This is the IDEAL HOME bit

Wet roomHallway -yes it is skewiff-not my photography

Going up

From the top

Remember when I blogged around Christmas I said we were having a wet room installed-well it didn't stop there. We (I tell a lie it was me folks) decided that the stairs and hallway should be done instead of clearing up and going through the mess again. I rang my brave decorator (we are past the DIY stage in our lives) and asked him if he could take it on. By it you should understand that we live in a house with 10 foot high ceilings downstairs, 9 foot high ceilings upstairs and also a further flight going to the attic--all covered in wood chip paper and several layers of emulsion. DH's love affair with this house goes back to the 1970's and he was responsible for the wood chip. In January all decorators are short of work so that was the best time to ask.

He waded in and stripped off the wood chip whereupon the ceiling at the very top of the house fell down engulfing everything including me and the decorator in a cloud of dense soot. Cue plasterer.

If you live in the Manchester area I can recommend him. Apparently he made the teeth in the skull in Disneyland Paris so he's willing to travel as well I suppose.

Plastering done it was back to waiting for decorator and paint charts and carpet samples etc etc plus cleaning cleaning and more cleaning-soot- plaster -filthy carpet to the tip- rusty nails. All long winded for us cos we live life in the very slow/just about plodding along lane.

We are now taking a well earned rest from it all but it's not over yet as I've promised myself a major revamp of the craftroom--then there's the new sink in the kitchen and a new worktop and while we're now into Spring the garden (yard wide strip at front of house!)is looking pretty awful where I tried to dig out a root last year and knocked myself up for a week.

Oh yes and DH is going for cardioversion for the dicky ticker.

Oops I forgot there's a small matter of curtains to make for the bedroom got the fabric but not done anything yet. The window is floor to ceiling and as you might remember the ceiling is 9 ft high. Should have it all done in a few days then NOT.

Major birthday season coming up soon too including a fortieth and a sixtieth. Yes I've bought a few stamps and etceteras since I last blogged but not let myself loose on them.

I have knitted a cardigan a jumper and a long waistcoat while trapped in one room by plasterers electricians and decorators so I've not been completely lazy craftwise. Just about got you up to date now. Will tell you about the overnight stay in Manchester and how little sis and I almost met Rio Ferdinand (wouldn't know him if I fell over him) later. Tata