So What's Been Going On Then?

Well hello there!

First of all, my apologies for ignoring the blog and you lovely bloggy people for so long but life has been getting in the way and… well, to be honest, I haven’t really had much I’ve felt like writing about. It’s not that there hasn’t been anything to write about, I just haven’t felt like writing it.

I’m starting to feel as though I’m getting on top of things again now though and life is getting back to some kind of normality. Well, MY normality, anyway. But then I guess everybody’s normality is different.

Now that spring’s here I’ve a host of jobs to do around the house. The garden looks the pits and will definitely need sorting out. I’ve written before that I’d ideally like somebody to come in and give it a complete overhaul that would make it easy maintenance but the funeral associated outgoings sucked up a huge chunk of my savings and then a few others things have needed paying for so that idea is a long way off in the future again. Even my new kitchen, which I finally thought I was going to get this summer after 3 years of saving has had to be put on hold. The money just isn’t there anymore. Oh well… back to the drawing board. Worse things have happened at sea, as they say. The least I can do is tidy the bloody garden though, so it looks….hmmm…. I was going to say presentable but it’ll never be quite that - I can get it looking as if somebody care a bit about it though. At the moment it’s full of broken pots, old barbeques, bits of tree net and other odd bits of rubbish. The table and chairs are covered in a rather unattractive green mould and the plants are all overgrown. As for the weeds… I know no matter what I do I’m never going to keep them down; the garden chock-a-block with them.

Then there’s the bedrooms. Paul will be moving back this summer but before that can happen I need to do a bedroom reshuffle. I’m moving into LM’s old bedroom (she moved out while I was in London… yes, it was all happening at once), Paul is going in mine and the little room will become a guest room. The thing is, they all desperately need decorating first. LM’s old room is black and cream and as nice as it looked when she did it, I’m not sleeping in a black room. The room that’ll be Paul’s hasn’t been decorated in yonks and has a carpet that I’m utterly ashamed of, and the little room….well, I actually think that can stay as it is at a push but I’d like to have it painted before I make it into a guest room. All this costs money and as I can’t do the work myself, I have to pay somebody to come in and do it. It has to be done though, like it or not.

I’ll keep you updated on the progress (and maybe even post some before and after photos, assuming I remember to take them) but until my daughter actually gets the rest of her ‘crap’ out of her old bedroom, I can’t do a darned thing.

In the meantime I’ll enjoy the sunshine we’re having and hope that it lasts.

Sharon J xx

O Christmas Tree

Just when I thought we’d never get the tree up in time, my daughter stepped up and did the business.

Here’s the final result.




It’s a sod to put up as each individual branch has to be put on and their colour coded by size, only we don’t have the code list anymore so it’s anybody's guess where they go. She managed it alone in an evening though (yes, it takes that long) and the next morning the lights and baubles went on. Not all 300 of them, that would have taken her too long alone, but all of the best ones and some of the smaller ones. It may not be quite as laden as usual but I still think it looks pretty. Thank LM, a job well done.

Here are a few pictures of my favourite baubles collected over the years (although some aren’t strictly baubles, but you get the gist).






And bless her, she'd even bought a bunch of pretty roses to cheer the place up during the run up to Christmas.



Now there’s just the other bits and bobs to be dotted around the living room. I can do that as I go along over the next few days though. Christmas, it seems, is coming to our house after all :)

Sharon J xx

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Moon River

Some of you already know that my dad’s very ill and isn’t going to get better. He’s been like it for a couple of years now and it’s a surprise to everybody that he’s still alive - alive but not living. Laying on a bed, not knowing where he is, who his wife is, who I am, or being able to feed himself or control his bowels is not living. Surviving yes, but not living.

If I’m honest, I’ve never had a good relationship with my dad. Without going into detail, I can say that he’s a been very selfish man, but it was only once I was old enough to understand certain things that I realised what he was really like. As a young girl, I thought he was great. Why? Because he was funny when he was drunk (which he was twice a day, every day) and he taught me to dance.

I used to love dancing with Dad. I can’t have been more than about four when he taught me to waltz at the social club we used to go to at weekends. Then came the foxtrot, the quick step and a few others, but the waltz was always ‘our’ dance. And even when I got older and ‘played out’ with the other kids rather than hanging in the club, I always made sure I was back in the hall for the last waltz because that belonged to me and Dad.

I don’t really have anything special that reminds me of dad but a week or so ago I came across this on eBay.




It’s the sheet music to ‘Moon River’, the song he taught me to waltz to and one I can remember dancing with him to on so many occasions, including at my wedding. I’m going to put it in a black frame and hang it on the living room wall because although we didn’t get along too well, those dances ARE good memories, and hearing the song nowadays makes me both smile and cry.

Sharon J xx

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Completely Disorganised

Yesterday I spent several hours searching for three pillowcases that I bought about a month ago. They’re plain white, Egyptian cotton pillowcases that I’d planned to personalise with embroidery and give as Christmas gifts and if I’m to have any chance of getting everything finished in time for the big day, I need to get cracking on them.

Do you think I could find them? Not a snowball’s chance. I’d have stood a better chance of hitching a ride to Amsterdam on an ant’s back than finding those pillowcases. I asked others if they had any idea where they might be but nothing… they are missing.

This, my friends, is one reason why I really must press on with the great de-cluttering scheme. I’m sick to the back teeth (well, I would be if I had any) of having to spend so much time searching for things that should be easy enough to find. In the time I spent hunting in every place I could think of, I could have been half finished with one but instead have no pillowcases and I’m no closer to having my Christmas presents finished.

