Making Good Use

Hello Kitty Winner is ....

Comment number 2 - Shazza.  (As chosen by my Mum in her role as the 'virtual hat' for this giveaway.)  Shazza, let me have your name and address and I'll post the box off to you.

There'll be another giveaway - probably a book this time - on Monday.

Good Grief, How Did That Happen?

 

I actually bought a book brand-new, from a shop, and didn't go out intending to buy it.  There are a few mitigating circumstances, m'lud.  Firstly, I only went into W H Smiths because I had a voucher to buy this month's 'Delicious' magazine for £1.00 (saving £2.30 off the cover price), they didn't have it!  Then, I honestly thought this book was only £2.99 if purchased with today's edition of The Times (it wasn't, as I discovered at the checkout).  Finally, for £3.99 I thought it was well worth getting some ideas from.

It's an amusing little tome with some usual and not so usual ideas for making a bit of extra money.  The usual suspects are car boot sales, selling on ebay. on-line surveys, mystery shopper (I've always fancied having a go at that myself), selling home-made craft items (I do try with that, with various levels of success), making jams and chutneys to sell etc etc.  The not so usual ideas are being a porn star (I think not in my case), breastfeeding consultant (I can see this might be good for some people), surrogate mother (too old now, thank goodness), fishing and hunting (eww, no thanks, hate fish of any description and also hate meat in the 'raw').

Some of the ideas that quite appealed to me were foraging, taking in ironing (I knew someone who did this once and it was quite successful), proof reading (I used to be a 'scrutineer' on the local Bristol newspaper many moons ago), and treasure hunting (tramping round a muddy field with a metal detector has always held an odd fascination for me, although I've never done it.)

All in all, not a bad investment for £3.99, although I bet I could have found it in the local library if I'd not been so impulsive.

Edited to add:  There is a website to go with the book.

A Very British Obsession

It's true, I am somewhat obsessed by the weather - as I think many people in Britain are.  We have such unpredictable and changeable weather - all year round. 

Today we were back to lovely sunny blue skies in south Essex - although with a rather keen north-easterly wind, which may have dried the washing well but was a bit too chilly for my liking.  From Sunday onwards we are predicted to get another Arctic blast (this time direct from the steppes of Russia - nice). 

I'm not good with extremes of weather - too hot and I wilt, lying about moaning and, most shockingly, I lose my appetite (huge commiserations to those suffering 40+ heat in Australia at the moment - I think I may well expire if faced by that degree of heat!)  If it's too cold I get really grouchy too, especially if it's icy underfoot - then I start walking like a penguin, probably the worst way to deal with icy surfaces.  P, who is from alpine Switzerland, kept waiting for the council to grit the pavements when he first encountered really icy weather in the UK - he's since realised that only the roads get gritted here - presumably pedestrian's bones don't matter! 

I read this on the BBC news website this afternoon

'People in Iceland - a country currently in desperate economic trouble - have shipped jumpers and blankets to pensioners in England this week, to keep them warm in the winter.

A container of woolies arrived in the north-east of England after an appeal on an Icelandic radio station. They were handed to local charities in Hull on Thursday.

The campaign started after two Icelanders living in Manchester wrote to the programme, saying they were appalled by the numbers of elderly people dying from cold-related illnesses in England.'

This makes me feel rather ashamed on several different levels - not least because of the fact that the UK government invoked anti-terrorism laws against Icelandic banks and businesses in the UK in October - thereby forcing the failure of the last Icelandic bank standing.

Still Knitting, Still De-Cluttering

I'm still plugging away at the 'Super Simple' Wrap I'm knitting - I've now made it to about the half-way mark.  I did take a photo of my progress, but it was so dark and dreary here this afternoon that the picture was pants.  What a difference to the weather of yesterday - today is all about grey skies, rain and virtually no proper daylight all day, very lowering to the spirit.  Thank goodness I went out yesterday.  Today I've only ventured as far as the post office - and that was because it was an absolute necessity, otherwise I'd have stayed in all day if I'd had the choice.

Tomorrow a new double bed is being delivered which has meant I've had to empty the four drawers under the current bed.  Who knew you could fit quite so much junk into under-bed drawers - not me, that's for sure.  I thought one bin bag would be enough for the contents of two drawers but, no, each drawer had so much stuff in it that it needed a whole bin bag per drawer.  The trouble is that the new bed base has only two drawers so I'll have two drawers of 'stuff' left over.  Some I've managed to get rid of, or squeeze into other nooks and crannies, but there's still a frightening amount of 'stuff' to be re-housed somewhere.   I've had the bed base for well over 20 years and it is in a very perilous state now.  Whilst emptying one drawer I found that a whole section had completely collapsed and was dangling into the back of the drawer - no wonder my back's been playing me up lately.  I'm not looking forward to single-handedly manoevuring the double bed out of the bedroom but I am looking forward to getting into a new bed tomorrow night.

