Summer to Winter With Old Clothes

 Autumn, my favourite season.  🤎💛🧡

A very lucky score on the charity book table this week.  

I've always wanted to read this but somehow never gotten around to it, now I can once I finish the book I'm currently halfway through.  Isn't Michelle Obama such a very beautiful person, in looks, intelligence and attitude.  

My Summer to Winter changeover is now almost complete.  My t-shirts were removed from the drawer ...

... and the jumpers and pyjamas replaced them.

Now the weather will turn hot and sunny, but this year I have left a few summer weight things out, it's not fooling me again like last year.  😄

The only drawback to doing this over the past week has been the near constant rain, so things have had to have a quick wash and dry overnight on the airer instead of on the washing line.  Some of my jumpers are ten years old or  maybe more, and a couple around five, but they come out at this time each year and go away again in Spring.  The changeover each year feels like having a new wardrobe of clothes, but at the same time somehow it's like welcoming old friends back into the fold.

I'm not completely against new clothes, and after a completely fruitless trawl of charity shops I have added a couple more new checked shirts from good old M&S to my collection of Autumn wear this year.

I love reusing my 'old' clothes season after season, and I am completely in favour of the ban that France and a lot of Europe are bringing in on the advertising of fast fashion brands like Shein and Temu.  I have never and would never buy from either company, but each to their own.

Sue xx

Random Bits ... I am Themeless

 

My £2.69 Aldi flowers that lasted for over three weeks before suddenly falling apart.  What an absolute bargain, better than any expensive bouquet.

I don't know what I had in mind when I took this photo, it's simply a bread crust, toasted with homemade marmalade and that all important first coffee of the day.

I take photos all the time as I use them for a starting point on most of my blog posts ... I don't know what this post would have been.  😄

Ginger's 'Tasty Licks', only he doesn't lick them from the tube the way cats are supposed to, he has a special little flat dish that he licks them from.  I can never remember the name of them so they are nicknamed 'squidges' ... well I do have to squidge them out of the tubes!

I buy them as it's the best way to get his thyroid medicine into him.  They must taste good together, he's always begging for them at breakfast and teatime.

One of this years teeny, tiny harvests, three little potatoes from a volunteer potato plant that was growing in amongst my spring onions.

My breakfast yesterday.

The quickest breakfast in my repertoire thanks to my silicone egg poachers that go in the microwave and cook two eggs in one minute and ten seconds, while the toast pops up and gets buttered.

There that cleared a lot of photos from my September photo file, and no doubt confused a few of you.

Yep ... today I am themeless.

Sue xx

Posh De-scaler, Random Meals and Happy Finds

 

This is possibly the poshest de-scaler that I have ever used.

My kettle was suddenly furred up, a very rare occurrence here in the north-west of England, so I rummaged in the cupboard for some bog standard vinegar.  There was none to be had, I checked Alan's under sink cupboard as he tends to have sachets of de-scaler under there, nope none at all.

So I bit the bullet and tried it with some of my very out of date Apple Cider vinegar.  Oh well better for it to be used in some way as I had never gotten around to using it much in recipes ... I hate vinegar flavours. Why had I bought it then, I have no idea!! 

It worked but it took four boilings of the kettle whereas malt or white vinegar takes two at the most.

Making Alan's dinners and teas while he has been working so hard at the bungalow, means that I am going through the contents of the freezer satisfyingly quickly.  The bottom drawer is now full of homemade items rather than convenience foods and as they are used up only a few of them are being bought again.

Fish fingers are a good emergency standby for a quick and tasty, even if slightly naughty lunch, so they will be replaced ... occasionally. 😁 

These garlic Plant Menu Kyivs are also a good standby, but I don't eat them very often these days, so again another occasional purchase from now on I think

Rummaging around definitely has it's advantages, as I found a single block of homemade soup and half a garlic baton yesterday ... it made for a very tasty lunch.

Sue xx

Replicating a Kitchen

On the previous post, in the comment section, Maeve asked if our new kitchen is the same as the one in the annexe.  So I thought I would dig out a few old blog photos to show you all just how much it really is the same.  A good side bonus to being a long-term blogger, is that you have an arsenal of photos at your finger tips to share and share again if the urge to do so overcomes you.  😀

There are three main differences, the first being the size as the new kitchen is much larger.  In my current kitchen there is only actually one set of drawers, two single base cupboards and one double wall cupboard.  Both base cupboards house something, one of them the sink base and it's pipes and the other one the main electrical consumer unit, so there is not actually a lot of shelf space in them.  What looks like a large cupboard next to the fridge freezer is actually housing the combi-boiler.

