Crumbs !!!

Hello, it's a nice day and I have been out . I went out yesterday as well, to visit The Ropewalk Gallery in Barton on Humber. I haven't been for ages so decided to take a look at the exhibitions. I was lucky, there were two extremely talented artists on show, this one was very pleasing to the eye. This is my kind of art, the sort that makes me go 'wow',, innit fabulous. The pictures here are photographed from the leaflet I brought home, there is a bit of blurb about Clive Redshaw below. 

Here is a link to the Ropewalk web site. There are some more of his pictures on the Lincolnshire Open Studios  web site. I really enjoyed this exhibition. 

On a completely different note, I've been getting fed up of clearing away bread crumbs and other bits of chopped and grated food from my worktop. Some of it inevitably ends up on the floor as I try and wipe it up with a dishcloth, which then means I have to clean the floor as well. Grrrr, I hate housework. I've come up with an idea which I am trying out. I don't want to get a bigger chopping board, mine is a normal size one which can be a bit cumbersome to scrub down in the washing up bowl. I thought of an idea to extend the boundaries of the board by placing a tea towel underneath it, then all it needs is for the chopping board to be lifted on it's side, with the bits falling into the tea towel, which is then taken outside and shaken. I haven't got a nice tea towel, mine are all a bit worn, so I have used a pillow case. I will see how it goes, good idea eh!

What do you do with half a portion of chips left over from the day before. I just fancied some yesterday, it was a massive portion, enough for three people. Today I put the last of them in a bowl, topped it with half a tin of baked beans, and zapped it in the microwave. Ta da! a two minute Sunday lunch, no food wasted here. I will make something a bit more healthy for my main dinner in an hour or so.

I'm going to sign off now, I've got more stuff to talk about but I'll save it till tomorrow. Some questions to answer, and I've picked out a couple of ideas for blog posts from your comments. Thank you for joining in, and welcome to the new readers.
Toodle pip
PS. Still waiting for two addresses. Primroses Attic and Aussie Cheryl. You have each won a shopping bag, they are ready to go. Give me an address.

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From garden to kitchen

Welcome. A garden catch up today. Here we have three beds of potatoes coming along nicely. Not sure if they are earlies or lates, or what sort they are. They all go in together in no particular order, and come out as and when I want to eat them. Looking healthy, looking good.   

One bed of broad beans. Not quite ready to eat, waiting for the pods to fatten up. Some of the plants have not grown as high as last year, so maybe they are a different kind. I put the pieces of wood across to stop the cats from using it as a toilet.

Runner beans at different heights, some planted early some late. I have wrapped the outside in net curtains, again to stop the cats getting onto it. It will be another month before they are ready.

Six courgette plants showing signs of flowering. Another couple of weeks and there should be something to eat. Bits of wood, and plastic and anything else, to keep the cats off. Looks untidy but needs must.

This is the chuck it and see bed, chuck the seeds on and see what comes up. Something is growing. Think I used three different kinds of seeds. Radishes and turnips possibly.

 And last but not least, the bed occupied by frogs. I have planted a few dwarf beans in here, let's hope they start showing soon. I grow just the basics, not faffing around with anything that is too complicated, haven't got time.

Has anyone got one of these gizmo's? It's a wotchamacallit thingy. You know, a wotsit that you put in your saucepan to steam vegetables. Now this one looks like a shiny new one, but it isn't. If you had seen it 24 hours ago, it looked 'orrible. Even though I wash it each time it is used, the limescale in the water builds up on it. Time for action. I soaked it for 24 hours in the saucepan that I use it with, in a solution of diluted vinegar. A scrub with a wash up brush gets rid of all the gunge and it looks shiny new again. 

I love my steamer gizmo, would be lost without it. There are two sizes, I have the larger one which fits in a large pan. You can buy them for around �5, can't remember exactly, I have had this one for a couple of years.

The pan has also come up like new. Hurrah for vinegar :o))

All ready to go again. This is in constant use in my kitchen. An inch or two of water in the bottom. All the vegetables go in together, starting with the hardest root vegetables first, softer quick to cook ones next, and leafy ones on top. It only takes a few minutes to cook vegetables in this. Stick the fork in to test if they are done, switch the heat off when they are nearly ready, leave for a couple of minutes more, the steam will finish them off.

