I like making things, and I've done it a lot over the years. Nothing fancy, usually just small household things - dishcloths, cushion covers, and the like, as well as presents, and occasionally simple clothes for myself. I've got out of the habit lately - partly because I'm caught up with other priorities, and partly because the sewing machine doesn't have its own table, which means clearing off my desk every time I want to sew anything. The house has been in such disarray for such a long time that it's been difficult to look past DIY jobs to do anything that feels less essential. Lately though, things have started to feel a bit more manageable (although there is still plenty of DIY), and I've managed to make a few things. First up was a baby blanket, using lots of small bits of fabric that have been knocking around in my stash for a long time. The next thing I made was a new hot water bottle cover. I made the last one at the start of last year, and I'm annoyed with myself, as I could have saved it if I'd heeded the old adage 'a stitch in time saves nine'. Sadly, by the time I got round to it, far more than nine stitches were needed, and I decided to replace it instead. Again I turned to my stash, and used up part of a large piece of cotton that I've had for years, waiting for the perfect use (this isn't the perfect use I imagined, but I'm pleased it's getting seen regularly!) For the inside, I used several layers of an old sheet that I've had for years - as well as this brown one, I've got a pink one and a purple one too, and while I've used them for loads of things, there's still plenty left. I think I did four layers, and in the process broke both needles on my overlocker - I forget it's not quite as sturdy as the normal sewing machine... The final thing I made lately was laundry liquid. I've been meaning to do this for a long time, and never quite got round to it. We don't exactly have a large laundry bill - we use plain washing soda, which costs about 99p a bag, and each bag lasts several months. If we were washing white things all the time, it wouldn't be adequate, but we don't, and so it does well enough. Anyway, I like making household things, and yesterday I finally got round to having a go. I used this recipe, which was very straightforward. I halved the batch and made just five litres, which I imagine will still take us a while to use up. It was practically free. I used a quarter of a cup each of washing soda and borax substitute (if I hadn't already had that in, I might have just ignored it), and a couple of free hotel soaps that we had knocking around. I've stored it in old milk cartons - not pretty, but it's only going under the sink anyway. Let's see how long it takes us to use that up. My guess is it'll see us past Christmas. If so, it will have cut our annual washing powder bill by 90%, which sounds impressive until you remember we only spent about £2 a year anyway. Quite a saving if you buy 'proper' laundry liquid though!
Next on my list of things to make is blinds for the bedroom and kitchen. Let's see how long that takes me... In the meantime, while I was raking through my fabric and wool stash, I found some cotton, and so I've started knitting dishcloths again, using this pattern this time. Mustn't get too sidetracked...
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I don't really know where June went. We had some sunshine, and spent some more time in the garden, an even harvested a little. The months just seem to whizz by sometimes. Furry visitor We had our furry pal to visit for a few days at the start of the month. He's perfectly lovely, but it's a bit of a nuisance as we don't have an enclosed garden so we have to take him out several times a day, and of course he can't come into contact with the chickens at all, which makes things quite difficult at times. Having the dog did make me do quite a bit more walking than usual, which was nice. Fortunately, he also spent quite a lot of time snoozing. In the garden I'm not sure my photos do the garden work justice this month. I feel like I've spent a lot of time wheelbarrowing woodchips, weeding, and watering the greenhouse. A friend and I cleared the buttercups between the apple trees to create a new bed for some of the patty pan squash. The edible windbreak is looking luscious, if a little untidy. We'll need to do a fair bit of excavation to find the gooseberries once they're ripe. I planted some comfrey last year and I'm pleased to see it's taking off nicely. It can spread as much as it likes here so it will be good to see how far it gets. I'm also pleased to see that we look set to get a few apples this year, fingers crossed. We've also been keeping nicely on top of the strimming, and things aren't looking too scruffy at the minute. Eating outside All this tidying up, coupled with light evenings and sunshine, has meant we've cooked and eaten outside quite a lot. Nothing fancy, usually just veggie sausages and eggs, but it's nice to sit outside with a bit of fire as the sun goes down. Harvest I finally got round to harvesting last year's leeks. I was leaving them in the hope they'd get bigger than spring onions, but apparently not, and I wanted the space for this year's veg, so out they came. I also pulled up the rhubarb, and made some jam. There wasn't much, possibly because it was buried under a load of nettles in the windbreak - I think I'll split the crowns and space them out a little later this year. I made just one jar of jam, and I suspect I left it to boil for a bit too long, because it's rather more like toffee than jam... Still, I quite like the idea of doing small batches of experimental preserves - I'm hoping my technique will get more reliable if I try regularly. Spring cleaning I've been continuing last month's tidying and sorting of the house, and got round to washing, airing, and mending a couple of blankets. We have SO many blankets. We seem to have just acquired so many over the years, from charity shops, people making them, and goodness knows where else. They get carted out into the garden, thrown in the car, taken upstairs, brought back downstairs, and shoved on the back of the sofa. I feel like we have far too many, but they do all get used, so I won't be having a blanket clear out any time soon. There's not much else to report from June. I made a bit of progress on the kitchen ceiling, but nothing worth photographing. Peter made some progress with the new wardrobe area, but again, I didn't take any photographs - I need to rectify that soon.
And what's in store for July? I WILL finish the kitchen ceiling - I've been saying that for months but I am so very close now. A second coat of yellow on the kitchen walls. Will we have moved into the new bedroom?? Things are certainly heading in that direction. Outside, I need to get the rest of the seedlings out of the greenhouse, and it's time to start scything the meadow again. I'm determined to scythe it all this year, so need to start soon. That's probably enough of a list for now. |
Hello!Sit down and make yourself comfortable. I'm Jenni, and I write here about our new foray into country living, which includes growing food, knitting, baking, wandering around the fields, and seeing which local cafe serves the best cake. Categories
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