I have a craft drawer where I keep… yes, you guessed it, my craft supplies. You’d imagine they’d be in there wouldn’t you? Nope. Maybe the airing cupboard along with other bedding? Nope. In the cupboard where I put everything that can’t go anywhere else? Nope. In some other drawer then? Nope. Wardrobe? No, no, no.

I’ve run out of places to search.

This is very annoying. I was at hair pulling stage yesterday.

I’ve already got rid of quite a bit of clutter but there’s tons more to be done. From now on I am going to de-clutter one drawer, basket or cupboard (or just one shelf at least) every day that I have a reasonable amount of energy. I won’t live like this anymore! A place for everything and all that.

Sharon J xx

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Image Source: Winged Photography

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A - Z of Homemaking

Somebody tagged me with this ages ago but I forgot to do it, and now that I’ve done it, I’ve forgotten who tagged me (and there was me thinking I’m finally getting more organised!). If it was you who passed this on to me, I can only apologise for not giving you a mention. Give me a shout and I’ll remedy that, though.

Here goes:

A is for Aprons - yes/no? If yes, what’s your favourite?
I have two pinnies, both original 1950s and bought at a car boot sale about 10 years ago. I don’t wear them every time I cook but if I’m doing something messy (which usually involves flour) or am dressed up, waiting for guests, I’ll pop one on.

B is for Baking - favourite thing to bake?
I’m not really into baking cakes and things anymore - did too much of it when the kids were little - but if I had to choose something then it’d probably be apple pie.

C is for Clothesline - do you have one?
Yes, it’s a double set-up that runs the length of the garden. Sounds great but as most of it hangs over a flower bed (actually, it’s more a weed bed at the moment) and another parts hangs over the patio table, there isn’t really that much room on it. Ideally I’d like a whirly gig but right now I have other priorities.

D is for Donuts - have you ever made them?
D must also be for ‘donkey’s years ago’ because that’s when it was. At least 20 years ago. It wasn’t an experience I enjoyed so has never been repeated.

E is for Every Day - one homemaking task you do every day.
None. There are days when I’m simply unable to do anything more than exist let alone start swinging a broom around. When I am up and about and feeling relatively fit, I…. erm…. still don’t actually have a task I do every day.

F is for Freezer - do you have a separate deep freeze?
Nope, only the one that’s combined with the fridge. I’d love a separate one but there’s just no room for one here. Still, what I have is better than nothing so I shan’t grumble.

G is for Garbage Disposal Unit - do you have one?
Yes, it has four legs, fur and is called Poppy. If she doesn’t do the job adequately there’s another one called Jack usually waiting as a back-up and then what isn’t suitable for them goes to the worms. It works for me :)

H is for Handbook - what’s your favourite homemaking resource?
My imagination and the Internet.

I is for Ironing - love or hate it?
Absolutely loathe it. Most of the time it just isn’t necessary so it’s a waste of energy, both mine and the electricity it takes to heat the iron (well that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it!)

J is for Junk Draw - yes/no? If yes, where is it?
Junk draw? What do you take me for? I’m too organised to have junk! Oh… sorry… I was away in la-la land there for a moment. Yes… the junk drawerS. Less said about them the better!

K is for Kitchen - colour and decorating scheme?
Don’t get me started on that one! It’s an awful peach with grey cabinets and what were grey tiles but are now red (tile paint is a wonderful thing). I think it was probably fashionable during the 80s but my plan is to make it sort of Norwegian country kitchen-ish although when it’ll be finished is anybody’s guess.

L is for Love - what’s your favourite part of homemaking?
Sitting down and looking around me, seeing that it’s reasonably clean and tidy and feeling ‘at home’. I also quite like cooking, I just don’t like the washing up that follows. Oh, and making things look or function better than they originally did without having to spend a lot of money doing it.

M is for Mop - do you have one?
Of course. It’s an old-fashioned string type mop and bucket affair that I’m not particularly satisfied with but it’ll do until it wears out. I also have a micro fibre mop type thing that’s great for just going over the living room floor with but useless on the nasty floor covering that’s in the kitchen.

N is for Nylons - machine or hand wash?
Nylons? I guess that means tights and stockings? Mine go in the machine with everything else.

O is for Oven - do you use a window or open the oven door to check?
Mine doesn’t have a window so I have no choice. And anyway, getting down low enough to peek through a window wouldn’t be an option for me anymore. Still, at least this cooker works properly, unlike the one I had up until about 9 months ago and what's more it was free (donated by a Freecycler).

P is for Pizza - what do you put on yours?
Minced beef, onion, mushrooms, tomato puree, and oregano all mixed up together and then bunged on top of a base and topped with cheddar that‘s sprinkled with paprika. Sounds boring but I’ve been making the same pizza for about 20 years and as my family all love it, I’m not about to change it. I think they'd probably hang, draw and quarter me if I did, anyway.

Q is for quiet - what do you do during the day when you get a quiet moment?
I blog (surprise, surprise), knit, sew, cross-stitch, read, write, listen to music, meditate, ponder life… whatever suits my mood.

R is for Recipe Card Box - yes/no? If yes, what does it look like?
Don’t have one. If I try a new recipe and like it, it goes in a file. If somebody didn’t particularly like it I make a note of that to make sure I don’t make it for them again. The same goes if somebody really raved about it, only then I make it more often, obviously.