The second difference is the sink.

   My current one is cream in colour and has a twin bowl design, and the new one is stainless steel with just one larger sink bowl.  You do learn from your mistakes and I have.  The cream one while looking brilliant, and tying in so well with the colour palette of the kitchen, takes a lot more upkeep than any sink I have ever had before.  We eat a lot of spicy curries and tomatoey pasta sauces and they can stain it so easily.  Stainless steel is so much better at coping with this.

The final difference is the worktop, or countertop if you are not from the UK.  

While it looks exactly the same from above, the new one is a traditional worktop thickness and my current one is a much narrower design and is what is also used as the backsplash in place of tiles.  While the kitchen design company could get enough of this for the backsplash of the new kitchen, we had to go with a standard thickness for the worktops.

Alongside these three main differences there is also the size of the induction hob, I currently have a two zone or multi use sized hob and in the bungalow it will be a four zone.  Above it I have a smaller extractor unit than we have in the new place.  Our new one actually has shelves incorporated into the cupboard around the extractor fan, so even more storage ... although only Alan can reach the top shelf, unless I keep my little steps handy. 

The last difference that I can think of is the washing machine, in my current kitchen I decided to keep my old freestanding washing machine, but as our new kitchen is in the only living area of the bungalow this time we have gone for an integrated model.

Over the years I have have made very good use of the space in my current much smaller kitchen, it has really done me well.  So because Alan has always liked my kitchen he was more than happy for me to work with the same kitchen designer and fitter to replicate it.  💖

Finally, here are the two kitchen designs in the final planning stage.

My current kitchen.

Our new kitchen.

Oh, just look at all those cupboards and drawers.  😁

Right ... that's more than enough kitchen talk.

Sue xx

Tomatoes, Tiles and an Actual Kitchen

 

The weekend got off to a really good start with some of the homegrown tomatoes providing a very tasty breakfast alongside a few chopped onions from the freezer.

Very simple. but at the same time very, very tasty.

https://youtu.be/OpSeMM05PLQ?si=-FOP5C5pzIup4jFH

Then we called round to the bungalow for me to do a quick video walkthrough for Alan's Renovation Records.  He's enjoying watching them all back, when he actually gets to realise just how much work he has managed to get through over the course of this year.  This video shows a real jump forwards in the shell of an old bungalow actually turning into our future home.

Then we called up to Morecambe, there was no seaside walk this week though as we were returning three boxes of tiles that we had over ordered.  At £30 for a box of two tiles it was a journey that was well worth doing, it will nearly pay for one of the five doors that we will be ordering this week. 😄

Sue xx

Blowing the Cobwebs Away

 

With all the renovations still going on at the bungalow, it's been important to make an effort to do things at the weekend.  Alan really needs a break from being on his knees all week cutting, laying and sticking down the tiles and woohoo, he's got grouting coming soon.  So each Saturday we try and go somewhere.  With the weather dry and mostly sunny last weekend we decided to go to Fleetwood for a walk on the prom and a cup of coffee.

It's made a lovely change from the last couple of weeks, when the somewhere has been B&Q or Wickes for building supplies.  Although of course even those trips usually end up with a coffee and a bit of lunch, so it's not all bad.

Coffee in Fleetwood was accompanied by a bacon butty for the man in my life, it's been well earned.

After a sit down and half an hour of enjoying the gloriously fresh air while we drank, and in Alan's case ate, we took a walk along the full length of the promenade.  We were keeping pace with the Isle of Man to Heysham ferry which you can see out at sea in this photo.

https://youtube.com/shorts/mPgoWg4fZVE?si=gaI5Kpcn0r_ev673

Here's a little bit of the fresh air sound for you to enjoy, we stood there for quite a while enjoying the freshness.  Because I have been so slow at posting this, it's now almost the weekend again ... now where should we go this week? 😀

Sue xx

Rhubarb ... and Summer to Winter

I picked the last of the homegrown rhubarb at the start of the week, there was a lot more of it than I had thought.  It's no wonder the end of the garden seemed small, it was cowering under gigantic rhubarb leaves.  😄

Also in that photo is the last but one picking of the blueberries. I am bringing them in as and when they turn the right shade of blue, before the birds spot them.  They are all added to a little tub in the freezer after a quick wash.  There's not a lot but they will be a nice addition to some little cakes or suchlike.

