Rambly post

Sorry I've been so quiet! No excuse really, just one of those things.

I finally got over the flu, gawd I felt ill! It took so long for the coughing to stop, then it simmered down to needing to clear my throat every five minutes - it was exhausting!

I still haven't plied the fibre I showed you in my last post, I started spinning some merino and tencel that Josie sent me a year or so ago and am now trying to get that finished - looks like I have a huge plying session awaiting me!

I'm steaming ahead quite nicely with the sock challenge, we are currently on letter D, socks A, B and C are all finished. Don't they look fab?

I'm going to save them until they're all complete before I start wearing them - well, that's the plan anyway LOL.

Unravel is next weekend! I'm really looking forward to it. I'll be travelling with Debs and I'll finally get to see Claire face to face (I was so gutted not to go to the tennis tournament and meet her in December!). I'm also looking forward to meeting old and new friends too!

I'm back to sleeping in the lounge at the moment, I bought a bath last month, but can't afford to get it fitted and my craft room is the only room big enough to store it in *sigh*

I'm sure there's more to tell you, but my mind has gone blank and Alex is clamouring for the computer (the one I gave him for Christmas died a spectacular death in the first week, so he's now using my Mac and I use the iPad - it's just still quicker to type on a keyboard that gives you tactile feedback than a touchscreen!)

If I remember what else I wanted to say, I'll be back in true Swarzeneggar style :D

Operation Craft Room - Complete

As I reported earlier today; I have finally finished the Craft Room.

I have spent the day tidying, sorting, vacuuming then washing then vacuuming again and finally finally, it's done!

Here are some pictures for you (click em to make em bigger)

This is just inside the door:

This is opposite the door, you can just see Eric (my wheel), my stash and my chair:

This is the rest of my room, there's you guys next to the chair, my clothes rack with all my skirts on, my chest of drawers with printer, router, TV & DVD player on and in front is Isis in her bed:

It's FINISHED!

I have finished painting the craft room!

It looks great and I'm just letting the paint dry now before sorting it all and getting it exactly how I want it.

It should be an hour before the paint is dry.

I'll post pictures for you later

I have an announcement

I just thought you'd like to know.....

THERE'S A FLOOR IN THE CRAFT ROOM!!!

I found it today!

Amazing what you find when you tidy up LOL

Moan

I feel like having a moan.

I still haven't heard about the Majacraft Rose! I'm getting so pissed off with waiting and I realise that I couldn't have gone this weekend because Sarah wasn't available, but at least it would've been there and mine!

I decided that my breadmaker wasn't up to the task of making bread for a family of five and that I was going to get a food mixer and make bread in the oven instead. After much deliberation, I have chosen one.

Only to find out that it isn't in stock in the Island's one and only store, or the nearest one in Portsmouth. I guess I'll see if there are any available nearby when I'm ready to go and get the Rose.

I phoned T-Mobile to see if they would upgrade me early. I'm due to upgrade on 6th Jan and I thought 'I've been a good customer, I've been with them a few years. I pay at least £35 a month for my contract then 3 of the kids have contracts at £20 each...that's nearly £100 a month!"

But no, if I want out of my contract six weeks early, it's going to cost me just under £69!

Our X-Box 360 broke. It couldn't be repaired by the local whizz-kid and I certainly wasn't going to pay Microsoft £90 to repair it. So we decided to buy a new one. I found a good deal on Game's website and went to the store only to find out that they don't do the same deals that their online store does and they weren't willing to either! I really hate that!

Thankfully, Curry's said they'd do the deal!

My new blu-ray player, the one I bought in August and have already exchanged once due to a fault, has broken again and I've had to send it away for repairs. I'm very annoyed about this as I've just bought my first blu-ray DVD - Star Trek - and I wanted to drool over the quality!

I got outbid on a pair of moon & stars curtains that I really wanted for the craft room.

The craft room still isn't done and I've had enough of painting - the gloss is giving me a headache! I just want someone else to finish it off, move all the furniture about and sell my books so they're not taking up space anymore!

I'm doing a Secret Santa on Ravelry, I got told who my giftee is today. I searched, she doesn't have a blog, a wishlist and she hasn't answered the questionnaire so that people know what to send her! C'mon people, if you're going to participate, give a gal a clue!!

I feel very sad for my friend. She's going through a tough time at the moment and I feel really sad that things haven't worked out for her and her husband again. I can't tell you any more because it isn't my place to and I don't have her permission.

I know you read my blog Sweetie, I just wish I could help you both but I can't. But know that my heart bleeds for you and I'm angry at how unfair life is to some people! I am going to give you a big squishy hug when I see you next!

Moan over, go about your business

I would just like to add (a few hours after originally posting this) that I have just discovered a leak in Matt's room - just what I don't need!

Ten Hours Later

I keep going in and looking at that skirting board...

I've completely changed my mind now, it looks awful - plasticky and tacky (I mean cheap, not wet paint).

Thankfully a big chest of drawers is going there (which is why I experimented there) and I won't bother with the rest of the woodwork; I'll just leave it white for now.

I'm going to start moving furniture around in there tomorrow in an effort to get some order in there and maybe even start moving the stash in there!

Operation Craft Room - Update

I have been working on this, but it's taking forever and I'm so fed up with it and I just want it to be done already!