S is Style of House - what style is your house?
Hmm… I’m not sure my house has a particular style. It was built about 10 years ago and looks pretty much the same as every other house on the estate. And not that much different to those on the next estate, or the estate after that, either. Inside I guess it’s kind of eclectic but definitely leans mostly towards things that are ‘old fashioned’ and/or unusual.

T is for Tableclothes - do you use them?
I would if I had some! I have one that I use at Christmas (red velvet so not really suitable otherwise) and I plan to make one out of a duvet cover along with matching curtains once the kitchen's done but otherwise, zilch.

U is for Under The Kitchen Sink - organised or toxic wasteland?
Somewhere in between. There isn’t enough space for it to be as organised as I’d like but I’ve seen a whole lot worse. I try to steer clear of as many toxins as I can though.

V is for Vacuum - how many times a week?
Don’t ask… please. I’d die of embarrassment! No, seriously… I vacuum when I think the place needs it or when I’m feeling fit enough to do it. Nobody died of dust bunnies in the corners or the stair carpet not being pristine at all times.

W is for Wash - how many loads of washing do you do each week?
About one or two I think although I haven’t actually counted them. I don’t have a set washing day - I load the machine as I go (apart from whites and delicates) and let it do its thing when its full enough.

X’s - Do you keep a daily list of things to do that you cross off?
Yes and no. I have certain things on a list but others I just do as and when.

Y is for Yard - who does what?
This should be G is for Garden, surely? Oh… right… we’re talking US English here. I have one, yes, but nobody does very much at all in it at the moment so it's hardly worth mentioning.

Zzzz’s - what’s the last homemaking task you do before bed in the evening?
Turn the lights out.


The meaning is to keep the chain going by sending this along to a few other bloggers to complete. If you’re on the following list, enjoy ;)

Catz at Catz’ Corner
FT at Notes from The Frugal Trenches
Kethry at Urbania to Stoneheads
A Piece of Wood at…. A Piece of Wood
Laura at Move To Portugal

Please don't feel obliged to take up the tag. It's just for fun, after all.

Sharon J

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The Porch Door And Energy Saved

About 18 months ago I had new doors fitted in the living room. One leads to the kitchen, the other to the front porch. They’re pine doors but because they’re extra wide, they had to be ordered and cost a good deal more than their slim counterparts (rather like clothes for the fuller figure costing more than those for skinny chicks - a problem I had for years!).

Anyway, the door to the porch has never been right. To start with it closed but was clearly warped. The guy who fitted it assured me it would go back once it settled though and I believed him. It didn’t. It got worse. It got so bad that the door wouldn’t even shut anymore. And what’s more, he hadn’t even used the right number of screws in the hinges. Talk about cowboy!

With my gas bill going through the roof, the knowledge that using up resources unnecessarily and me being a proper little frozen fish finger who shivers at the slightest draught, I knew that I had to have something done about it. Cold air was coming in and warm air was going out and that just ain’t good. I lived through last winter like it but I certainly didn’t want to live through another with all that heat being wasted. It would be waste of both money and resources, not to mention how much it hurts me to freeze!

Enter Kyle.

During dinner on Tuesday I mentioned the door and how something needed to be done about it. Actually, I more than mentioned it. Fed up with the draught that was blowing through and after trying unsuccessfully to shut it (I always try even though I know it’s a no go) I kicked the damn thing and called it a few unsavoury names. Kyle, my daughter’s ‘gentleman friend’, decided at that point that he was going to fix it. And fix it he did.

As soon as dinner was over, he had the toolbox out, the door off and was fixing the dodgy hinges. Then he started chiselling away at the door itself, determined that no matter what, that door was gonna shut!

The result isn’t particularly pretty. There’s are bits missing along the lower side edge where he’s had to chisel them away (I don’t have a plane) but it shuts and that’s what matters. And it saved me a lot of money buying a new one and having somebody fit it, and what’s more, the wood will be used for a good few years more before it eventually becomes firewood.

Things don’t have to be perfect to be good. The door has character now and it does the job it was intended to do. All is well :)

Sharon J

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The Battle of the Batteries

Image: frcsyk

Batteries! I hate them! I can never find one when I need one, they cost a fortune and my charger for the rechargeable ones gave up the ghost ages ago.

Batteries are dangerous. Depending on the kind of battery you use, they contain zinc, mercury and all sorts of nasties that leak out and get into the environment, damaging wildlife and ecosystems.

Around 30,000 tonnes of general purpose batteries thrown away every year but only about 2% of them are ever recycled. Apart from the leakage, that’s a lot of waste that has to be put somewhere.

I very rarely bought my children toys that needed batteries, and would ask others not to buy them for them either but eventually decided to go one step further by trying to avoid anything that I have to use batteries in. In the cases where it’s unavoidable, I look for products that have rechargeable batteries (like cameras, for example). As a last resort, I’d use my own rechargables but since my charger died on me a year or so ago, because I use so few batteries, I haven’t yet needed to buy a new one. However, if you use a lot of batteries, there's a gadget available now that let's you recharge throw away batteries. To find out more, click here.

I don’t have a personal CD player and I haven't used my mp3 player for several years. I have no hand-held games console (or any games console for that matter), a battery driven handbag sized hair dryer or any other unnecessary battery driven gadgets but I do have a torch. It's not particularly reliable though so I'm on the look out for a decent wind up version. Oh... hold on... the wall clock has a battery in it. It’s only been changed once in five years though so it’s not exactly making me a big battery consumer. No doubt there are other things but the batteries are changed so seldom that I can't even think what they might be! Except for the remote controls, that is. They drive me up the wall so I really must put a multi-purpose remote (or whatever they're called) on my wish list and maybe somebody will buy it me for Christmas (note to close friends and family: big hint dropped there).