It was still warm as the sun started to go down last night, a good opportunity to take a walk in the park after dinner. The hall looks splendid.

And Rocky came too.

Looks like another nice day. A bit more playing with fabric, then playing outside. Enjoy your day. Toodle pip.

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Not back breaking work.

Hello. I'm all for making household chores easy for myself, I do only as much as I need to, to keep things ticking over. Today I will share a load of washing with you. It's a warm and sunny day with a gentle breeze  so a good opportunity to strip the bed. The washing is in the machine, a 30 minute cycle at 30 degrees. My method of transferring it from the machine to the garden is not a conventional plastic basket. I don't drag it all out in one big pile, all tangled up, and drop it straight into the basket. By the time it gets untangled and hung up it's already creased. 

I don't have a basket because I don't like having to bend down and remove the items piece by piece as I hang it. This tall seat is what I use for transportation. I carefully take the washing out of the machine, shake it flat, and lay it on the chair. 

Like this. Heidi getting in on the picture again, ha ha.

I lift the whole lot up, chair and washing, without bending down, and pick up the pegs hanging on the nail on the back door. This keeps me in an upright position and doesn't put a strain on my back. When I peg out there is no bending down. I can move the chair along the length of the line if I need to. Mostly I just walk up and down, removing items one at a time as I hang them.

When the washing is dry and ready to be brought in I have the chair close by. I shake each item and fold, and lay it on the chair, starting with the largest items first. Again, no bending down to put it in a basket. When all washing is collected it takes hardly any effort to lift the chair a few inches keeping my back straight, and taking it all inside. It is then ready to be put away, but in the case of this load it will go straight back on the bed. I don't iron anything, can't be bothered with such mundane tasks. I don't buy clothes that need ironing. 

I have two sizes of wooden spring pegs, the bigger ones for the larger and heavier items. The smaller ones for such things as teeshirts, pillowcases, and pants. 

I also have some coloured plastic pegs. These are no good at all for hanging washing out. They are not strong enough for the job and they break easily. They are however very useful for clipping together the tops of half used packets of food stuffs. I like to keep things in their original packaging so I can check on the dates now and again. 

That's my washday system, it works for me. Have you got a system?
Toodle pip.

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Super Good News Sunday

What a Super Sunday we have had, the weather has been glorious. Kath asked for more pics of George, so here they are. He is getting more confident each day. Now he climbs onto my knee and rubs his nose on my face. He loves cuddles. 

 Plenty of room to play, he wasn't at all bothered by his own reflection in the mirror.

Food is served on a tray. I like this one mum.

 Yum, that was nice, now lets play.

Ooooh, I wonder what's up here?

Look, did you see that bird fly past the window?

I like this new mat you're making, can I keep it? I can see right across the road from here, this is such a good view.

We had a phone call today from someone wanting to adopt. Trouble is they are a very busy household, small children and dogs, people coming and going all the time, it wouldn't be suitable for George, given the bad experience he had with a dog at his last home. Never mind, we will hold out for the right person. At least people are finding us, we are getting the calls. 

Told you it was sunny today, just right for a dark load in the washer. It's dried a treat. 

I called in to see a friend this afternoon, while out and about in the village. She tells me that there are plans for the council to open a Scrapstore in the town. Oooh, I am so excited about this good news, and of course I immediately volunteered my services. There is still some groundwork to be done, a grant to be applied for, and a fact finding mission to the Hull branch, but I will be invited to a meeting once they are ready to start. I am hoping to take on the job of visiting businesses and collecting all their unwanted materials, a job I loved doing for the old Scrapstore, which unfortunately had to close. Not sure when all this is going to happen, sometime this year was mentioned, but I'm ready, count me in :o))
Thank you for reading my blog, glad you could drop by. Catch you tomorrow, Toodle pip.

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Making a nest.

It's been a champion drying day, the washing is all put away after a good blow on the line. None of it gets ironed, I don't do ironing. The bed has been stripped and made up again. I have posted about this before, but it was ages ago so worth another mention. It's how I make my bed into a nest. 

