Island outfit later and all was good and fair again.

In the evening I finally managed to catch up with a good friend over a bite to eat at the Glasfryn in Mold (totally delicious food!). I think we last managed this back in September and I commented then about how it never seems to happen often enough - once again we have vowed to do it again a bit sooner...we will see! 

Sunday was nice too. We went to a 'Family Fun Day' for charity...

Child #1 in 'reward outfit' of course - not particularly good Tractor Wear though!

The weekend was finished off with another meal at another pub! By Monday I was back on the fish and salad, and avoiding the scales! :-)

So this weekend I have the following planned...

• Crochet
• Knititng (maybe)
• Reading
• Sewing (maybe)
• Wool/fabric etc shopping at the Wool Heaven (aka Aberkhan)
• Hanging Basket Shopping
• More Crochet

Well I better get cracking...but for once the list excludes 'Work'!