Channelling Keith and proud of myself

 Keith would have been so proud of me.  Watching him fettle furniture - chairs especially - down the years had me trained up to do the same.  I set off by gluing the loose joints into the crinoline stretcher on a lovely old splat-back Windsor chair which has been lurking in the kitchen a year or so now. Getting the sash clamps in place was a job you needed 3 hands for, especially as they had to go on the bobbin turning, but Danny helped and it's now tightly glued again. It will get a good polish today. 

The pieces of towelling rag are to stop the wood becoming bruised from being in the clamps.
 

Then I got Danny to carry out the rocking chair into the yard. This was originally a  very low and worn down mid-Victorian splat-back Windsor which we bought many years ago and had always been in the bedroom for Keith to put his clothes on at night.  When we moved here, we got the master carpenter who fitted our kitchen and did repairs on the sash windows for us, to make rockers for it.  Then it moved to the living room and got regular use, but the unstained rockers needed sorting out.  About 3 weeks ago I asked Keith how I could stain them and he spelt out that I should put some wire wool in some white spirit for a week or so, and that would give a dark stain.  Right enough, it did.  I was amazed how effective it was, an once Bri-waxed it has toned down brilliantly to the same colour as the legs.  I shall bottle the remainder to use on other jobs.

Before . . .

After. It will take a while to acquire a better patina, but a good start.  Now it needs to find a new home.  

I have 7 chairs to sell, probably privately as they take up a separate trip to take them to Builth Antiques Fair to sell, but think of the room I'll have! Money for bills too.  3 of them are Smoker's Bows (aka Captain's Chairs) which Keith always loved but you can't tuck them under the table and for that reason I will replace them with old ash and elm kitchen chairs with good seats and turning. (RUTA - I will put up photos of these as I think you were looking for one).  One has a cane seat so I have prevailed upon my good friends Pam & Dunc to recane it for me. The Georgian oak settle will also have to go, as none of the children will have room for it, and it's not a treasured family piece. That's worth a fair bit so will swell funds, as will the huge 1750 Georgian oak coffer in the Library, which needs to go too.  The money would help my New Zealand fund - I'm hoping to go and visit my best friend from school days, Rosie. (L. Lin, you're in the same category but much closer to home!!) That really would be a holiday of a lifetime to look forward to.

Finally, the old Edwardian "penny" chair, thus called because of the round seat. This was a bit of a labour of love to rub down and polish up, as some twit in the dim and distant past had sploshed sticky black stain on it and it had run down legs and across stretchers.  I used Meths and fine wire wool to do the rubbing down, and was grateful that the D. Nurses had left a whole box of disposable rubber gloves behind.  Just the thing for this messy job.

When it came out of the stables, it was very dull and not at all attractive.

But after . . .

Elbow grease an Bri-wax . . .  What a pretty little chair, with lovely turning.  This should fit in the car to go to Builth.

What else did I achieve?  Lots of Rosie-cuddles and entertaining (she is easily bored!) I made two big Apple Gingerbread cakes first thing to use up the stewed apple I had loitering in the fridge.  New resolution - NO chucking out of anything in fridge - I have had 6 mths of that with Keith going off or not being able to eat so many things.  Just have carrots to use up so will probably make carrot cake, or freeze them.  Not really soup weather at the moment . . .

I took Danny to and from Newbridge-on-Wye to get his car warning light fixed.  I charged Keith's mobility scooter.  I got Danny to put the spare tv up in the attic.  I went through the 4 drawer sewing bits stack and put a pile of things into a box for car boot/fair which has all sorts of sewing charts, books etc in from last year. I also picked up my new specs as I broke the frame (2nd time with this design of glasses) so had to have a new frame again.  I did read some of my book, but not very long and not outside as it was far too hot.  I had half a can of lager whilst we were watching a film, and was in bed at 8.20 p.m.  Shattered.  Then I woke at 2 . . .

Today Danny is going to take me to the Three Cocks pub for a lunchtime drink.  It's a beautiful and very old building and Keith and I always wanted to see the inside, but it was never open when we passed.  As it's almost opposite the garden centre I will go and get the bag of compost which I need.  Some Miracle Gro compost to give a helping hand to the tiniest Hollyhock seedlings ever . . . they germinated and then hardly grew.  I obviously bought some CRAP compost in the spring. I shall just potter and rest today, so don't worry, I will tweak the work/rest balance.

You'll laugh - both daughters were texting one another and Gabby said, can't we give mum some Calpol to calm her down, like she used to do to us before we drove up to Manchester when we were little?!!!  I'll settle for wine I think :)