Garden Seat and Pots

The old garden seat by the apple trees catches the afternoon sun and I like to sit there and daydream for a while. It is almost falling apart and needs patching up but I quite like the mossy patina so am loath to give it a coat of paint.  But this morning I made a cushion for the seat so at least it is clean and comfortable to sit on. I bought a piece of foam that just happened to be the right size and covered it with some summery stripey fabric.  It’s not a tailored piece of upholstery but it does the job.

Yesterday we drove over to the garden centre and spent another small fortune on pots and shrubs for the patio.  We bought another cordyline, a bay (laurel) bush and a purple hebe.  They certainly help to soften the hard landscaping. 

In the Garden

Ribes

I have been outside in the garden this morning pulling ivy that was intertwined around the base of some shrubs.  One of the shrubs was a Ribes (flowering currant); it has a pretty pink flower but the fusty scent reminds me of cat’s pee.  I can still smell it on my hands now.

plum blossom

possibly Chaenomeles (Japanese quince)

Rick has been chasing pigeons while I worked, they have been eating the blossom on our plum trees.

Yesterday I got out the last few apples that were stored in the shed over winter.  It was back in October that I wrapped batches of apple individually and then layered in boxes while I watched Princess Eugenie’s wedding.  I used several different varieties and they have all kept well, the Golden Delicious probably were the least successful.  I still have several bags of apple slices in the freezer.

Window Dressing

velvet and silk like textures

Paul spent hours fixing my new roman blinds.  We have a very wide, box bay window so there were four blinds to put up, with ceiling brackets just to make the job that bit trickier.  Some Jehovah Witnesses arrived as he was perched on a ladder fighting with a screwdriver;  they didn’t know anything about window dressing so he sent them away.

I had the curtains and blinds made to measure.  In the end I’m so glad I didn’t try to make them myself, I struggled enough just pleating the curtains ready to hang.

I’m very pleased with the result.  The colours are a bit understated - taupe and ecru, a bit like dead mouse.  Billy Hammer, my Christmas moose, was the inspiration for my colour theme.  I now need to add a bit of pizzazz to the room; I think I feel some animal print coming on.

Up-Cycling and Polecats

Nothing to do with bicycles this time. 

In a dark corner of the garage I discovered a discarded and dirty old carboy – a very big, glass bottle.  They were originally used for preserving or fermenting liquids but I think people use them for terrariums too.  I have a fancy for turning it into a table lamp.  Paul groaned when I told him this, I can’t think why.

Yesterday he gave it a good clean with the pressure washer and then drilled a hole at the side for an electric wire. I held it firmly while he carefully drilled, holding my breath and expecting the glass to shatter into a thousand pieces.  Luckily it didn’t break.

We have ordered on-line a cork bung for the top opening.  The biggest light fixture we can buy is 50 mm wide but the aperture is 100 mm wide.  My plan is to fit the cork bung and then make a smaller hole in the cork for the light fixture. I shall buy some coloured flex to make it all look a bit snazzy.  Watch this space.

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I cannot go without mentioning my youngest daughter‘s latest acquisition.  Jeremiah is a stuffed polecat - a genuine piece of taxidermy.  I don’t know how she can sleep at night sharing a room with him.  Apparently a lot of the ‘lads’ in her RAF accommodation block have pet gerbils and hamsters.  Kat thought a stuffed polecat would be easier to look after.
 

Kat made him a hat to wear