Roadkill money rolling total - +1p = 4p.  (I actually pcked this one up literally from the middle of the road.  Probably not the cleverest thing to do as I could have been run over at any minute - but I figured that at my size and in my bright-red fleece I'd be a fairly visible object to any on-coming drivers!)

Bea-u-tiful Weather

There has been the most beautiful weather in south Essex today - clear blue skies, bright sunshine and very little wind.  It was far too nice to stay home so I took myself off for a long-overdue trip to Billericay.  It was an absolute joy to sit at the back of the bus (I have to sit there so no one falls over my shopping trolley) and enjoy the passing countryside.  Although there isn't a huge amount of open country between here and Billericay, there are some pretty vistas en route - a couple of farms that face onto the main road, villages on sunny slopes, and the ever-busy flock of geese that seem to live permanently in a little orchard.  (I was sure those geese were destined for Christmas dinners but they still seem to be alive and well - maybe they're being bred for Easter!)

As I hadn't been to Billericay since well before Christmas, I'd amassed quite a long list of items I needed from Waitrose.  Although Waitrose is hideously expensive it is the only place where I can buy certain items in the vicinity (there is a limit to what you can buy when the only supermarkets in our little town are Aldi and Somerfield).  I'm not talking exotic items either, but basics like organic chicken (totally unavailable in our town), Marigold Bouillon powder and the most delicious yogurts ever made - Waitrose own Malaysian Coconut yogurt - yum!  It must be a sign of the times, but even Waitrose had some good offers on - including organic free-range eggs on special which meant they were 27p per half dozen cheaper than Somerfield (and as the Somerfield organic free-range eggs are disgustingly pale yolked I've given up buying them.)

After a very satisfying jaunt around Waitrose, I moved on to the charity shops.  There are six of them  in Billericay high street but, if truth be told, only two of them are really worth visiting.  The others are very expensive - although good bargains can be found with 'posh' shirts for P to wear to work.  The only real 'glory hole' of a charity shop is closing on Saturday for three weeks for a re-fit.  Hmm, we all know what that will mean - higher prices and fancy hangers.  I don't know why charities have to 'gussy up' their shops, it's much more fun to poke about in boxes and flick through over-crowded rails to find that elusive treasure than to have everything laid out like some chi-chi boutique, and charging fairly chi-chi prices too.  Anyway, they had 50% off all prices this week and I found a nice navy zip-up hooded jacket for DN for £2.00 (no way I'd have paid their full price of £4.00) and a vintage Tootal paisley scarf for 25p.  That's already been washed through and is drying on the line as they are good sellers on ebay and I want to get it listed this Thursday.  I also, amazingly, found a good book for re-sale - something which is getting harder and harder to do.

The bus journey back was, if anything, even nicer as the sun was higher in the sky and there seemd to be some real strength in it again - it felt as if spring may be just around the corner.  Sadly, that illusion was ruined when I watched the weather forecast - it seems to be turning colder again!!

Giveaway Monday - 1

The decluttering and clearing out continues apace, and all sorts of useful bits and bobs have come to light, many are things I'd forgotten I had.  Some are destined for ebay, two small carrier bag-loads were donated to the local charity shop this morning, and some of the things I thought I'd offer as giveaways over the next couple of weeks.  As a change from offering books as giveaways, I thought I'd start by offering this little Hello Kitty plastic box.

 

I know I picked this up in a charity shop in Bristol a couple of years ago.  I'm not sure what my original intentions for it were but it's been sitting on top of the bookcase just gathering dust ever since!  I hope somebody out there can give it a better home.

The box measures approx. 8 x 5 inches and is approx. 2 inches deep.  Inside there is a lift-out divided tray with another divided portion at the bottom of the box.  It has it's own little Hello Kitty padlock and two keys to unlock it.  The box is in pretty much unused condition and would make a lovely little storage case for sewing things (probably what I had in mind when I bought it), or for keeping any small items in.

Just leave a comment on this post to be in the draw.  I'll pick a name from the 'virtual hat' on Saturday 31st.  I'm happy to post anywhere in the world.

A Small Thing, But Mine Own

I finally took the bull by the horns this morning and swapped the (now empty - thank goodness) bookcase and desk around.  It wasn't too difficult to do on my own, although I fear I may feel it in my arm muscles tomorrow.  At last I have my own small sewing space.  And, amazingly enough, I discovered a double socket just to the right of the desk - ideal for plugging the sewing machine in.  I didn't even know it was there as it has been hidden for the past four years by the sideboard.  I couldn't believe my eyes as I moved the sideboard up a few inches and the socket was revealed - it must be karma!

The desk has been moved around with me for years and years, I had it in my bedroom as a child, and it always proves useful wherever we live.  Dad got hold of it many years ago as it was being thrown out of the nurses home at the hospital where he worked.  It's not really a thing of beauty - being very much 'brown' furniture, but it is solid wood and has lovely deep drawers.  The top actually opens up to reveal a large mirror - I think it was originally intended as a study desk cum dressing table for the trainee nurses.  Now, it's my new sewing table.

