Settling in

So much to do! Keeping me busy and out of trouble, though. Richmond is a lovely town, quite a lot going on, some very interesting shops and nice people. I'm settling in well I think, and we're starting to get to grips with a rather neglected garden, bit of a challenge.
Looking forward to moving through the seasons in a new place - foraging and preserving, gardening, making, etc.
Today is very windy here, someone nearly got an eyeful at the roundabout lol - might be advisable to invest in some narrow trousers rather than a flouncy long wide skirt!
The craft room/studio is almost there - just need to get the table in; it was too wide to get up the narrow stairs, so I've enlisted the help of the friendly Polish builder who lives underneath to take off the legs, bring the table in and put them back on for me lol I can then get teh sewing machine up, my cardmaking and art stuff sorted and the laptop will hopefully get a decent signal up there. Watch out for news of my online enterprises lol
Amazed OH with my homemade onion bajhis and naan breads last night - think he was suitable impressed lol
Hope all are well, hoping normal service will be resumed very shortly.
The picture is of Richmond Castle; I can see it from teh bedroom window, so am putting my rocking chair in fornt of the window, near the bookcases, so I can read with a view :)

All done!

Well, the move went very well, amd settling in already. Everything arrived safely I think, but haven't unpacked much yet, so much to do. I have a nice Polish builder assembling bookcases for me in the bedroom, then I can unpack some books; when that's done, I'll be able to get into the wee room, which is going to be my craft/workroom/studio place - room to leave the sewing machine out, and the iron, and room for the wheel and loom too. The garden has a lovely feel, and I got taken out to a local nursery on Sunday - now have rhubarb, blackcurrant and gooseberry bushes, golden and red raspberries, rosemary, wallflowers, a dogwood, hellebore and a bucket load of new seeds. I brought a few bits with me - snowdrops, oxlips, cowslips, one black and one white hellebore, comfrey (essential for an organic garden), my Forest Pansy tree (still in its pot) and my Chinese green rose. However, I seem to have managed to leave behind my fork, spade and rake lol Hey ho........
The garden faces south, with a lovely view of the castle, and has a friendly neighbourhood tabby cat playing there. There are some plants there - at least two beds of irises, plus a saxifrage London Pride planted sprawlingly (is that a word?) over a low wall - one plant I could never get going in Dorset. It'll be interesting to see what else might appear. There is one apple tree too, which fruits well apparently, and I'll be putting up the bird feeders this week. I brought my metal table and chairs with me, and my rather gorgeous rose covered parasol. William Lobb and my auriculas should be arriving from Dorset through the post this week too.
So, although there is obviously a lot going on emotionally at the moment, I'm very optimistic, and have taken to the town readily, it has lots going on, lots to offer and some very friendly people so far.
I'm looking forward to getting back into the Unbought Delicacies swing of things, although, ofcourse, the knitting never stopped! lol
Hope all are well, and thanks for your kind words and support over the past weeks and months :)

xx

Two days..........

~until D day lol! I got my train ticket last night too, so it's all becoming a bit more real. How come a return was £131.50 when I went up recently, but a single for Saturday is £127.30? Explain that? The chap in the ticket office couldn't lol No wonder women can't afford to run away from home........
Kitchen today, that didn't get tackled yesterday, and I have the BIGGEST roll of bubble wrap you've ever seen..........
Not long now.........
Weather is cold and wet here today - very miserable indeed, animals all well fed up with it and look it, poor things. Garden full of wee noisy birds, and the spring flowers are all well up now. It just goes on regardless of what we're up to, doesn't it?
x

When I say packing............

I mean trailing around the house with boxes, putting in what I'm taking, no rhyme nor reason, just getting it in there lol Some stuff wrapped obviously, otherwise folded into fabrics from stash (knew it would come in useful) for safety, or bedded down in piles of knitting wool lol. Stopped for coffee before tackling kitchen.........
x

Things..............

.......I've rediscovered. Only one item in this list is one that I didn't find yesterday when packing lol Guess which one?
Box of wooden cotton reels, baby rattle, application form for a passport, brand new tilly lamp, 5 packets of pipe cleaners, cast iron trivet, wooden picture frames (no glass, 4 of), Alexanders seeds, desert scarf, copy of Country Living from 1996, time capsule, rug hook, original pattern for Sanquhar gloves, dog collar from last dog, my old CV (needs updating, somewhat lol), 4m of redpetticoat flannel, end of teh curtain pole, book on rabbit keeping, several single earrings, downshifting book (oh the irony lol), handful of shells from Arran, make-your-own-shoes kit, christening egg cup and napkin ring (mine, must be antique now!), 3 old address books..................I'll stop there!
Great fun, but do I really *need* all these things ??!

600 bajhis............

.......is the amount I reckon I could make if I used all my stash of gram flour lol Packing continues apace here, getting through it and getting there. Gram flour discoveryw as a result of starting on teh store cupboard yesterday. A lot of things (as in 'What the hell is this??????????' from OH who was up on the chair, handing itmes down) won't get used if I leave them, so they're coming with me. Enough dried and other milk for about 4 months and the most beans I've ever seen outside a well-stocked health food shop lol Still got 2 shelves to go, and all the bottled fruit and preserves.
Have had to cull my books by about half, but not the cookery books - oh no, they're sacrosanct. Feel quite virtuous, but it's still a large number of boxes just of books. Stash is greatly reduced too, by donating to Bean who is very grateful, which is nice. Should be room for looms and definitely one of the spinning wheels, if not both - he says the van's a big one lol We'll see............. rocking chair and home brew kit all going too ofcourse lol
House is full of boxes to fall over, but time's getting on.
Van will be here friday morning, and I'll be going by train on the Saturday, to the snowy north lol.
Will post before I go, even if it's only to ask if I've forgotten anything lol
Hope all are well, stay warm
x

And so it begins.................

......... packing in earnest. I've started with the books; I've managed to be *quite* ruthless, but still a lot to go. It's difficult getting rid of them, but in the process I've found explicit instructions for making a duvet, a long-cherished project of mine, so into the box that one went lol Next is the huge stash of wool etc at the end of the sofa- that will take a whole morning I reckon, but I just need to hoik whatever I'm not taking up the stairs here to an eager reception from Bean, so that's handy.
Ah well, back to it now............ lol it's quite cathartic really, although I'd love to take it all :)

x