Friday round up

I finally blew the dust off two x-stitch projects this week.  This William de Morgan one I can share with you but the other is a present (albeit a couple of years late!) so I can only share once it has been received and opened.   I bought this kit when we visited Wightwick Manor, some 3 years ago now, for my birthday day out.  However, I had to start with some unpicking on the other project, AND order DMC 844 as it was NOT in the zip-lock bag with all the other threads for the work.  My new craft light is perfect for close work like x-stitch.

 

When we went to Hay yesterday, after a break of 3 weeks, I saw this book and Keith offered to buy it for me.  It's a castle we've not been to, so are planning a visit.  The book is very good and focuses on the de Lacy family as well as the castle and the development of this piece of landscape since prehistoric times.

I'm also reading this, which my friend Gay sent me - part of a series.  Nice light reading.

Ignore the cobwebs - I need to get on the steps and sort them tomorrow.  These are my ex-display flowers I've used on our stand at Antiques Fairs, so they have been put out to give some colour to that corner and replace the faded Hydrangeas which were there before.

Below: lowering grey skies a couple of days ago when I was up on the Bank.

Looking across to the Church.  The dratted wires always get in the way.

It rained on Tuesday.  A LOT.  A good day to start tackling these eyesores in our bedroom.  Unfortunately I can't remove the outer "frames" without taking half the plaster off the wall, but I have scraped (laboriously) the wallpaper off the centre panel of the first one and removed the beading from the other two.  I am hoping that when it's all painted blue, the "frames" won't be so obvious. I shall, however, hang pictures inside them.

Someone asked for a look at the current wallpaper in there - this pinky-brown and beige is it. You can see it's rather gloomy in the photo of the wall. NOT to my taste.  I'm back to the plan to use the original dark blue wallpaper I chose, which has Meadowsweet and other wild flowers on it in a nearly-white design.

    All these jobs take me a long time though - I can't do them day after day as my muscles and joints complain, but I'll get there in the end.

    

More expense this week as 4 of my pans AND the Wok, don't work on the new cooker.  These were on offer at Nibletts in town (£7 off marked price) and I had to have more pans, as although I have my Le Creuset set I find them very heavy to pour from when full, since I fell over Little Whale and damaged my wrist about 18 mths ago. More expense to come as the aged heating boiler is on the blink.  So we had a chap come out today to give us a quote, and now need a couple of others.  Needless to say the quotes will be 4 figures, which is never good news.

This afternoon I called on my neighbour/friend C and had a cuppa and a chat and then we walked her dogs, so I have my steps well up today.  My hip joints had been very achey after my Covid booster on Wednesday, but the walk helped loosen everything up again.

    Now Friday evening beckons, with a glass or two of white wine, and something enjoyable on tv. Sad to see the last of All Creatures Great and Small last night.  So enjoyable and well done.  Anyone else been watching it?