Bums on softer seats

Bums on softer seats

make do and mend reuse sewing

Hello. Two hours in the sweatshop and six cushions are finished. I will drop them into the church on Monday on my way to Crafty Club. Someone might recognize the fabric. Thank you blogger Brenda from the Boro, as you can see your donation makes very nice cushion covers. 

I found an easier way to shred the stuffing. Dear Rocky's brush does a better job than my fingers.

No snow yet, but it's raining now. Bugsy went off his food again, but is now back on it. He has just scoffed some tuna fish. He seems to like the spring water variety better.

I have a picture ready for framing. I had a frame in mind and made the picture a bit bigger, but after laying the glass on it and putting the frame on top, I will lose a lot of it around the edges. That would be a shame, so now I have to find a bigger frame or make one. I have some glass, I'm now going to look in my wood stash to see if I have anything suitable.

Barbara asked how am I getting on with my shampoo experiment. I've had 23 washes so far from a 440 mil bottle of Aldi shampoo costing 35p. I an not half way down the bottle yet, so it's looking like I will get around 50 from it. I'll let you know when it's finished.

Things to do. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Stretching the stuffing

Stretching the stuffing

make do and mend reuse sewing

Hello. It's all very well making something new out of something old, a bit of upcycling to help save the planet, make do and mend rather than buying new, but it can be a bit boring at times. Using old materials means there is some preparation to do. Things to take apart, and then rebuild. All this takes time, probably easier to  bin things and start afresh with something new. But you know me, I hate to throw anything away which might come in useful. 

My friend Bob came round a few weeks ago, he was on his way to the tip and thought he would call in to see if I wanted anything out of his car before it got dumped. Some good picture frames among other things. Three cushions which looked ok. They were a bit small and filled too fat with lumpy stuffing. I thought I would take them apart and could probably get six new cushions out of them. Not that I need any more cushions myself, but I have some spare fabric and I could make them for the church. 

So here I am pulling apart the lumpy wadges of what looks like wool that's come straight off the sheep, and shredding it into a less dense stuffing. Six cushions are made out of old sheets, and six covers are waiting to be sewn up. It's like a cushion making factory in here. What a flippin boring job. I'm sure it will be worth it in the end, the parishioners will get something soft to sit on. 

It's been blowing a hoolie all day here, the Humber Bridge is closed to high sided vehicles, as is the M62 bridge over the river further upstream. I walked Jade this morning, and checked on the Summer House while I had my boots on, before going back inside. I'm pleased to report that it's still standing, still solid, and the roof hasn't blown off. The water buckets are full so they are doing their job of catching the rainfall, trouble is they are too heavy to move, ha ha. A lot of the plants in the raised beds have survived so far, I put bulbs in a couple of months ago so it should be a good show for the spring and summer. Mind you it has forecast snow, so we'll see what happens after that.   

Time to make my dinner. I'll make a big pan of something or other with what I have got in, to last two or three days. It'll be chuck it in and see what happens. Can't be bothered to go shopping.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

My new business - refurbishing boots

My new business - refurbishing boots

amazing cheap make do and mend silliness

Hello. How about this then. The new look designer gardening boots. Everyone will want a pair like these. I'm thinking of going into the refurbishing boots business, could make quite a packet with my quirky designs. I think a price tag of around £75 will cover the cost of my time, and materials used to upcycle a pair of boots. 

Planting flowers in them was suggested by quite a lot of you. I tried it once and the flowers died. I'm not sure why because my feet are not particularly smelly. They get a wash once a month whether they need it or not, ha ha.

This quick makeover took all of three minutes, and I expect my gardening boots to last at least another couple of years. They will be great in the summer because I have incorporated a complex ventilation system in the design. You will note the open grid at the front, this enables air to enter the boot in the toes area, which then circulates around the whole foot and exits around the ankle. A blow through draught will ensure the feet are continually kept cool when other parts of the body may be sweating profusely.

I can see that there might be a problem during the winter months when the ground is sodden after a rainfall. There is a possibility that mud and water will enter the boots, which could cause some problems, like dirty socks and feet which will have to be washed upon entering the house. I will have to put my inventing cap on and come up with a solution. Perhaps two plastic carrier bags could protect them, the handles could be tied around the ankles to prevent them from slipping off. At least the plastic bags will get another use out of them.

Anyway, I am taking orders for my new boot refurbishment business. Send me your boots with the cash, sorry can't do cards or cheques, and I will do my best to give them an attractive makeover. You will be delighted with the results, if you are not then tough, like it or lump it as my mother used to say. There may be a delay in sending them back to you as I expect demand for this service will be pretty high, so do not expect miracles. If you find you need the boots quickly I suggest you go out and buy another pair to tide you over.

