A rainy day out

A couple of weeks ago the weekend was forcast to rain, and true to its forecast we woke up to rain having planned the day at the allotment. Instead we took a trip down the A303 to Shipton Bellinger to Mays Auctions where they had a general auction. It was a lovely morning out and we got to see what life is like in a true auction house rather than one which takes over a village hall for the weekend. We had a good look round, marked which lots we wanted to bid on, found a comfy seat and had bacon rolls and tea for brunch.

After loading up with our buys (more on this later) the weather had cheared up and we took the scenic route home past Wilton Windmill. We had forgotten that it was heritage weekend and it was open free for the day. By then the sun had come out and it was a lovely surprise to get to see it working as there was a good breeze aswell.





Now for the auction, among the things we bought were two project which I will keep you updated on their progress. The first was a pretty ugly show box. The front flaps down and there are shelves inside. Lot number 83 isn't much at the moment but it has now today its place on the bench in my shed, been stripped and sanded and is on its way to a pretty amazing transformation.












Lot number 105 was a bit of an impulse and certainly a longer term project. A bargain at £10 plus commission and I can see its potential.

I admit that it needs tidying up a bit and has seen better days but the wood is sound with no sign of woodworm. It has obviously had a few recoverings as there are so many staple and nail holes around the edge of the fabric and the webbing and springs are in reasonable condition.

This is it when we unloaded it from the car.







This is it an hour later.

It has a label on it from a previous auction which looks decades old and the base canvas looks good so that can stay as it is secure and the shaping for the back. I have taken photographs throughout its stripdown so hope, once the wood is refurbished that I will be able to make patterns and recover.









The next day, still being heritage weekend, we went to Bramshill house which was a once only open to the public. It was fascinating to see inside the house we lived near for so long, and remember my childhood years walking the dog around the grounds. Unfortunately it was not designed for step free access so was a bit waring for some people. It was well presented and great to see how the house has been used through its life and a fantasti history of the police force both in the UK and visiting forces from worldwide. After looking round at the history of the house we did at least get a chance to sit down and have an ice cream before the walk back to the car.

Apple harvest

The apple harvest is in full swing and we have the best crop from the cider apples, although Nick loves them as eating apples but that might be because he is depriving himself of cider to drink.

It isn't a very big tree but we got a whole bucketfull.



The oooking apples are huge a well so I might have to find a recipe that used squash and apple.

Thats what I call a pumpkin

We haven't had great success at the allotment this year but with all the rain we have had in the last few weeks the squash have filled out a bit. I am not sure what I am going to do with it as I couldn't actually pick it up, but I think I will get a saw out of the garage and cut in into sections, get a mass of pastry and make a load of pumpkin pies.

We have another not quite as big as this as well and a couple of butternut squash.

Prototype

I decided that I needed more carrying space on my bike so the obvious solution was paniers. I was so disappoined to find that the fabric I used for my basket cover is no longer available so decided to go for something very different.









This is the prototype and I already have many changes that I will made. Firstly the pocket covers could be shorter, the handle needs to go the other way round, I would use ties instead of velcro for the bag closings and I would make it a bit narrower so that it fits inside the carrier on the back of the bike rather than overhanging at the back.









It attaches to the bike with velcro strips that attach at the back and front of the carrier and I will also add a tie which is long enough to go around the saddle stem to stop the risk of it slipping backwards.

I might swap the two fabrics around a bit as well so watch this space for version 2.

Autumn

It is sad to see the trees losing their leaves and the plants looking a bit shabby but there is one good thing about Autumn and I think Angel will agree.

We went to Scatts today and stocked up on coal and firelighters as well as a bag of logs until the delivery this week. The fire is blazing beautifully so we are nice and toasty.

Neglect

We have been guilty of neglect this year so have made a decision that the allotment will have a new lease of life for next year. We are going to start closing down for the year and spend the rest of the Autumn and Winter preparing for a bumper harvest next year. We are going with our harvesting baskets next weekend to collect apples for storing and the cider apples and windfalls to start making cider ready for Christmas.

Far too much allotment time has been spent selling on ebay and unfortunately this has a knock on effect on our time as we then have to send far too much time wrapping and Monday and Thursday evenings are a trip to the post office.

Pond update

As we got home with two days before going back to work, the priority was finishing the pond. Nick finished shaping the hole and we put in a few layers of padding before the liner. We seeemed to have slightly overestimated but it is better to have too much than too little.

Angel was fascinated by the water going into the hole in the ground that she had been patrolling for the last couple of weeks.









We also had a little helper who was determined to get to any grups and worms before the ducks were let out.












We let the ducks out expecting them to be straight in the water, but they were more interested in the pile of new soil on the ground as there were rich pickings to be had. Fennel was the first to realise what they were missing and the others soon followed. It wasn't long before they were all in, dive bombing, swimming underwater and getting the cleanest I have ever seen them.


We still have to decide what to do with the edge but the intention is to have quite a wide paved strip all the way around to hopefully stop them dragging too much mud and muck into the pond.

We are definately going to need a pump and filter but I don't think there will be any need for an aerator.





I am hoping that once we have the paving in place, the pond will look smaller as it looks huge at the moment. Before that though we have a lot of clearing up today as we have eight tubs full of soil to take to the allotment. I don't think we will have any problem filling the raised bed.

While in Gloucestershire

Our trip to Gloucestership happened to coincide with a general auction at Phillip Serrell Acution rooms so we took a trip north to Great Malvern for a viewing on the first day, calling in at Gloucester on the way, and on our second day, spent the morning at the auction and then travelled back to Tortworth through Wales and across the Severn Bridge (not the crossing that is the M4).

We just went along to view but couldn't resist some bidding and came home with some wonderful items.







It was a great morning and seeing Phillip in action was great. I must say that he doesn't have a TV persona and is the same person on and off screen, behind and infront of the rostrum.

We had two dramas during the sale, the first when somebody fell off their stool and another when a young girl collapsed. The man himself was on hold to help the girl to a chair and call and ambulance so I hope she is OK although she was very very pale.









The best buys of the day we some Sylvac dogs, a box of crested china, a signed Worcester 2010 cricket team bat, and my favourites - two old metal advertising signs. They are shown here together but not to scale as the Wall's sign is much bigger than the NGK. I think they might be up on the wall in the office when we refit it.

A few days away

We treated ourselves to a few days away last week. It was a lovely break and to an area tht neither of us had visited before ....... or so we thought.

The hotel was Tortworth Court in South Gloucestershire. When we got there we found out some of this history of the building and it had quite a history. It was an american air base at one time andthey built a hospital in the grounds. This hospitl was then taken over and became Leyhill Prison, a place where Nick spent some time in his erly days!

The house lay as a ruin for many years until a consortium took it over and renovated it to its former glory. It is a magnificent building and has been very sympathetically extended and turned into wonderful 4* hotel.

Now for an explanation - the time that Nick spent as Leyhill prison was the first few years of his life as his father was Prison Governor at the time that he was born so he spent his first few years of life there (not as an inmate).