Two big pans full of lovely rhubarb stewed down with sugar and a splash of water.

I got eleven takeaway sized tubs worth of rhubarb in total, which are now safely nestled in my freezer taking up lots of space.

With the much cooler nights drawing in, yesterday was the big changeover from my Summer duvet to the Winter one, this necessitates getting all the vacuum bags out from under the bed and airing both the one coming off and the one going on, on the washing line.  I was very lucky with the weather and it was a lovely sunny and blowy day.  

After swapping the duvets over I am now starting on the clothes swap around.  

Most of my Summer clothes get put away and my Autumn/Winter ones come out.  With only one small wardrobe to hang things in, this has been an annual twice a year thing, but as my collection of clothes goes down maybe not to far in the future they will all stay out all year round.  Although of course it's always nice to put the very summery lightweight and light coloured things away and see them again the following year.  

But as it's as good as going shopping twice a year, and always a good way to declutter a few more things each time I do it, maybe it will continue. 💖

Sue xx

Living on a Pound a Day in 2026

  

Home Economics - by Jane Ashley

My first book of September has been this book, it was a nice blast from the past and took me right back to the days when I used to do challenges and liked to watch and read of other people doing them too. 

 Jane was a fellow blogger who took part in Live Below the Line, the challenge where we all lived for five days on one pound a day and money was donated to charities.  But then she took it to whole new levels and tried all sorts of variations involving her family ... then this book emerged.

It's a good read, and happily this first version of her book has all the prices from the year she shopped.  She went on to write a second that didn't include prices.  

There are the menus that she planned out for the week of each various challenge.  There are quite a few as she did a omnivore week, a vegetarian week, a vegan week, a gluten-free week and a low-carb week, so lots to choose between.

It was a real blast from the past to see the prices as they were in 2018.

I bet you can guess what I just HAD to do

 Yep, I went through the entire week's worth of food adding it to a Tesco online shopping basket to see what our 2026 prices would be for the same, or as near as possible to the same products, would be.

At last weeks Tesco prices these items would now cost us £51.50

It's quite a jump when you consider that these are the absolute basic lines, and for people scrabbling around to make the best use of a very limited income, this rise would be huge.

https://youtu.be/UM1yadWsNY8?si=SCrBqK1zhTe6cdtF

Then in a complete fluke my week ended with a YouTube video from Mike Jeavons popping up, with him seeing if he could live for £1 a day in 2026.  I used to watch Mike daily when he did his Challenges, but I haven't seen anything off him in years.  

What a coincidence!

Am I tempted to give it a go ... you know that I am!! 😄

Sue xx

Shopping ... and Blogger Comment Problems

 

3rd September - Sainsbury's - £42.77

This shopping is looking very different from my usual photos as I broke all the shopping rules.  I went shopping hungry, I had forgotten to make a list and I just wandered around trying to remember what I actually needed ... cheese, bread and deodorant.  So there were far too many treats, and my main excuse is that I was hungry by the time I got to the supermarket after delivering Alan his lunch at the bungalow, hence all the little treats for me, but hey ... I will most definitely enjoy them over the course of the coming week.  

I also got Alan's chocolate bars for his lunchtime puddings for next week and some chocolate cream eclairs as a treat for last night.  My man is feeling very tired and in need of treats at the moment.  The chicken is for Ginger, he has a little fresh chicken with every meal now, he's worth it. 😸

  I did manage to stay inside my current £50 a week budget, but there's not a lot of actual meals there is there.  Thank goodness for the freezer and cupboard stocks which I need to work through anyway.

A lot of what I bought was on offer in one way or another, so it was a good shop really.  I also treated myself to the Radio Times as there is usually a lot of the dramas that suddenly appear on the television at this time of year and I wanted to see what was going to be available to either watch or record.

Another convincer to buy it was this card.  

