Friday Chat Day

 Hello friends

Happy Friday and welcome to my chatter.

I'll confess straight off the bat - no recipe this week.  Cooking got away from me but I have a brilliant excuse... I was making more charity kits!  

It was the speediest of sellouts last Sunday, all gone by 10 am but then I realised so many of you had missed out. I had made the normal amount but for some reason this month's kit proved very popular.  

I went back into my cabin and with a slight change I was able to put together more kits.

Those who have ordered your kits have all been posted out.  There's just a few left of the revised kit, details in this blog post here.

So what else this week?

Telly:

Whilst making the extra kits week I discovered a French series (dubbed in English). 

Netflix - Le Bazar de la Charité - The Bonfire of Destiny

 Loosely based on fact, it follows the lives of three women after a devastating fire in 1897 Paris, their destinies turned upside down by forbidden love, identity theft, betrayal and emancipation.

Have to say the dubbed English voices are not good but worth enduring for the story. 

Home:

I'm very guilty of watching (and loving) Instagram accounts where people organise their cupboards/larders/pantries and I thought it was high time I had a go. Well blimey it is a lot harder than it looks!  I thought it was just a case of buying some storage, having a sort out and popping it all back in. Oh no, for it to look super neat I've discovered not only do I need boxes I need jars, all sorts of  containers and definitely labels.  Not to be deterred I have made a start...

Step 1 - purchase containers, enough containers, this is definitely not enough.

Step 2 - empty out larder and remove cat. 

I don't usually keep a cat in my larder but like most cats the minute you open the door, they dive in.

Step 3 - throw out of date items - why do I buy pickled onions every Christmas?

They never get eaten.

I've realised my shelf bows in the middle so may have to rethink what goes on there.

Step 4 - admire one tiny bit done - cereals sorted but everything else, definitely a work in progress.

So yes, more storage containers needed, I've been online and ordered some from Ikea, 

turns out to deliver them it is £15! 

BUT if I have them delivered to the little computer shop up the road from me...only £2.  

Tip: if you are ordering from Ikea, use their little drop down menu at 

checkout to see if you can save.  Admittedly I've got to wait a week or so but worth it.

And labels - well I've discovered I can buy clear Avery labels and hopefully print them. 

I managed to spend a couple of hours just looking at fonts!

Crochet:

 Summer Harmony is finished.  My goodness it is a border and a half - 17 rows.

For now it is over the end of my bed, I love it and the colours are an absolute joy.

It makes me smile each time I look at it.

And because I love the whole system of creating these blankets - 

Cupcake Harmony is underway.  These little labels detailing the colour sequence

are perfect and I can't possibly go wrong with Bella supervising.

Garden:

The minute it stopped raining on Wednesday I was out there.

I was eager to plant up this new Clematis - Winter Beauty, it flowers through Winter,

beautiful white bell-like flowers. I guess the name is a bit of a giveway!

I had ordered it way back in June and it was just delivered.

I'm conducting a bit of an experiment with planting it in this old chimney pot,

I know Clematis like deep rooting so that's ok but I fear it could be too narrow.

Keeping everything crossed.

It looks a bit droopy in this photo but it had just been planted,

poor thing slightly in shock.

And this is a little indoor greenhouse - thank you Ikea, 

very handy once you find that cheaper delivery button! 

Assembled - I did it myself with a lot of swearing.

It is quite simple but one of those things where you could do with another pair of hands.

Positioned on my conservatory table, inside is three rather precious delicate 

Clematis plants that I want to keep happy over Winter.

They are in quite big pots, if you were to use this greenhouse for seedlings you 

could fit in quite a lot. (Spot Bella's tennis ball in the garden).

Dinner last Sunday at Elliott's was delicious, the plan was to show Elliott how to cook 

a roast but Mitchell cooked it all, he's a great cook, we decided best not to interrupt him.

Bella loves Elliott's flat, I think it may have something to do with the 

enormous park opposite, she got two walks around that.

And that was my week.

I've heard that I'm returning to work next month, thankfully working from home.

I'm relishing this last bit of time off and mentally preparing myself for working again.

I've forgotten so much, I'll be cramming initially.

This weekend - no big plans, does anyone have big plans nowadays?

A bit of crochet and a bit of housework - one bit is larger than the other for sure! 

Take care friends, enjoy your weekend whatever you may be doing.