Now that I have the battery problem more or less sorted, I really need to sharpen up and stop leaving my mobile phone charger in the socket. Either that or I need to buy a new extension lead with individual switches.

Sharon J xx

Confession time: I did once have a multi-function remote control but I threw it in temper and... well, suffice to say, it no longer works.

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More Heat in Winter for Just 50p a Year?

With the dark evenings starting to draw in now and Autumn in the air, I've started thinking about getting my house ready for winter. One product I've recently stumbled across is a Radiator Booster. It seems to me like a really clever, eco-friendly product, and as such I just had to let you all know about it.

Apparently it’s a ‘Dragon’s Den’ product that’s designed to circulate warm air from water fired rads making them up to 50% more efficient whilst also reducing warm up times. It plugs into the mains but is said to cost an average of just 50p a year to run, which is dead cheap. Ok, so you have an initial outlay of £14.99 per booster but if it helps heat up your home more efficiently, it'll not only pay for itself relatively quickly but by eliminating cold spots, which it supposedly does, it'll help make life more comfortable too. If it works, I'm all for it.

It works by blasting warm air that would usually disappear into walls out of the sides of the rads instead. Sounds excellent, don’t ya fink?

It just sits on top of your rads, doing it’s thing and is such a simple idea that you can only wonder why nobody ever thought of it before. But you know how it is, the simple ideas are usually the best.

I haven’t bought one yet but I’ll definitely be ordering one this month before the cold really starts to set in again. If it works as well as it I'm hoping it will, I'll get more.

Sharon J

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Natural Ways To Get Rid of Ants

Image: Autan

I haven’t had a big problem with ants this year (touch wood) but a few weeks ago I noticed a couple of the blighters crawling around in my back porch and knew it would only be a matter of time before they’d invaded the house and would be driving me absolutely insane.

Now, I’ve nothing against ants in general - they’re very beneficial little chaps that help clear away dead insects and animals while aerating the ground and carrying organic matter into the soil so that our plants will grow bigger and stronger. What I dislike is the fact that at this time of year, they tend to think it’s their given right to just move into my house whenever they please and I’m sorry, but I just ain’t sharing!

The thing is, if they’re not controlled they can make nests in the insulation layer found below houses and from what I’ve heard, that's when you really have problems.

Of course, the best thing to do is make sure there’s nothing in the house that’s likely to attract them in the first place. Anything sweet and sugary that can easily be found will be like a magnet to them; once one has found it, the entire working population of the nest will be marching in to pick up their share. Unfortunately, even if we’re careful to keep sugar, honey, fizzy drinks, sweets, and the likes tightly packaged and away from kitchen work surfaces and other areas that are easily accessible, ants can still find something that attracts them. Just one tiny grain of sugar or biscuit crumb is all it takes.

Not wanting to use commercial ant-killer stuff to get rid of my visitors - the common Lasius niger, otherwise known as garden ants, that are the general cause of problems here in the UK - I decided to look into ways of deterring them through natural means. This is what I came up with:

Lemon juice - pour around the areas that ants frequent. This is meant to destroy their scent trails, confusing them into marching around witlessly rather than following their trodden path. A piece of string soaked in lemon juice and left where they come in is meant to do the same job.

Chalk - draw a line across their path and apparently they won’t cross it. A couple of people have told me they’ve successfully tried this but as I didn’t have any chalk, I didn’t get a chance.

Bicarb (baking soda) - does pretty much the same job as chalk. Sprinkle a line of it across their path.

Baby Powder - again, does the same as the above.

Vinegar - this one worked for me! Apparently ants absolutely loathe the stuff so spray it around doorways and anywhere else they may be coming through, as well as across their paths. I tried a mixture of 50/50 white malt vinegar and water and the ants were gone the next day!


If ants in the garden are a problem (and who wants them harvesting green fly on the veggies?), growing mint amongst the plants is said to be a deterrent. I can’t vouch for the validity of that, though. If that doesn’t work, you could always try laying your own sweet, sugary trail leading them elsewhere (like the compost heap, for example).

I have my vinegar at the ready should they decide to return to my humble abode. Until then, I’ll just relax and be happy that once again I managed to solve a problem without turning to synthetic and potentially harmful chemicals.

Sharon J

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Other posts that may be of interest:

• How To Get Rid Of Slugs & Snails
• 20 Uses For Vinegar

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Home Matters Most

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Jennifer at HomeMattersMost has asked her fellow bloggers to write a post about why their home matters most to them and there's a lovely book that the generous lady's giving away to whoever's entry is 'pulled from a hat' at the end of it all. This is my contribution.

From The Garden
looks kind of pretty but it's actually more like a jungle than a garden

I’ve always been a bit of a wanderer and since leaving home at the tender age of 18, I’ve lived in 18 different properties. Mum insists it’s the gypsy blood in me coming out (My great-grandmother was a Romany Gypsy) and really never thought I’d settle down, but to everybody’s surprise, I’ve now lived in this house for almost 8 years.

When I was younger, home didn’t really exist as such. A property was just a place where we could be out of the elements, rest our heads and prepare for the next adventure. Even when we eventually built our own house I still didn’t feel any real attachment to it - it hurt more to sell the caravan, which satisfied my wanderlust, than it did to sell the house. But things change.

