Posts

KITCHEN & ELECTRICS

Image
The old kitchen was removed shortly after I moved in.  Most of the units were broken down and taken to the tip to be disposed of. Some were used to build a small kitchen in the lounge which was also my temporary bedroom.  I literally used a slow cooker, airfryer and microwave for 15 weeks and the first thing I made after getting my hob was poached eggs! I spent 3 days chipping the tiles from the walls. The kitchen was planned  the old fashioned way, on graph paper before transferring my design to the walls of the kitchen. Checking for both the fit and making sure I allowed for the new plaster. I went to Wicks in December with my design and John the CAD guy put it all in his computer and then  printed it out for me to see 3D.  I chose a solid painted Oak in grey. Wicks did refund me £220 in January (as promised) because my kitchen did go down in the January sale.  Only the units were bought, no extras, despite some hard sales talk I kept my nerve but more importantly to my budget!. I bo
6 comments
Read more

Heating

Image
I bought the bungalow without finding out how old the boiler was. A gas safety check had been completed but no other paperwork was available. Although I could look up the boiler operating instructions up on the internet, something just didn't make sense. Basically I was trying to reduce the temperature of the hot water as it was scolding hot. I was following various instructions to the letter but it wasn't doing what it said it would. I joined the British Gas plan which services your boiler and does any repairs etc for a knock down price of £15 a month for a year. A repair man was booked and arrived a couple of days later.  I went through a list of questions with him.  First of all he said the boiler had been fitted by British Gas 5 years earlier. He then went on the explain about  closed and open boiler systems.  I have a boiler and hot water cylinder, so my hot water temperature is controlled on the tank. Apparently my boiler can also be used as a combi boiler where the hot w
3 comments
Read more

HELP needed

Image
 Hello and welcome back. I have a bit of a conundrum.  I have a chest freezer  approx 190litre which is meaningless really. Size wise it measures 30" x 20.5" so bigger than a single freezer but not as big as the double. I've been so tempted to get rid of it and buy an upright with drawers but everyone I've spoken to has said no they don't hold as much. But my main bugbear with a chest freezer is everything eventually ends up at the bottom. Labels fall off prepped food and we end up with 'Lucky DipS Dinners'. So  my question is: HOW DO YOU ORGANISE A CHEST FREEZER SO THAT YOU CAN SEE THINGS EASILY AND CLEARLY?  Do you use baskets like these below? I was wondering whether to have baskets with lids that I can write on and they'd be able to stack better.  I really want to freeze any fresh produce I grow that I am unable to eat. I'm used to pickling beetroot and bottling tomato sauces. But as its just me lots of things will have to be frozen or prepped
6 comments
Read more

Windows & Doors

Image
 Although the bungalow had double glazing, I didn't like it.  There were no certificates handed over when I bought it and the vendors daughter couldn't even hazard a guess as to how old the windows actually were. The plastic  grid like construction forming the Georgian look was off colour and just horrible. I think it may have been OK had the original windows had some uniformity to them, but vertually every window had a different design. Just looking at them sent my OCD to new heights! haha. Once again I called on a company I used before to come and give me a price. They are only small but everything is guaranteed and registered with FENSA. The windows took 5 weeks to be made and were literally fitted the Friday before Christmas on the Sunday. The door didn't arrive until after Christmas.  The removal of the old windows caused  damage to the bricks either side of the sill, so the fitter had to return with matching bricks after Christmas to repair the damage.  Plus the new f
2 comments
Read more

Moving In

Image
 Moving from a spacious 3 bedroomed bungalow to a much smaller 2 bedroomed bungalow meant having to put quite a bit of furniture into storage. I knew  my little home needed work and I didn't want to have to play the sliding puzzle game, continually moving furniture around rooms and it getting in the way.  I moved on a Tuesday and had my plasterer booked for Thursday to skim both the bedroom ceilings. The bedroom walls weren't too bad just a few knocks and dents here and there, which I filled and rubbed down. Mind you every time I went back into the room I'd see another and wondered if I should have had it plastered. Anyway,  out would come the filler again and again! Once the plaster was dry a mist coat was applied followed by two top coats to the celling and coving. I painted the walls in a pale grey.  My bedroom has fitted wardrobes and although  they had an ugly stick on trim and looked a bit worn, I couldn't afford to get rid of them. Furthermore they are capable of
4 comments
Read more

The Garden

Image
 My bungalow sits on quite a large corner plot. I knew I had to deal with the garden ASAP it was definitely too large for me to cope with as I get older. Plus I didn't want to be a slave to it. The satellite photo has been taken from the internet and the quality isn't good.   I had 6 Landscape companies around to price up, I'd already prepared a detailed drawing and list of requirements regarding materials. The quotes to remove existing concrete paths, put a patio in the rear garden, level and landscape the  front and side gardens, as well as add another smaller driveway were incredible. They varied from £32K to £10K. I went with a local company who gave me a very detailed quote, so there would be no ambiguity regarding my specifications. Work started late April 2023, thank heavens we'd had a fairly dry winter which kept the mud from the huge piles of earth to a minimum. It took almost a week to level all the areas and lay the sub-base. I was shocked how much earth came
5 comments
Read more

Hello and Welcome

Image
Hello and welcome to my blog. My name is Tania and although I'm not new to blogging, I haven't written anything in a long while.  My life will be changing considerably over the next few weeks, so I thought I'd take you along on my journey, as I start life alone at 67 after 45 years of marriage. There is no animosity and we get on well together but  once the heating and other remedial works have been completed on my husbands new home, he will be moving out.  Fifteen months ago I bought my property, a two bedroomed detached bungalow,  knowing where my future was heading. It needed quite a bit of work which we did the vast majority of ourselves and the rest I called in the professionals.  I wanted something that was economical to run, something I could future proof and be comfortable in as I get older.  Although,  it's  not quite finished cosmetically, once my husband takes the furniture and other personal belongings, which are being stored here, I can get on with the rema
4 comments
Read more