So I immediately scanned the QR code when I got home to see if I could get the offer, the small print had said I couldn't as a former subscriber, but it all went though straight away.  So instead of paying the cover price which is currently £5.75 ... gulp!!  I will get ten issues for just £1 each and then I can cancel it if I want to.

 Scan it from here if you want to make use of it too.

I apologise for not being able to leave any comments on all the blogs that I read daily, and I understand if you too are unable to leave comments on my blog.  But Blogger in it's wisdom is playing up yet again.  I have reported the problem ... we'll see what happens.

Sue xx

The Charity Book Table, Lunch and Progress

 

I was asked by a blog reader about the charity book table that I buy from, and donate to, in our local Booths Supermarket   Well it was nice and quiet in there this morning when I called in to get Alan a bottle of milk so I took a quick photo.

It's not always this full, indeed at the start of the Bank Holiday weekend it was very depleted.  But usually when this is the case, a lovely townsperson will go through their own book collection and donate some books.

I am in the habit of tidying up the books as I look through them, as are a few other people.  I am being very particular these days and I have definitely donated more books than I have bought.  There is a poster on top of the boxes telling you which the current charity is, it usually changes each month and they are always local good causes.  The poster also suggests a donation of £1 per book.  Some people give more and some give less, so I suppose it balances itself out.  You just pop your cash in the yellow collecting box on the far right of the photo.

I called round to the bungalow as usual at lunchtime with Alan's dinner, I've been doing this every day while he has been so busy, as well as cooking his evening meals.

This was the state of play at the beginning of the Bank Holiday weekend, he then grouted this half of the living room.

This was the state of play at lunchtime today.  

So much has happened so quickly.  Alan had spent the morning doing the plumbing for the kitchen water heater which is in the corner cupboard to the right of the window, while the kitchen fitter got all the base units in place, then Alan switched to the floor tiling in his bedroom, he's changed his mind about having carpet in there.  It's all starting to come together very nicely.

Sue xx

The Books That I Read in August

 

I do love a book with it's own bookmark ribbon.  😄

Fingers in the Sprinkle Jar by Chris Packham

I found this book very 'bitty', Chris jumps from timeline to timeline over his early years and I didn't enjoy this side of it at all.  I didn't read it all fully and gave up completely about two thirds of the way in.  It could have been so much better.

Donated

Slimming One Pound Meals by Miguel Barclay

While I do like Miguel's books I am being a bit ruthless in the ones that I am keeping.  I no longer find myself needing to have or to keep every book that a person I like reading or cooking from writes.

Donated

Cooking on a Bootstrap by Jack Monroe

I have all of Jack's books and regularly make things from them, but I had two copies of this book.  This copy is one of the original 'crowdfunded' editions so I have kept this and donated the other hardbacked copy that came out afterwards.

Kept the original, and Donated this one.

5 Ingredients 10 Minutes by Jules Clancy

While some of the recipes in this book seemed really good, reading it again six years after I originally bought it I decided that some were just so basic they could barely be considered a recipe.

For instance, take a bag of mixed leaves and top with a flaked cooked salmon portion and pour over a little lemon juice as a dressing.  To me this is an idea not a recipe.

Donated

Dinner's ON! by Barry Lewis

This wasn't a bad book by any means, but it was quite meat heavy and it was big. I don't eat meat and I am still on a mission to cut down on my big books and whittle down my cookbook collection.

So, it was Donated.

Only Connect The Official Quiz Book by Jack Waley-Cohen

I was lucky enough to find this book on the £1 charity book table in Booths.  I love the show and watch it religiously every week, so to be able to 'play' the game myself was really good.  I did quite well ...in everything except The Wall.

Donated ... back to where it came from for someone else to enjoy.

Thinking On My Feet by Kate Humble

My final book of the month and finished just yesterday, was this one year diary of Kate Humble's walks, both local to her in this country and overseas when she travelled for work engagements.  It was a really good read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

But I would never have read it again, so it was Donated.

All in all a good month of reading with more cookbooks than usual as I am trying to whittle down my collection so that I don't clutter up my soon-to-be new kitchen. 😄

I do find myself in a position these days to be able to be quite ruthless with the books that I keep.  Maybe I am simply becoming a book reader, and not always a reader and collector.  They can on occasion be two entirely different but compatible hobbies.

Which are you?

Sue xx