Finally finished putting the office desk back together following the decorating and new carpet. Because the new carpet is thicker than the old one it lifted the desk up higher and meant that the top of the desk was too big because of the slope under the stairs. I got Mark to take some off with the circular saw which was better but I still had to take the corner off the drawer unit and the top drawer. Anyway all sorted now and set back up and I can finally use my lovely captain's chair.
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After coming back from Northern Ireland I went into the office on Wednesday. Thursday was the Historical Society (Battle of Worcester) and they were having a cake sale for MacMillan's so on Thursday morning I baked a Mary Berry Blueberry and Lime Drizzle which went down very well. I picked Shelagh up and took her with me and then stayed for a chat when I dropped her off. On Friday I decided to advertise the old table and chairs as they were now in the way. I posted them on Shpock and then thought I might try Facebook Marketplace. Well, within 10 minutes of posting the chairs on Facebook I'd had four enquiries and someone had agreed to collect them! Within an hour they had had 101 views. Someone is also going to collect the table on Monday and a red painted dining chair that I have been trying to sell for a while. Both of these sold through Shpock. I also glued a couple of the bits of damage on the new table where the veneer had splintered when it got dropped and weighted them down overnight. They stuck quite well so on Saturday morning I went to B&Q to get some wood filler and filled in the dips. The one edge of the table had a chunk missing underneath so I sanded that and put some varnish on. Finally I gave the whole table a coat of wax to protect it. I have decided to keep it extended as I'm worried about the hinges if I try to fold it up. They seem wobbly. Anyway I think it looks better extended. In the afternoon I offered to take Shelagh to look for a new mattress and I had also thought about getting one myself too so I didn't mind taking her. Gosh aren't mattresses confusing and expensive! The best ones for comfort seem to be the ones with the layer of latex on the top but these are very deep and poor Shelagh is only little so when she sat on the side of the bed her feet didn't touch the floor and she was sliding off. We asked if there were any thinner ones and they found one a bit thinner but it was £1,000!!!! I don't think she'll be having that one so it's back to the drawing board. We went for a nice meal afterwards anyway at Brewers Fayre. I think I may keep my mattress and get a latex topper instead.
On Sunday I met Mark and Michelle at the storage yard as they had offered to hep me to get the winter cover on the van. It needs at least two people and two broom stails to lift the cover up and over the top. I took the last few things out, drained the water, left all the taps open, left the fridge and all the cupboards open to circulate the air and brought the battery home. The outside was lovely and clean as Dave at the site had cleaned it for me so hopefully it will be all nice and snug now for the winter. (Forgot to take a picture). Popped to the new Smyths Toys shop in Solihull on the way back as they had some good offers and got a Christmas present! Yay! I am seriously behind with my presents this year. Must make more effort. Also called in Aldi and picked up a birthday present for my sister (she wants a glue gun) and some nice biscuits for Christmas presents. (See, I'm on a roll now). On Monday I had to go to Northern Ireland for a meeting on Tuesday for work. I had a taxi to and from the airport as it works out about the same as claiming mileage and airport parking. The meeting was being held in a nice hotel called the Dunadry in Antrim and I was able to stay there as well which was good. The hotel was by the side of a river and was once a linen mill. The meeting went well but the only flight I could get home on Wednesday was ten past eight at night so it made it a long day. Back in the house for half past ten. My new table and chairs arrived on Friday morning. To explain I bought them from a guy who buys written-off stock from companies such as Wayfair and The Range. He has a small warehouse which is an Aladdin's cave of all sorts of things. I saw the oak table advertised on Facebook Marketplace and it was just what I had been looking for, a round table that converts to oval. It was advertised at £40 (£299 in The Range) as it had a small bit of damage on the top (nothing that a bit of wood filler won't cure). It was still boxed and extremely heavy so the guy agreed to deliver it for me. I asked if he had any dining chairs and he showed me some grey upholstered chairs which oak legs that went with the table very nicely so I agreed to have 6 of them at £60 a pair. When the guy came to deliver the table however he said that it had a bit more damage underneath that he hadn't noticed and therefore would not charge me anything for it! Mark and Michelle came round on Saturday to help put it all together and we decided that the table had probably been dropped at some stage as the brackets for the centre leaves were bent meaning that the centre section would not lie flat. Anyway Mark managed to remove the brackets, straighten them out with pliers and then refit fit them so the centre section now lies flat. Just a couple of very small chips that need some wood filler and then the whole table needs to be waxed to protect it. Not bad for nothing and a bit of TLC! The chairs were perfect except that the wrong size bolts had been supplied for the front legs, they were too long and 'bottomed out' before they had tightened up. This was solved by a quick trip to B&Q to get some oversized nuts to act as spacers. The table is just the same shade as the sideboard and the kitchen worktops and although grey is not my favourite colour the chairs go quite well with the wallpaper. Had to go up to Scotland again on Tuesday for a meeting on Wednesday. Stayed at the Fitzroy again in Perth. Weather was OK, bit breezy and some rain but not too bad. Quite late getting back on Wednesday night though.