The calendar above is a gorgeous craft calendar from the ever-talented Soule Mama, another lovely Christmas present from Mum. 

Of course, the rest of the dining room looks like a bomb has dropped but, you know, Rome, built and day and all that - I'll tackle that another time.

Online Surveys

Just a short post today as Thursday is ebay listing day for me.  Unsurprisingly, I've got quite a lot of books to list this afternoon as I saved any likely looking candidates from the Greenmetropolis cull.  I seem to have it in my mind that a 10 day listing starting on a Thursday afternoon and finishing on a Sunday afternoon attract the most bids - do any other ebay listers have a favourite time for their auctions to end?

Anyway, back to the topic.  A few months ago, in a bid to find new ways to 'earn' a bit more online, I signed up for online surveys via a couple of sites.  The first one I signed up for was You Gov which is a wonderful forum for me to give my opinions on the state of the economy, the government, crime, immigration et al.  Completing one of their surveys always gives me a great deal of satisfaction as I feel I can really let off steam and that, for once, my voice might actually be heard.  Perhaps You Gov don't really like my opinions too much though as I rarely get asked to complete a survey.  As you get paid approx. £1.00 for each survey completed, and they send you a cheque once you reach £50.00 in your account, it's going to be a long process before I get to see any actual money from this site.

A while later I came across a recommendation for Valued Opinions in the Saturday Telegraph.  They are an online market reasearch company and offer various vouchers in return for completing their surveys.  You can choose which vouchers you want to be paid in (I chose Marks & Spencer as I can use those in their wonderful food hall - love M&S food but not the price of it!)  I get asked to take part in a lot more surveys via Valued Opinions and I should be receiving my first voucher anytime soon (they pay out as soon as you reach £10.00.)  Sometimes I'm not quite what the survey is looking for and then you get a free entry into a quarterly prize draw.  The surveys pay £1.00 on average and take approx. 15 - 20 minutes to complete.  I quite enjoy doing them.

I've just dug out the bit of paper from the Saturday Telegraph and they also mention Which Surveys which apparently lists survey companies who are offering to pay for surveys in cash and prizes.  I haven't checked this one out as yet but I'll certainly be giving it a look. 

Can anyone else recommend any good survey sites where you get paid for taking part?

Blue Saturn

The knitted wrap is progressing V.E.R.Y. S.L.O.W.L.Y.  I think the problem is I'm just not used to knitting large projects.  I know there was the saga of the knitted blanket but at least I could get on with that one square at a time (and jolly useful the blanket has turned out to be this winter.)  The wrap is, obviously, all done in one piece and is getting a tad boring just knitting and purling back and forth - although I do think it will look nice once it is finished, especially if we ignore the wonky buttonhole!

To alleviate the tedium, I knitted up this beanie from some rather vibrant pure wool twist by Colinette which I found unused in a charity shop in Bristol last spring.  The colourway is imaginatively called Blue Saturn (there is something of outer space about the colour combinations), and it's even more vibrant than it seems in the photo.  It was a fast and satsifying knit, and there was just enough yarn left over for another one of these. 

The beanie is about to be listed for sale on ebay, the pom pom is going in my stash for making a pom pom garland next  Christmas.  Now back to knitting the wrap again.

Things to Make

When I showed this little Ladybird book last week, Sandie asked if I could post some of the things to make in the book.

There are some lovely little projects shown, pretty much all of which rely on bits and bobs that would have been found in the average home of the time.  I think my favourite is this little 'Children in the Shoe', although I know full well that me as a six or seven year old would never have been able to paint a shoe so nicely.  In fact, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be able to do it even now!  The instructions say 'you will need an old shoe (ask Mummy which shoe you may have)'  Can you imagine the trouble that would have ensued if a child just started painting her mother's best shoes with paint!!

I think I would have had more success with this 'Indian Head-dress' made from corrugated cardboard and feathers, and even as a girl would have quite enjoyed wearing it.

Then there is 'Pattern Printing with  a Potato' - nice idea but have tried this as an adult and got into a frightful mess - it's the reversing of the image that gets me every time!

There are a couple of Christmas projects, including  'A Dainty Fairy Tree' - which does have a certain minimalist charm even today.  According to the instructions 'Everyone will say how nice this looks.'

Then there are the ever-so-slightly dangerous projects, like this pair of stilts made from two syrup tins, that involve a small child punching holes with a nail.  I bet the 'Elf and Safety' brigade would have a fit of the vapours!

The cover of the book is in a very poor condition so I'm hoping to use some of the illustrations and instructions to make a few cards from - the illustration on the front with the instructions on the back.  I've just got to get hold of some card blanks that are the right size.