First I have a mattress cover. On top of that I put one duvet, this I lie on top of. The lining of my nest if you like. Then I have four pillows for my head. I actually lie on two or three of them, the fourth one is used to prop me up in a sitting position while I read for ten minutes. Inside my bed I have another pillow which goes under my knees. I just find it more comfortable that way. 

Next on top of that is another duvet.

And finally another duvet. So that's one underneath and two on top. 

This is my nest ready to get into. I am not using the quilt I made at the moment as it's not needed. I will save it for the spring and summer. By surrounding myself in these duvets I burrow down like a mouse in a hole. I used to have an electric blanket many moons ago, but since making my bed like this in the winter I haven't bothered to replace it. I occasionally have a hot water bottle, but it isn't always necessary. So there you are, as snug as a bug in a rug.

On a different note, I made an interesting discovery today. I love this fabric which I am using to make a bag. There will be some left, but not enough for a second bag.

Turn it over and look at the other side. Isn't it amazing? It's like a painting, like someone has daubed paint on with a brush. I can see a picture hanging on the wall. This has got my mind working. It could be framed as it is, but what about adding embroidery to it in different colours, and maybe some beads. It could be quite an amazing piece of art.

Now I can't make up my mind which side I like best, the front of it......

Or the back of it? There are a lot of possibilities here. I shall look more closely at the back of fabrics in future, you never know what you will find.

Haven't got time to hang around tonight. Got to get my dinner, then I'm going to do the supermarket dash. I'm going yellow sticker hunting. Hope I'm lucky. Catch you tomorrow.
Toodle pip.

PS. I watched Dragons Den while on the trainer last night. Almost an hour. Had to stop halfway through to take some clothes off. I was chuffin hot, ha ha.

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A boring job but it has to be done.

The way I tackle my washing up is this. Save the mucky pots, pans, and utensils for three or four days and stack them on the worktop next to the sink. My pots have very little food stuck to them I make sure every morsel is eaten. I rarely have sauce, when I do I finish off the meal with a spoon to scoop it all up. If I put a splash of oil on my steamed veg I mash in the potatoes to soak it up. Beans on toast and I wipe the plate round with a piece of bread. My dirty pots are not terribly dirty, so I can wash the lot in one bowlful of hot water. I hate washing up water that ends up like a bowl of soup, with all kinds of gunge floating in it, yuk.      

To heat the water I use the saucepan that I used to steam the veg in. It has a baskety thing in the bottom. I heat it on the top of the cooker because gas is cheaper than electricity. I only turn the water heater on in the tank when I have a bath, so most of the time what comes out of the tap is cold. I fill the bath up, turn the water off, and the tank refills with cold water. I only heat the water I use.

My washing up liquid is the cheapest from the discount stores. It's called Easy, with a lemon fragrance, and costs 39p. People say it's false economy to buy cheap liquid because you end up using more of it. I don't, I use it very sparingly because I don't want lots of bubbles. It doesn't have to cut through a lot of grease because I don't eat greasy food. I do use a little oil, but that is all absorbed into the food. I have a few bubbles here, that's because I have a spray attachment on the tap so that froths it up. It will soon disappear when I start washing.

The dinner plates go in first with the cutlery. I often use rubber gloves because I like the water fairly hot. The cutlery is scrubbed with a brush, I hate to see food stuck between the prongs of a fork, yuk, horrible.

All pots are done and stacked up on the drainer. The cat bowls are done last with any food containers to go for recycling. I dry the cutlery with a tea towel and put it away in the drawer, all the rest will stay there for an hour until I put it away. It will dry very quickly because the water was hot.

And so the cycle starts again. My aim is to use the least amount of water, less water means less cost to heat it. A tiny squirt of washing up liquid, a bottle lasts me almost a year. Good for the environment, less chemicals down the drain. Tea towels don't need washing so often because I hardly use them. I wipe the worktops with a dishcloth made from an old sheet, and scrub round the sink as the water goes down the plughole. All done in one bowl of water. No dishwasher tablets, and no gallons of water. Squeaky clean pots and pans at a very low cost.
Toodle pip.
PS Thanks for your support yesterday.

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