Becoming ill put a stop to my spontaneous lifestyle and I had to settle, like it or not. I wasn’t too happy with that to start with, especially as I live in what I considered to be a very poky little house - I was used to the big Norwegian homes and a tiny 3-bed roomed terrace in the UK felt like living in a chicken coop in comparison. I felt cramped and smothered, almost as if I couldn’t breath through lack of space both inside the house and in the tiny garden.

You get used to things though, and gradually I started to see this place differently - if I was going to be here for a long time, best make it into a proper home. I’ve gradually been transforming it into a place where I can feel happy and contented, safe from the world and where stress doesn’t exist. Peace and quiet are important to me - the days of having friends over to party at the weekends or trails of kids running through the place are long gone.

Even though I don’t own the house (it’s housing association so secured long-term tenancy) I'm not afraid of putting money or work into it. I’m saving for a new kitchen, I want to install a shower and improve the bathroom, the rest will be redecorated to a much higher standard than is the case today and the garden will be given a complete make-over. I suppose you could say that I’ve finally come to rest, found my base, the place where I can return to knowing that I’ll find the peace I need.

I like to have friends over and there’s always a bed for the night if they need it but unsavoury types aren’t welcome here and neither are those who disrespect my home; I expect everybody to chip in and keep the equilibrium of peace and harmony going. Unfortunately, not everyone understands that. I like the sound of laughter and conversation in the house, but I also enjoy being alone, finding pleasure in quiet solitude while I sit and read, write, knit, sew or just ponder life.

To me, home matters most because it’s where I spend the bulk of my time, and gives me what I need most from life. Contentment.

Sharon J

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Decluttering Again

Out of clutter find simplicity ~ Albert Einstein

I’ve been working on the ‘pantry’ again today. For those who don’t know, that’s the big cupboard under the stairs that used to be home to some food but mostly all sorts of junk that might be useful one day – so useful that I’d forgotten what was even buried in there. Squatters could have moved in there and I probably wouldn’t have known!

Anyway, the last of the junk was finally removed this morning along with the things that actually are useful but were never used because I couldn’t get at them, then Richard installed more shelves. He sawed, screwed and drilled like a real DIY guy (Richard isn’t too keen on DIY, y'see) and the final result was very good. I now have twice as many shelves and have sworn that I will not clutter it up again. No way. Not a chance. It’s just not going to happen (get the feeling I’m trying to convince myself here?).

The kitchen table, the chairs, and the work surfaces are now laden with everything that came out. I binned some as I went along but by the end I was fast running out of energy and the most important thing was to get the stuff out. I’ll go through it all tomorrow (hopefully my energy levels will be high enough) and decide what should be kept, what should be recycled, what can be used for something else, and what needs to be binned. Once I’ve done that, I’ll put the food in ‘pantry’ and store the things I’m keeping on the shelves where the food’s been kept (stacked sky high and impossible to get to without everything falling down). Until the kitchen’s eventually finished, things are just going to have to have temporary homes.

It feels good to be getting somewhere and it shouldn’t be too long now before I can get my ‘almost’ son-in-law round to take the wall cabinets down, decorate and put new cabinets up. At least that’ll be phase one over and done with.

Sharon J

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Houseplants and Clean Air

Photo: Jessie Reeder

I love houseplants. My mum's house is overflowing with them... huge ones... and ever since leaving home many moons ago, I’ve followed in her footsteps by growing a selection of them in all of the 18 homes I’ve lived in. Originally I grew them simply because I thought they were beautiful and helped make a house feel more homely but since discovering that they also help us by cleaning the air of nasty pollutants, I’m doubly happy to have them in my home.

NASA have done extensive studies in this area and have found that some plants are more prone to clear pollutants than others although it’s highly likely that all house plants will do their bit to help keep the air in our homes healthy.

Those that do the best job are:

• Mother-in-law’s Tongue
  
• Peace Lily
  
• Spider Plant
• Gerbera
  
• English Ivy
  
• Heartleaf Philodendron
  
• Elephant’s Ears Philodendron
  
• Red Edged Dracaena
  
• Corn Plant Dracaena
  
• Weeping Fig
  
• Rubber Plant
  
• Golden Pothos (Devil’s Ivy)
  
• Aloe Vera

It’s suggested that in an average sized home it’s worthwhile keeping 15 plants with at least half of them chosen from the above list and then top up with whatever takes your fancy and will be suitable for its intended spot. The plants should be spread throughout the house.

At the moment I have just four in the living room, two in the bathroom and just one lonely Aloe Vera plant in the kitchen – kindly donated by a lady on Freecycle. Sadly, about two thirds of my houseplant collection was killed off by kindness, first when I had long-term houseguests who seemed to think that every plant pot should be filled to the brim with water and then again when somebody else took over the care of those that remained, while I was ill. Oh, and the dog snapped the rubber plant.

I really must start buying more. As I said, they help make the house feel more homely but it’s also nice to have living decorations instead of everything being man-made.

Sharon J

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Decluttering The Kitchen

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I’ve finally made a real start on decluttering the kitchen this week. Until now I just haven’t been strong enough to do it and although I can still only do a little at a time, it feels good to actually be making progress.

The first job to tackle was the big understairs cupboard. Until now it’s been used as a general dumping ground for everything that doesn’t have a proper home elsewhere and was an absolute disgrace. There are a few shelves in there but nowhere nearly as many as I’d like so the bottom of the cupboard was a complete mess. Everything just got shoved in from pots of paint and dog food to toilet rolls and things that might just come in handy one day but probably never will. It was so bad that I had no idea what was actually at the back, and even if I had known I wouldn’t have been able to get to them.