Now I must go and do other things, so I'll leave this with you. Admire my genius inventiveness and if you would like to have a go at boot refurbishment yourself  just send £65 in cash and I will dispatch to you a comprehensive kit which will contain everything you need to redesign your boots to a high standard like my own.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Why was Brenda laughing?

Why was Brenda laughing?

cheap garden make do and mend money saving

Hello. What is so funny about my boots? Can someone tell me why Brenda almost collapsed into fits of laughter when she looked down at my feet? 

I can't see anything wrong with them. Isn't it normal to get as much wear out of something as you can before it becomes useless and has to be chucked? These boots have served me well, I got them from a charity shop  a few years ago, about five I think. For a couple of quid, they looked decent enough to go to town in. Then when they began to show signs of scuffing they were relegated to walks around the village. No one bothers what I look like round here, they are used to me looking a bit odd.

They then became a bit loose on my feet so I thought I'd better just use them for gardening. I tie the laces like that so I can just slip my feet in and out of them without too much bending down. While in the garden I am often popping back into the house for something I have forgotten, so I don't want to be bothering with tying laces every time I wear them.

There isn't much gardening to do at the moment, but these boots are not for chucking just yet. I still have to hang the washing out, or put some waste in the bins, or water the pot plants if it doesn't rain. They will be sitting by my back door for a while yet, there is still a bit more wear left in them. I think they could do with a bit of tarting up, I may paint them lovely colours  ;o)

I'm off to the library van, I haven't seen Stan in weeks, he will be wondering what has happened to me. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon
Toodle pip

Oooops, got carried away :o)

Oooops, got carried away :o)

crafty stuff imagination make do and mend

Hello. My lovely charity shop bootees are looking a bit tired, and need tarting up a bit. I want to wear them tomorrow and they must look nice. Remove dirty white laces. I tried scrubbing around the white bits at the bottom with a toothbrush and toothpaste, then wash up liquid, didn't make any difference. 

So, paint it's got to be. Vinyl silk emulsion from the tester pots.

Oh wow, I just couldn't stop myself. The grey fabric was a bit grubby, so let's give it the full works, blue, green and purple. I had a new pair of laces in my stash to complete the jazziest trainers ever. They would cost a lot of money in the shops. I bought them for £2 a few years ago, have had a lot of wear out of them, now they have a new lease of life, all for a couple of bob.

Love, love, love 'em. I hope they will make people smile. Not to be worn in the rain maybe, ha ha.

I'm going AWOL a bit later today, something important to do. Can you mind the shop for me, no skiving. I'll be back before you know it.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon. Toodle pip

Out of date? Not a problem.

Out of date? Not a problem.

experimental food make do and mend vegetarian

Hello. That's another little job done with a handy tester pot of paint. I have a collection now of these colourful pots. It all helps to brighten up the garden. 

No, not a packet of brains, or a bag of string. I can get vacuum pack noodles from the Cash and Carry, four of these for 30p. they are out of date of course, but that's not a problem. They're handy for knocking up a quick meal.

I've just scoffed this, it will keep me going until my next meal at around 5 or 6 pm. Sliced mushrooms, tail end of a cucumber, handful of baby spinach, cooked in oil for a few minutes. Add spices and a packet of noodles, and cook for a few minutes more. Blimey, I'm stuffed.

I need to go to town now so I'll buzz off. we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.

Everything in the garden is..........pink

Everything in the garden is..........pink

experimental food imagination make do and mend vegetarian

Hello. It's been lovely weather, I think we are going to have a real hot summer, I feel it in my bones. Finally, I have used up the pink paint. See this gate? It's plastic. I picked it up after a motorhome show about eight years ago. I was there to collect a vehicle and drive it back to the depot after the show had finished. Some of the traders chuck out stuff that is damaged because they can't be bothered to take it back home with them. I picked this up and thought, that it might come in useful. 

I bashed two metal rods into the ground in the gap between the garage and the hedge, and this just slots onto them. The upright posts are hollow. It's beginning to look a bit tatty and could do with a face lift. No problem. 

Paint it pink. Looks great doesn't it. Not bad for a freebie, even the paint was free, given to me for the summerhouse. I'm well chuffed with it.

I think I might turn my garden into a pink theme park, ha ha.

Heidi is watching me from the rough patch of grass in the middle of the lawn. I leave it rough so the cats can snuggle into it in the sunshine.

Dinner tonight was a bit of a mishmash. I managed to get some yellow stickers last night, not as many as usual but enough. Chopped up baby sweetcorn, sliced mushrooms, and egg noodles on a bed of salad leaves. Very nice, quick to make in one pan. The turmeric makes it yellow.

I'm finding that it's too hot in the daytime to do my three miles, so I'm leaving it until the evening. The other night I didn't go until 9.30pm, and it was lovely, still warm but with a cool breeze. It's just gone 8pm now, so I think I'll get up and go.

Thank you for popping in. We'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.