No Tool like an Old Tool

The bees love these poppies

Thirty six years ago I was getting ready to leave home to move into the Halls of Residence at the place I studied as an Undergraduate.  I bought a load of kitchen equipment, including a potato peeler.  It was my faithful tool until I had to retire it last week when it finally fell apart in my hands.  Now I'm trying to find a replacement, and it's not proving easy.  Here is the one  I bought from the shop I always think of as 'the expensive kitchenware shop'.  It happened to be very cheap, only £1.99, but it looked of a similar design: stainless steel, with a swivel blade.  

Sadly that handle isn't as ergonomically designed as my original tool - the poor finish on the edge of the metal means it cuts into your hand as you're peeling.  As the saying goes, there's no tool like an old tool.  I'm still in the market for a decent peeler, so if you see one, let me know.

Changing the subject, at St Martin's cafe today it was a pleasant distraction sitting outside in the sun watching the bees busy on the poppies.

On my knees in front of the loo

So Bank Holiday weekend rolls around and I decide to spend some of my time on my knees in front of the loo.  No, I wasn't 'paying homage to the toilet god' as I think the euphemism goes.  I was doing a bit of DIY plumbing. For some time the cistern has had an intermittent fault where occasionally it fails to fill, instead the water continues running straight through.  I do like things to work properly and it was getting boring, having to keep taking the lid off and filling the cistern manually.  It was time to tackle the problem.  My friend talked me through what I needed to do.  In the end he needed to finish the job for me, tightening the nut and helping ensure the connections weren't leaking afterwards, but I felt a sense of accomplishment nonetheless.

Stool Makeover

So here it is, the finished job. What you can't see from the photo is the little mistake I made. To remove the seat pad I had to unscrew 6 screws, which I carefully preserved ready to screw it back once it was re-covered. As my staple gun was one of the tools I lost when the allotment shed was burned down by vandals back in December last year, I nipped over to Dave's to borrow his. Only problem was his staples were far too long, so I zipped up to AHC Tools to buy some shorter ones. Whilst I was in the shop, we could see lots of police motorcycle activity outside and one of the shopkeepers explained today is 'Passing Out' day at Sandhurst Royal Military Academy.

Clutching the staple gun and new staples, I exited the shop and went to my car. Where I was parked, I could see a cavalcade of police motorcycles behind me and another one up ahead. It wasn't immediately obvious what I should do ... should I wait in the parked car or use the opportunity of the traffic being stopped to make my getaway ... I chose the getaway and pulled out from the layby. Immediately a policeman zoomed up and motioned me to stop, and then a motorcade of black limousines sped by us towards the Academy. Silly me was so busy watching the policeman, I didn't even think about peering into the limousines to see who was passing by.

Talking of 'passing', I'm told that the 'Passing Out' parade is aptly named, as sometimes one or two will pass out during the course of the day.

Anyway, back to the little mistake ... by the time I got back to Dave's and he helped me staple the new fabric to the wooden base of the seat pad, I'd forgotten to make sure that the screw holes were accessible. Oh well, it seems quite firmly wedged in place, perhaps it won't matter it's not screwed down.

Whilst I was at Dave's, I took the opportunity to photograph the latest stage in the Garden Room construction. It's coming on well, isn't it! Work is going on pause for a few days whilst he enjoys a short break in the South of France. I've agreed to take care of his Senegal parrot whilst he's away.

Stool Make-Over

Here's the stool after a couple of coats of paint. Now I'm looking on ebay to see if I can find some reasonably priced leatherette to re-upholster it. There used to be a stall at Farnborough market selling material but it wasn't there when I visited yesterday. There weren't many stalls there at all and I don't know whether that's because it's holiday season or whether the market has generally diminished.

Domestic Goddess?

A number of years ago I bought this tired kitchen stool at a jumble sale, intending to paint it and give it a new lease of life. Two house moves and 25 years later and finally its time has come! I've bought some claret paint to match the decor in the kitchen and given it a first coat (not shown). I want to find some leatherette or something suitable to re-cover the seat pad.

I also got the sewing machine out and had a go at turning a long-sleeved shirt into a short-sleeved shirt. I wasn't satisfied with the result, despite taking an hour trying to achieve perfection. All good practice, though.

On another note, a friend and I are each going to research 5 potential holidays then choose the one we like best for later in the year. Now where in the world do I want to go?