Blankets, seeds and all the usual stuff...

Hey there!

I always seem to have more plans then I can keep up with. I started knitting a cardigan for Raoul, but then the Doctor and I went to the Harry Potter exhibition and they had Harry and Ron's beds...this blanket on Ron's bed, knitted by Mrs Weasley, inspired me...

...to knit one for the Doctor. So I'm trying to knit both. The blanket squares are so much easier as they are smaller, one stitch and I don't have to concentrate so much. They also aren't as heavy. The cardi is weighing my bamboo needles down so much, I'm worried they might break. These are the squares already completed...

I probably only need a gazillion more.

The seeds I planted a couple of weeks ago are doing well. The lavender have their second leaves and the parsley is growing like there is no tomorrow...

I saw some metal buckets at the hardware store today, very cheap, and wanted to buy them, but had no reason to, so didn't. Then an hour or so later, I discovered some Flander's poppy seeds at home and thought they may look brilliant in metal buckets. So, I went back and bought three (I tend to buy in threes, I'm not sure why).

Raoul punched holes in the bottom and filled them with compost and soil (I'd usually do all this on my own, but I've done something to my back so I can't bend or lift much...that said, Raoul fell down the back stairs the other day and twisted his ankle and knocked himself out, so it was good of him to help). I topped that up with seed raising mix and tossed in a bunch of the poppy seeds, so hopefully, at some point, they will look really amazing.

I've also decided to try to grow some Rosemary from seed. I may end up with none or 30. I'm hoping for 30...but half that would be brilliant. I also filled a tray with Tuscan Black Kale seeds. Which may be too much, but I can give away healthy plants.

And to finish off...my dream potting shed...

Ciao for now,

Ms. Whatsit.

Umbrella Days...

Hello There,

It has been raining for what seems like forever and it turns out that the wellies I bought online are the most comfortable (and practical) shoes that I own at the moment. The track that runs along the Nepean River where I sometimes like to walk has disappeared under the water that has overflowed from Warragamba Dam...

My mother, in her ebay craziness, bought me an umbrella which arrived today, and, I must admit, it is one of the best things she has ever bought me. Not because I need an umbrella, but because it is black on the outside.

Boring right? No way! Inside it is a rainbow!

I love it. I want it to rain tomorrow so I can use it. I can jump in puddles, really deep ones, in my wellies and keep my head dry with my own private rainbow (and yes, apparently I am four years old).

The constant rain is causing strange things to happen. Flooding, yes, that goes without saying. But I didn't expect the pumpkin vine to try and escape the ground...

I really hope a pumpkin doesn't decide to grow up there...aside from the risk of getting hit on the head, how on earth will I get at it to make soup? 

And the bean tepee actually has some beans on it! I really didn't expect it to. But it has, so hopefully we will get to eat them before something else does. Unlike the chillies. I have no idea what has gotten to them, but I kind of hope it suffers from the heat just a little bit (only a little bit though).

Ciao for now,

Ms. Whatsit.

Finished!

Hello!

It's finished! The ugly outdoor setting is now covered in plastic wrap until it can be placed in our very own garden. But before getting all wrapped up, it posed for a photo. Ta da...

I'm actually quite happy with how bright it is. After renting in bland beige houses for too many years to mention, I want everything bright and individual when we finally have our own shack to decorate.

Other projects for the house I have on the go at the moment, are 6 rosemary plants that I propagated from cuttings from my cousin's rosemary plant. I dipped them in honey and placed them in a fairly loose potting mix (of my own creation)...Here they are originally...

And, I am pleased to announce, that after six months, they all grew roots and have been planted in slightly bigger pots, and they have all added a couple of inches worth of growth.

{they are the little ones}

With the herb garden in mind, I am trying to grow at least 6 English Lavender from seed. I have lots of little sprouts in each pot, so this may have worked (crossing all fingers and toes that are not broken). And 12 pots of parsley. And some more thyme and sage. I may also try and propagate some sage from my existing plants when the weather is better due to the success with the rosemary and it's just, if not more, exciting than growing from seed.

That was my weekend.

Ciao,

Ms. Whatsit.

Toes, what do they do anyway?

Hello There,

So, I broke the littlest toe on my left foot, again. I think it may be so weakened now, that the slightest bump throws it into such a panic that it tries to leap off my foot. Which I sometimes wish it would as I'm sick of the bruising and trying to strap it up so it sits, relatively, normally.

I have been inspired by my mother...(have I mentioned that we are living with her to try and save for a house?)...and I have been buying stuff online. I bought some wellies that I have been looking at for years, but I can't find them anywhere locally, and I got them a bit cheaper than the usual retail price. And they arrived just in time for the expected flooding and the dams to burst...

 I am also waiting on this gorgeous looking herb drier for our future kitchen...French Herb Drier

And soapnuts. I can't wait to try them. I loathe buying so many chemicals...they are expensive and we will all pay for them in the long run. People were happy and healthy and clean without all the stuff the advertisers and multi-nationals try and tell us we should buy now. I will try and remember to keep you updated about these (when they arrive).

