An unexpected gift from Ecover UK

 I got an unexpected padded envelope in the post today. When I opened it

This was inside!

And when I untied the ribbon, look what I found!

Special Christmas washing up liquid :) 

Thank you Lauren at Ecover UK for my lovely festive smelling washing up liquid and the lovely card. The washing up liquid smells delicious - like a Christmas Grotto full of cake :).

A bit of a catch up

Having been quite poorly recently, I have not written much about what we have been up to - mainly because I have not done very much.



The strong winds we have had here recently meant we had to " batten down the hatches" and make sure hen house roofs, wheelbarrows, garden furniture, pots, compost bins etc were all well fixed down - even though we did have one compost bin blow over ( it was nearly empty, when I thought it was half full :)  )

The chickens were not impressed by the wind  and grumbled about it. A Lot. Cassi Cat seemed to like it wild and windy, though as she ran around the garden, ears flattened, eyes wide, running up trees and pouncing on whirling leaves.

 

With her help we have managed to finish off re building the compost bin area and very nice it looks, too :)

I have been trying to summon enthusiasm for the upcoming festivities, but am not doing terrible well on that front. I hope to feel more festive as I recover a bit more strength and the Year turns from dark to light at the Solstice on 21 Dec.  

But for now, about all I can manage is to stay warm, read, do some crochet and sit by the fire, resting.

I hope all of you are well and safe and busy :)

Scotch tape

As you know I get sent all sorts of things to try and  I was recently sent a Scotch Pop-Up Tape Handband Dispenser.
 
This has neat pre-cut sticky strips held in a case, which is mounted on an elastic band which can be slipped over the wrist so both hands are left free to fold, dispense and stick. Scotch say it will save you time while also making Christmas gift-wrapping a hassle-free task.
 
The idea here is that you have both hands free while wrapping parcels and indeed it is very useful for doing just that. No more bits of tape stuck to the edges of tables or on my clothes!

So, I wrapped some presents using the tape and indeed it did make the task a little easier.

But it is also VERY VERY useful when laying out pieces of fabric whilst quilting :)

And when laying out cut out papers for a craft project.

So thumbs up to Scotch (both of them, not stuck together!) for a useful idea.

Leaf mould bins build

It's that time of year again, when the leaves are ( finally!) falling and are there to be gathered up and used to make leaf mould - that wonderful, rich, dark, crumbly soil enhancer :)

I have been sent a new ( to me ) sort of leaf mould bin by The Recycle Works - normally I use their wooden compost bins and excellent leaf mould they make too  - you can read how I do it in this post 

The new leaf mould bin I was sent to try out is a variation on their usual compost bin modules - this model fits on the end of an existing bin or you can get a stand alone version with a few more boards and parts.

This leaf mould bin is The Recycle Works usual easy to put together wooden posts and boards, but instead of each side being five boards high there are only two of the boards which are then held apart by vertically placed plastic strips

The bottom board ( the thicker one above)  is slotted into the post as usual then the plastic strip is slid down the post until it sits on top of the bottom board

then the top board is added - held in place at the top of the post by the plastic strip, as in the photo below. Chickens are not supplied with the kit!

A roll of plastic wire mesh (also supplied) is added inside, to hold the leaves in place. The leaves will compost down as the air and rain can get to them easily

 This is not fixed into place yet by the (provided) tiewraps, but you get the general idea.

I think this is a good product, it is a good idea and easy to assemble and as usual from The Recycle Works is of good quality.
 
I am, however going to disassemble it from where we put it today in the row of compost bins and re errect it as a stand alone leaf mould bin. I am doing this so I can compare this new bin with my usual method of making leaf mould - you all know how I love doing composting experiments :) I have enough spare parts to create a stand alone module.

You can buy these leaf mould bins from The Recycle Works as single, stand alone modules ( four posts, 8 boards, 8 plastic spacers and extra tiewraps) or to add on to an existing one of their compost bins.

Compost bins and leaf mould bins rebuild part 2

 Today we added more modules to the compost bins we put up last week - It was Compostgirl's birthday on Friday, Compostman and I then had a few days feeling very unwell and a family situation left both of us very distressed and stressed, so we didn't get back out to them until today.


I sorted out more of the planks and posts and started  putting them together whilst Compostman gathered up a couple of wheelbarrows full of leaves from the front garden.

Then he came round and helped me put more of the bins together

 The Recycle Works compost bins are easy to assemble, they just slot together!
 

We actually added a Leaf Mould module to the line of bins as well, but are rethinking where to put this so a "normal" compost bin will be going where it is at the moment.

 As always, we had chicken helpers !

it was lovely outside, cold but sunny and it felt good to be working outside after a very trying few days