During the first round I managed to fill about a bin bag and a half with rubbish that couldn't be reused or recycled. What’s really embarrassing is that about half of that was food that had been stored there because I don’t have enough cupboard space for it elsewhere. Some of that had also become bogged down with junk so I found full packets of biscuits that had their ‘best before’ date 18 months ago, bags of sticky sweets that even a toddler wouldn’t find appetising, and cakes that were rock hard. There was even a whole Christmas cake and an untouched Stollen in there! Needless to say, I felt ashamed of myself. At least some of the other stuff's going on Freecycle or to the charity shop!

This is how the cupboard looked when I gave up for the day. You can't see anywhere near all of it but believe me, there's still a lot of stuff left to get out!


The little chest of drawers in the kitchen will also be put through the clear out treatment. Richard’s having it and I wanted it out of the way so that I could make room for a dresser or larger chest of drawers, although I’ve yet to find ‘the right one’. Richard says I’m fussy but why shouldn’t I get my kitchen exactly how I want it when I’m spending both time, energy and money on it? I’m planning to live with it for a very long time and want to feel satisfied that it not only works for me but looks pleasant and inviting, too.

The main problem with all this decluttering is that, until I eventually get my new kitchen installed, I’ve nowhere to actually put the stuff that’s come out of cupboards and drawers. There just isn’t room to find them new homes. At the moment my food is kept on two shelves on the wall - a very inadequate solution as they’re not only in an awkward position to get to, but everything’s stacked up in such a way that I can’t easy get things down without half of it falling on top of me. The kitchen table is also ‘home’ to all sorts of things that shouldn’t be there but I can’t exactly just kick them around until I lose them, can I?

Once the big cupboards completely clear I’ll get Richard to put some more shelves up for me. That way the stockpiled food and dry stuff (flour, rice, pasta etc) can go back in, and the vacuum cleaner can have a proper home instead of standing on the floor, in the way of getting to one end of the much despised food shelves. I’m fed up keep having to move it because although that may seem like a simple task to most, things like that quickly wear me out.

Having an electric built-in oven residing on the floor while it awaits its permanent home in the new kitchen doesn’t help with space but as I’m working to a very tight budget, I have to get things when I see them going cheap. The oven’s just 6 months old, barely used and cost £50 so I could hardly let it go. And anyway, why buy new when you don’t have to?

At the moment there are also things being kept in big boxes or just stacked against the walls. The whole room generally looks as if a bomb’s hit it but I tell myself that it’s simply the transition stage, rather like when you’re growing layers out of your hair and it looks a mess but you have to put up with it just a while longer if you’re to get the style you really want.

I’m really eager to get started on the main jobs now. Lise and her boyfriend are going to paint the skirtings and door frames when they come over in July and once they're done, I shall get my "almost" daughter's partner round to decorate and put the new wall cabinets up. At least the food will have a proper home again then. That'll be the first stage over and done with so I'll be able to start concentrating on getting quotes for the rest of the work and saving how ever much more I need.

I’ll get there one day.

Sharon J

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Long Live Freecycle

Our local Freecycle members have been good to me recently.

A few months back my gas cooker decided to bite the dust. The oven wasn’t heating to the correct temperature (or anywhere even close), one of the rings would only work on very high and would go out as soon as I tried to turn it down, one ring wouldn’t light at all and a third ring seemed to adjust itself willy nilly. It was as if gremlins had taken up residence in it. I put out a wanted ad for a new (to me) cooker and, Robert's your mother's brother, a reply came in that same day. The new cooker’s still going great guns and will no doubt be passed on to yet another Freecycler when I eventually give the kitchen its planned make-over and it'll no longer be needed.

Next up came a ceramic hob - exactly what I want for my new kitchen and a saving of around £150. I responded, they said I could have it and LM went off to pick it up for me. That’s now in a storage cupboard awaiting the day when it’ll be put into use.

Last week I received a gorgeous rug for the lounge. Hand made out of 100% pure New Zealand wool, in exactly the right colours for my living room with a pattern that combines traditional with modern. I couldn't have been more happy had I chosen it myself. Even DD2 loved it when she saw it - she thought it made the living room look much more homely. She's right, of course.



Zara the dog - now rehomed - had relieved herself both back and front on the original rug so many times that no amount of cleaning was ever going to make any difference. It stank and was faded. Yuk! The lady who let me have it even delivered it for me, apologising for the frayed corner as her puppy had taken a nibble. The said corner is hardly noticeable and is hidden under the sofa anyway, so not a problem.

The same lady also gave me a beautiful red vase full of cream silk flowers.



Beautiful, isn’t it?

I’ve also received an extractor fan, a breadmaker, several books and an aloe vera plant.

But it’s not all been receiving, I’ve also offered a few things. My perfectly good but unused sun lounger found a new home; lots of kitchen bits and bobs and a framed mirror went to a lady who was starting over from scratch; a very comfortable clean mattress and topper went to a single mum who needed a new one for her son; a huge, unused make-up set went to a teenager who thought it was Christmas again; a dozen or so large terracotta pots went to a man who’d just got his first garden; and a box of books found a new home.

Anything that keeps stuff out of the landfill has to be good and Freecycle is, in my opinion, one of the best things to have come out of the Internet.

Sharon J xx

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Why Can't I Make Up My Mind?

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Those of you who’ve followed my blog for a while will know that I’m currently saving up for a new kitchen. Those of you who didn’t know, do now.

I’m about halfway there at the moment and have come to the point where I need to start planning it properly, especially as I’m going to be doing it in parts. But I can’t make my mind up!