The third and (hopefully) final coat has been applied to the ugly outdoor setting. It looks very red, which was the intention. When it is completely dry and I can move it somewhere to take a good photo I will post the result.

For now, here's a red vintage plastic shopping bag which Raoul bought me. I love it. I've never had so many compliments on anything I've owned before...

And, I think I'll introduce you to the other member of the family. I'll use her real name. Maisy. She is a cat.

Isn't she pretty? Did you notice the "Beware of the Cat" sign that The Doctor made? With the great big, bloody scratch marks? Did I mention that we call her 'Maisy-Moo', not because it sounds cute, but because she is a real cow. Why? Well, look at my stomach...

But we love her...sometimes (not when the above photo was taken, for instance)...

Ciao for now,

Ms. Whatsit.

Canteen's with no Electricity don't work well....

Hello You.

Did you know I currently run my son's school canteen twice a week? Did you know that without electricity canteens do not function well? It was meant to be sushi day. I was supposed to roll 70 sushi rolls. But the power went sometime during the night and all my carefully prepared ingredients could not be used...No sushi for the kids (or me). But some staff chickens are getting lovely flavoured rice for dinner tonight. Always a bright side (I begrudgingly acknowledge).

Cioa,

Ms. (extremely exhausted) Whatsit.

How I came to be Lady Macbeth for half an hour...

Hello again.

The ugly outdoor setting has had it's first coat of red paint. It really is rather red. The bright orange drop sheet resembles the floor of a slaughter house, but I think after another coat or two it will (hopefully) look really good in a shady green corner of a garden. That is, if we get a house with a shady green corner. If not, I will have to grow one.

Of course, once this coat was completed the skies opened in a rather astonishing fashion and the chairs had to be moved. I then spent half an hour in the bathroom trying to wash the blood (red paint) off my hands.  But, as the paint is an anti-rust outdoor paint, soap and water were doing nothing to remove it. I ended up scrubbing my hands with nail polish remover, which, thankfully, worked, but did leave my hands smelling horrible for several hours after.

The paint is dry to touch today, but I don't think I'll have time for the second coat until the weekend. 

A friend sent me a link to what is possibly one of my favourite collections of interior design photos ever. They are all personal libraries and they are all beautiful. My particular favourite is this one...Staircase Library. The original link is here. If you like books, then be prepared to be very, very jealous.

Ciao, 

Ms. Whatsit.

Hello and apologies...

Hello There!

The apologies are for how rubbish the blog looks at this point in time, but if I spend any more time twiddling this and tweaking that, I'll never get started. That's my way. I also never finish anything once I get started, and getting the look right will never happen...so things will change as I go along, but, as they say (Who are 'they'? Who knows), a change is as good as a holiday, which is generally a stupid statement, because painting my nails is hardly as good as drinking by a shaded pool at some resort with an all you can eat buffet breakfast, but some changes are good, and I intend to make some at some point.

Why Ms A. Whatsit? Well, the 'A' is my initial, and 'whatsit' is a word that I use too often really. Maybe I'm getting old, or had to many alcoholic beverages, or, and this is probably the truth, I'm too lazy or pre-occupied to bother trying to think of the real name for things. So telling someone to "get the whatsit behind the thingymijig" is a common thing to hear me say. The fact that so many people seem to be able to get me the 'whatsit' is probably testimony to the fact that English has too many words...but, and here is a surprising thing, I like it that way. Language fascinates me. So do pumpkins. I'm a complicated specimen.

What is this blog about? Everything and anything that I (and, hopefully, you) find interesting. I may get a bit obsessed by houses this year (and for that, I am sorry), as my partner, let's call him 'Raoul' (not his real name), and our 10 year old son, 'the Doctor' (not his dream profession, but he has recently followed in his slightly geeky parent's footsteps and become a Doctor Who fanatic) are hoping to buy our first house. To this end, I keep buying things "for the house". I have boxes of stuff. Yesterday I bought a doormat...

It may not be 'The' doormat, but, as Raoul said, we can always use it for the back door. And it was 50% off. I also have two door-knockers. I don't know which will be the right one. Maybe we can have both and visitors can choose?

So, with the house in mind, I started a project today. The 'Tarting up the Ugly Outdoor Setting' project, to be precise. My Grandmother's unit block has spent a couple of years and millions of dollars being tarted up and this old setting didn't fit in with the new decor. My Grandmother doesn't think to give stuff to people usually. Usually she just throws stuff out. So I couldn't say no. It's white, therefore, I really don't like it. So, I'm going to paint it bright red. And I'm going to try and do it properly, rather than using my usual modus operandi of, well, not doing things properly. Here is the setting before the initial clean...

And all cleaned up...

So, now I have to clean it with methylated spirits and then to paint it! Flame Red!

Ciao for now,

Ms Whatsit.