I've done about 70% of the walls (I'm having to do it in sections because the room isn't empty and I have to shift stuff around) and I wanted to see what the room would look like once I painted the wood.

So today I painted a skirting board.

The walls are white with a hint of pale blue and the wood is dark teal.

I really wasn't sure at first...

But I love it now! I just wish I could find someone quicker and with more stamina to finish the damn room!

Craft room

There was a slight hiccup in the Craft Room Project.

I came down with the flu - thankfully not Swine Flu, just the regular kind and all I could do was lie on the sofa and try to convince the children I was dying.

They didn't believe me!

I, thankfully, didn't die and today felt up to doing a bit more painting.

I have now given the first corner two coats of cheap crappy white and two coats of expensive Dulux Hints Cornflower - which is supposed to be white with a hint of blue.

What do you think? I know the picture rail needs fresh paint as the once white paint is cream, but I'll do that later.

I like it, but I'm worried it may make the room feel colder! Although with an open fire and lots of pics and lace work on the walls, that shouldn't be a problem!

Shopping for supplies

My mum has a discount card for B&Q; it's available for all people over a certain age (it's either 60 or 65) and it gives a 10% discount. Unfortunately, it can only be used on Wednesdays.

So today we went shopping for supplies to decorate the craft room. I bought some cheap white paint because my walls are currently terracotta

and I want them as white as possible before I add a hint of colour - I bought cheap paint to act as an undercoat:

I've just done this coat - it's worked very well and I reckon I'll only need to add another coat before I break out the expensive paint!

The desk has sold

I got a phone call last night, someone wants to buy my desk!

So today, I vacuumed the floor - who'd've thought there was a floor in there! - then I moved everything off the desk and onto an available bit of floor

cos there's a floor in there, ya know. Now I'm just waiting for the guy to come and pick it up

I've already warned him it's down to him to take it to bits!

Operation Craft Room - The Second Step

Big step today!

Here are some photos for you:

Hmmmmm, not much change there - the shelves are still messy...

The desk has been slightly tidied, but...

THE BED HAS GONE!

Operation Craft Room - The beginning

As you may remember, Jess agreed to move out of my bedroom so that I could have it back and turn it into my craft room!

Well, today was the first step - she has moved her bed stuff upstairs and all the games consoles out of the boxroom.

I've decided to keep a diary of the journey of the room from shared bedroom/dumping room to my Craft Room - complete with photos.

Here are the first lot - you basically have an all round view of the room here.

Isn't that just awful? Look at the state of the room! First of all, I need to get the rest of Jessica's stuff out of there - all her clothes, stuffed animals and....................stuff! She has a lot of stuff...I think it breeds!

Once she's out completely, then the bed will go upstairs - probably to Kyle. That will be an all day job because it will have to be totally dismantled to get it upstairs. That's a day of screaming at each other and lots of swearing probably.

After that I need to sort out my desk - Alex wants that!

You see all that stuff under the window? I have a confession, that's my stuff, not Jessica's - it's all my books. I decided ages ago to get rid of all my books as I had bought an e-book reader. I made loads of money and could afford to take the kids on holiday to Scotland last year. Oh hey, if I sell a load more, I'll be able to afford a new WooLee Winder for Edward!

Then my mum is going to seal the room as we have a problem with slugs getting in there.

After that, I shall paint it - I think I'll go with white and display some of my finer shawls on the wall!

This is not going to be a quick project, but I'll keep you updated!

My dream...

I decided some time ago that when my children are older and decide it's time for them to move out that I would console myself by turning a bedroom into a craft room.

At the moment my house is set out like this: downstairs there's the lounge, my bedroom (mine as in it's where all my clothes and stuff live, but Jessica's as in she sleeps there, I sleep in the lounge) and the kitchen. Upstairs is the bathroom, WC, 2 double bedrooms (occupied by Alex and Kyle) a single bedroom (occupied by Matt) and the box room (which houses all the games consoles and a fold out sofabed).

There simply wasn't space for me to have a craft room so I knew it was going to be several years before I got one!

Then I cancelled Sky TV. Now we rarely watch TV at all (even though we have a humongous TV in the lounge).

Recently Alex and I decided to play on one of the games consoles and because I find the sofabed uncomfortable, we bought the PlayStation downstairs to the lounge.

Can you see where I'm going with this?

Now, bit by bit, the games room is merging into my lounge!

Today, I had an epiphany! Move the games consoles down to the lounge, move Jess up to the box room and turn the downstairs bedroom into my craft room!

Nah, Jess'll never go for it!

BUT, just on the off-chance, I mentioned it to her this evening. The conversation went like this:

"Jess, how do you feel about moving into the box room?"

"Ummmm, ok. Where are the games consoles going to go?"

"The lounge."

"Oh, ok. As long as I can have a TV up there!"

OMIGOD! OMIGOD!! OMIGOD!!!

Jess has agreed to move back upstairs and THAT, Ladies & Gentlemen, means............

I'M GONNA HAVE A CRAFT ROOM!!!

Obviously, it won't be immediately. I'm going to have to buy Jess a bed and some stuff for her room, then I want to decorate the downstairs room and carpet it. It also needs sealing (we have a slug problem at night). But it shouldn't take more than a couple of months.

Wonder if I can be in there before Christmas?