My original plan was to have cream units with wood effect worktops and flooring, and sage green walls. The tiles have already been painted a warm red and the kitchen chairs are going the same colour, as are the legs of the table. Red and green is a combination I like.

But my kitchen is very dark. There’s just one tiny window stuck up in a corner and as it’s also in a corner on the outside of the house, very little light comes in. I usually have the ceiling lights on at the moment because the whole thing’s painted a darkish orangey peach colour with pale grey units and work surfaces. The floor is a darker grey and even the tiles were originally grey. It is, to say the least, very miserable looking.


This is what the kitchen looked like before I started painting the tiles. The photo was taken in natural light. See what I mean about dark and miserable?

Recently I’ve been thinking that perhaps it would be better to go with white units rather than cream being as white reflects more light. And I’m thinking of using a dado rail to split the walls, using the sage green on the lower part and a warm off-white on the top. That should also help brighten things up.

But I’m really undecided. I’m usually pretty sure of how I want things in the house so this indecision is starting to do my head in. I sure as heck don’t want to spend my money on a kitchen I’m not going to be happy with and as it's being done in stages, the paintwork and wall cabinets are going to have to be sorted soon-ish. After that, there’s no more changing my mind.

What do you think? Should I stick with my original plan or would the white version be better?

HELP!

Sharon J xx

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Eliminating Niggles

Photo: minxlj

My house used to really get me down sometimes. It was full of little ‘problems’ that would niggle away at me, little things that needed fixing, but that nobody ever got around to doing. These things were a source of constant irritation; they never really allowing me to relax and just enjoy a feeling of contentment at being here.

Don’t get me wrong, there are still lots of things that need to be done but making a start has made all the difference. No doubt new niggles will surface and be added to the list as I move through it too.

Anyhow, rather than just letting myself become irritated every time the bathroom door squeaked, or the porch door wouldn’t shut, or a draught came in beneath the front door, I decided to do something about it. The first step was to make a plan.

I wrote a list of everything that made me feel grumpy. I’m not talking about major work – remember, this is about the things that niggle at you.

My list was pretty long and I knew I wouldn’t be able to fix them all myself. Sure, a drop of WD40 works wonders on squeaky doors, but fixing a warped door? No, I don’t think so. I can easily fit a draught excluder to the front door but I couldn’t fill in the plasterwork that’s missing around an electricity socket in the kitchen. I wouldn’t dare. I can’t fix the wall vent in the kitchen either but I can fit foil reflectors behind the radiators myself to save on energy.

The next step was clearly to split the list into jobs I could do myself and those I couldn’t. For my part I had four lists, as some of the things I couldn’t do myself would have to be done by a hired workman, others were the responsibility of the Housing Association. Then there's the list of things that friends could help me out with.

Once the lists were completed, I then re-jigged them in order of priority. Do I want to pay to have a new door put in first, or would it be better to have somebody come and re-paint the chipped and faded kitchen walls? I already had what I needed to stop the squeaking bathroom door so that's been moved above fitting the draught excluder, especially as it's a good few months before the cold air will be coming in again.

Once you have your plan and know exactly what needs to be done and by whom, it’s easier to actually get started on things and gradually make your way towards eliminating every last niggle from your home. Well, most of them anyway... hopefully :)

Sharon J

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Alternative Vases

Photo: TengTan

While I’m not ungrateful when somebody buys me a huge bouquet, it’s generally the small bunches of wild flowers or perhaps a few stems picked from the jungle of weeds garden that bring me the most pleasure. I generally have at least one bunch in the house during summer, if not more, and use all sorts of things as ‘vases’.

I use

• Empty jars. Some are pretty in their own right, others can be decorated with a length of lace, wide ribbon or piece of crochet.
• Pretty mugs
• A pretty cup and saucer
  
• A gravy boat. Useful for laying a few stems along
  
• An old china sugar bowl
• A vintage tin box
• An old pewter teapot – looks lovely with the lid up and lots of flowers flowing over it.
• A couple of vintage bottles
• An old-fashioned perfume bottle (the type made of glass with a stopper

These things can make beautiful gifts when filled with flowers, too.

I love finding new uses for things and nothing’s ever disposed of here before some thought has been given to whether its life can somehow be prolonged, and if something’s beautiful and useful then as far as I'm concerned I'm on to a real winner :)

Sharon J
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Energy Saving Light Bulbs – A Conundrum

I have a problem.

Like most, I’ve long since switched to CFLs (compact flourescent lightbulbs) – the energy saving light bulbs that we’re all told we should be using these days. The trouble is, I’ve no idea how I’m supposed to dispose of the used ones.

I’ve phoned the council to ask whether they have any special recycling facilities but apparently they don’t (I say apparently because the person you speak to doesn’t always know the answer, they often just think they do) and I can’t see what other options are open.

I’d heard that US branches of IKEA take back these light bulbs for recycling so I checked with my nearest branch but no, the service isn’t available in the UK. The person I spoke to seemed to be surprised that I’d even asked about such a thing and had no idea why they didn’t. I also checked their website and there’s no mention of it there either, even though they really push how environmentally friendly they are.

So here I am with a few burned out lightbulbs and expecting the rest to start burning out any time now but without the foggiest idea as to what I should do with them. I know they mustn't go in the normal household waste because of the mercury they contain – we don’t want that leaking out and potentially causing more environmental damage than burning extra energy with conventional light bulbs would have done, do we? Mercury really isn’t something to be scoffed at.

