Goodness, I love this time of year. The Jubilee has made it especially nice, with bunting all over the place and a surfeit of cake. The town did of course celebrate by producing a knitted Jubilee scene, complete with the Queen done very nicely in stocking stitch, a range of teapots and some really good knitted cakes, all displayed in the window of the secondhand bookshop.
Elsewhere I came across this brilliant post box topper, honestly, in a league of its own. I see no-one has tried to tackle a corgi though, which is a bit disappointing.
The garden is all abundance and this is the time of year when the clover in the lawn flowers, which the bees love. My new neighbour has new pigeons and when I'm out there I can hear them cooing to each other, which is lovely.
I have almost no news, which is not a bad thing. I'm working a lot, also not a bad thing, but hopefully I'll be able to take the odd bit of time off in the summer holidays. The eldest two are taking their A-levels and GCSEs at the moment. I feel I have coped with it quite well so far.
In between working I am clearing a property and it is really making me think long and hard about Stuff. At the end of the long day, I come home and declutter here a bit too.
The Sort-It Centres are busy with people unloading mountains of stuff into the huge skips. I've found it all a bit sickening to be honest, although I am far from blameless. I do try to avoid buying too much, especially new and cheap things that won't last, but there could definitely be improvement. I am definitely resolving to do better and to try and reduce what I have. I may even get Marie Kondo down off of the shelf.
I have been trying to get rid of a piano, which is quite a feat. It turns out there are literally dozens of pianos on Ebay for 99p, buyer collects. It turns out no-one wants them any more. Some of them are lovely, all walnut burr and a high shine. I am looking at my own enormous old piano in a different light I can tell you. I have been quoted £225 to have the other one removed and recycled. If only I had played the cello instead.
How are things in your corner of the world? Good I hope. CJ xx
I love a bit of post box yarn bombing and I feel Her Majesty would approve of her knitted self. Shame about the lack of corgis though!
ReplyDeleteWe have a pigeon nest in the Wisteria underneath the bedroom window. They are surprisingly quiet, if a little inconvenient - it could do with a bit of a prune and we don't want to disturb them.
I'm very attached to our old piano but she is quite large and I can understand people wanting smaller electric keyboards. Good luck with the clearing. xx
I loved seeing the jubilee decorations. I was interested in the clearing of a property. This is very much on our minds as we age. Having cleared out and disposed off as many things as I could to charities when my mum died I know how difficult it is to find new homes for items. It is also a rather sad process sorting through someone’s possessions. I was of course sorting through items from my childhood that my mum still had. However, I had one lovely find —-a little note my mum had left for me to find telling me how much I had been loved. Jean/Winnipeg
ReplyDeleteLovely post and pictures. Your comment about knitting a corgi made me smile. Like you I try to buy less and reduce what I have. A shame about the piano as they such wonderful instruments.
ReplyDeleteAll okay here, and plotting on as usual. Take care. xx
Love the knitting and the yarn bombing! I hope the exams are going ok still, we are all finished here now which feels a bit, well I am not sure how it feels I am just glad to have the boy home with me everyday again although there is a lot of sleeping going on.
ReplyDeleteClearing through someone else's possessions is so hard, I have not had to do it yet but I know that, like you, it will make me evaluate what we have in our house. I am sorry to hear that no one wants pianos any more that is very sad. I would love one in my house but I really do not have room for one. That is a lot of money to have it removed!
Gorgeous queen tributes in wool. The inventiveness of people. Shame about the corgi though! I’m feeling for you on the house clearance. We had the same with my mum in law and afterwards we really blitzed our own house. You suddenly realise that you don’t want others to have to clear out for you.
ReplyDeleteI’m very into rolling my clothes particularly jumpers Marie Condo style. It really works and you can see at a glance where they all our. Happy sorting. B x
Saw your comment about the Jubilee knits on Lucy’s comment list so came for a look. Very pretty!
ReplyDeleteSo sad about pianos! I hadn’t thought about that. I guess it’s all keyboards if children want to learn now? Houses are smaller and there is probably no space, or money to buy new.
Rachell - https://thelittleroomofrachell.com
DeleteThat post box topper is a work of art! In a small town near me, I drove past some very worrying figures, made of straw and old clothes with the Queen's face superimposed on. I think it was supposed to be a tribute but it felt a little like something out of a folk-horror film!
ReplyDeleteWe had a devil's own job selling my son's piano for the same reasons. It's sad to have to sell such beautiful instruments but there's no doubting they take up a LOT of space.
Good luck with the STUFF. Txx
There have been plenty of knitted/ crochet Corgis - the WI ran a campaign to hide them around the country to be found. 😄
ReplyDeleteSee where they were & what they looked like here:
https://www.thewi.org.uk/home/celebrating-the-queens-platinum-jubilee/wheres-winnie/wheres-winnie-map
Oh my goodness, this is brilliant, LOVE it! CJ xx
DeleteWe have table sales once a year, but they only skim the surface. It’s the big stuff I worry about. Like you, we have a piano that nobody plays anymore taking up a huge amount of space. It is really my son’s but as he is in Japan and unlikely to have room to house it anytime soon, it really should go to a good home, for a reasonable price as it isn’t worth nothing.
ReplyDeleteI have a cello if you decide to switch instruments. Haven't played in years, which makes me sad but like you, work has been busy. I hope clearing the house is not to difficult emotionally, sending you some good vibes. I did buy a salad spinner today! A bit random but dating back to a comment you left for me on a recent post. I hope exams are nearly done for your boys. We have an exam free year, hurray! Have a wonderful week xx
ReplyDeleteThose knitted items are very clever. When we cleared a bedroom for refitting we declutter most of the house. Most went to Yorkshire Air Ambulance, the hospice shop and the RSPCA shop . Fortunately nothing was piano sized other than the old furniture which were removed by the company fitting the new stuff. Hope the exams go well.
ReplyDeleteCJ would you post a photo of the used Book Shop in your town? I own a used Book Shop in my hometown in Amherst, Ohio, USA. I would love to see what yours looks like! Thank you!
ReplyDelete