This morning I went to look at a nice oak dining table and chairs and arranged to have them delivered tomorrow morning. I am hoping that they will match with my new kitchen units and sideboard which all have oak tops. Will post some pictures when they are all in place. This afternoon I went to see Prism with Robert Lindsay at the Rep which was excellent. Caught the 14.55 train on Friday to London Euston and the tube to Brixton where Scarlett met me and we caught a bus to West Norwood where she lives now. Her new flat is lovely. This time it is on the ground floor of a large Victorian house and has a sort of courtyard at the side and a garden. It has a living room at the front with a big bay window, next a bedroom with patio door to the courtyard, next the kitchen which also has a bay widow looking onto the courtyard, then the bathroom, some stairs leading to the main bedroom upstairs and then a small utility room at the back with a door to the courtyard and garden. The picture below was taken through the french doors of the bedroom on Sunday morning. It had been raining in the night but was nice later and we sat outside to eat lunch.  On Saturday we went to Crystal Palace which is a short bus ride further out of London. It is very high up which is I suppose why the BBC transmitter is there. The park is quite big and is where the 'Crystal Palace' used for the Great Exhibition of 1851 was moved to after the exhibition in Hyde Park and stood there till 1936 when it was destroyed by fire. The walls, grand staircases and a few statues are still there however which give an idea of the size of the building which was huge! (19 acres). It was designed by Joseph Paxton who was an architect, MP and gardener and it took just 9 months to build. The glass, as I learned recently, was supplied by Chance Glass in Smethwick. The park is also home to a rather unusual collection of sculptures of prehistoric animals. They were made in 1854 just after the crystal palace was moved from Hyde Park and were the first dinosaur sculptures in the world. The Crystal Palace athletic stadium is also on the same site. After our walk round the park we went and got something to eat in a nice bakery and had a look round the town. You can see from the photo how high up it is and you can pick out quite a few landmarks in the picture. We looked in a few interesting vintage shops including a great little courtyard crammed full of little shops. Later we went out for a pizza and to the local cinema to see Judy which was excellent.
On Sunday morning we walked into West Norwood to the 'FEAST' which is a collection of stalls all around the town selling food and crafts. We also walked through the cemetery which was fascinating, full of very grand Victorian family vaults including the Tates (Tate and Lyle, Tate Gallery) and Henry Doulton (pottery) both of which are built of terracotta and have mosaic ceilings. Back home now but looking forward to going again later in the year. My last day in Broadway today and not raining! Decided to explore the site a little. It is actually on 3 levels, the top level only has about 5 pitches and is right by the railway line. It is therefore very popular. The middle level where I am has about 15 pitches and the bottom level is huge with over 90 pitches. The site is well laid out and nicely spaced. The reception sign looks like an old railway sign and there is an old goods wagon in the entrance. There was a train due so I also managed to get a few photos as it went past to and from the station. (Broadway is the end of the line). Still not raining so thought I would go to Evesham. I have been looking for a mustard/gold jumper to wear under other things for the autumn and managed to find exactly what I was looking for! I grabbed some lunch and a coffee from Greggs and headed back. Wind has picked up and it is starting to rain. Hope it stops for me to pack up in the morning. Need to get an early start back as I am catching the train to London in the afternoon to visit my sister Scarlett in her new flat. Looking forward to it. Will do some more crochet tonight. Working on the Hobbycraft Water Garden CAL. Still a lot to do.  Enjoying a few days here in the Cotswolds. I arrived on Monday at about 1.30. It only took me half an hour from the storage yard. Shortest journey ever! Unfortunately it rained in the afternoon so I wasn't really able to go out but Tuesday morning looked ok and was quite mild so I went to Bourton-on-the-Water. I have been there many times but still love it, so pretty. Stopped off at Stow-on-the-Wold on the way back. I parked on Tesco car park, did a bit of shopping and then had a walk round. I don't think I have ever had a good walk round Stow as it is always busy and impossible to park. There was a lot more to the town than I thought and I got a nice pair of teal blue jeans from Fatface in the sale. I just got back before the heavens opened and the thunder rolled so spent the rest of the afternoon and evening crocheting and watching the box set of Madmen. After a cold start today the weather was much better so I decided to go on the steam train. (I have a weakness for steam trains). The caravan site is alongside the railway line and the station just opposite the entrance. I wanted to make sure it was a steam train and not a diesel so I opted for the 12.15. That gave me time to have a look at the Wanderer which is stored on site. The Wanderer is probably the forerunner of the modern caravan and was built in 1885. It is kept in a glass case so it was difficult to take photographs but it is a lot bigger than I expected it to be. Poor horses! I walked across to the station and caught the 12.15 steam train to Cheltenham Racecourse. The station only re-opened in 2018. The journey takes about an hour and passes over a viaduct and through some very pretty countryside. When I got back I had some lunch and went for a walk into Broadway. Very pretty and very expensive! |
AuthorI am Jenny (when I was little my dad always called me Jenny Wren) and I enjoy making hand crafted things. Watch this space to see what I am working on. Archives
December 2021
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