Anybody have any ideas on this? What do you do with your old energy saving lightbulbs?

Sharon J

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Home, Not Just a House

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I’m currently in the process of redesigning my kitchen and as a result, a few people have asked me why I would bother investing time and money in a property that I do not own. The answer is simple: this is my home.

I’ve lived in 18 different houses/flats (that apartments for those of you in the US that aren’t up to speed on UK terms) since leaving the family home and several of them I’ve owned (well, the bank owned them – I paid the mortgage). One, our family built ourselves. But while they were a place where we could find shelter, feel safe and be ourselves, until they were made into a home they were still just properties regardless of whether I owned them or not. I don’t see a home as something you necessarily have to own in order to want it to fulfil your requirements and feel like the sanctuary that it should be and therefore I’m perfectly happy to invest my time and what little money I have, into transforming this house into home, a place that suits my lifestyle.

Due to my dodgy health, unless unforeseen circumstances force a change, this is the place where I’ll be spending most of my time for the next 20 or so years, at least. Doesn’t it stand to reason that I’d want it to be comfortable and practical, regardless of whose name’s on the deeds? It’s not a private let, so unless I default on the rent or start acting in a decidedly anti-social way, I have a secure tenancy here for as long as I wish. The housing association that I rent through have given me the go ahead to do more or less as I please so there’s really nothing stopping me.

It’s that old chestnut again, isn’t it? That thing about only things that you possess being of any real value to you. I don’t want to own my own house. As things are, if anything goes wrong I can pick up the phone and have the housing association’s people come round and make the necessary repairs. I don’t have to worry about buildings insurance or unforeseen problems that aren’t covered – I’ve been there before and I’d rather not have that hassle again. Ok, so the housing doesn’t always act as quickly as I’d like, but things do get done and at no cost to me. I don’t even have to mow my own front lawn, which is a bonus!

Our House
(this is an old photo so the car's long gone to the scrap heap and has been replaced by a black Renault that's now far too big for my needs. It's a motability car though and will be replaced by something smaller very soon)

Renting this house is, for me, part of keeping life simple. I don’t want a ball and chain around my neck and I’ve found that the properties I’ve previously bought have often become just that. I couldn’t just up and leave when I felt the time was right – I had to sell the house first! And to sell the house I had to make it attractive to potential buyers, which usually meant changing the way I’d decorated it, which meant throwing more money at it, which again meant I might not even be able to afford to move after all! No, even though I’m staying put this time, this is an all round better alternative for me.

I shall continue with my kitchen plans, and when that’s finished I’ll gradually go through the whole house, simplifying things so that they’re more suited to my lifestyle. Then it’ll be the garden’s turn and maybe I’ll even be able to grow a few edible bits and pieces out there if I'm feeling stronger and more capable of doing some gardening by then.

Each of us know what's best for us; no two people's circumstances are the same. We can't use our own situation as a base for judging how others should live their lives. This house is my home and I intend to love it as such.

Sharon xx

A good home must be made, not bought ~ Joyce Maynard

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Ridding The Clutter

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Today I've made a start on the, for me, enormous task of decluttering my bedroom. It was in such a mess that it was making me miserable. A bedroom should be a haven whereas mine resembled an unkempt tat shop storage room.

Because I have a lot of medical related items that need to be stored close at hand (and believe me, when I say a lot, I mean a LOT), there never seems to be anywhere to put anything. I’ve rearranged things before but still the clutter mounts up. Today I decided that things had to go.

My energy levels have been quite good today so I was able to press on and get quite a bit sorted. I’ve thrown several carrier bags of cosmetics (why do I have years old lipsticks and sticky old nail varnishes?) and lots of other tat. At least half of my jewellery (that’s costume jewellery, not valuable stuff as in gold that I could sell) has been rehomed in the charity shop bag and I’ve filled three bin bags full of other rubbish. Why on earth was all this cluttering up my bedroom in the first place?

I’m not finished though. I haven’t even started on the wardrobe, chest of drawers and the pile of toot that I keep beside my bed. I can see The British Heart Foundation are going to do well out of me by the time I’m finished. For a start, most of the clothes I have are size 16-18 and I’m now a size 12. And although I don’t intend to stay this size (my goal is a size 16 again – I felt happy that way), it’ll be a loooong time before I could even think about wearing any of them again and I'm going to need other clothes in the meantime. There's no question about it, I need to be ruthless. No matter how lovely I think a dress is, it’s going to have to go! I’ll scour the charity shops and eBay for some spring/summer clothes that are practical and comfortable, but I WILL NOT CLUTTER UP MY LIFE WITH THINGS I DON’T USE ANYMORE!!! What do I want with a dozen 'posh' dresses when I rarely go anywhere dressy anyway? Clutter causes me stress and life already has enough pressures without adding extra, unnecessary stress to it.

As William Morris said, if you don’t find something useful or particular beautiful to look at, you don’t need it. That, from now on, will be my mantra when decluttering.

The Rising Sun, Wistaston, Crewe

Today is DD2’s 19^th birthday so we’ll be going for a pub meal this evening. There’s a lovely pub called The Rising Sun just a five minutes drive from us but it’s out of town and has a real country feel to it. The food isn’t the cheapest so that won’t help much towards my promise to be more thrifty but I’ve found that the cheaper pub restaurants around here just don’t cut it anymore when it comes to the quality of the food. I’ve been disappointed too many times so I’d rather spend an extra few quid and get something we can really enjoy. Anything else is just false economy. And a birthday does only come round once a year!

Sharon xx