Sunday 31 December 2017

Drawer 3

Two posts in one day!! Firstly I will apologise now for all the grammatical errors. I’m typing this on my iPhone and with photos in its very tricky to do it properly. The screen jumps all over the shop and I can’t get the cursor where I want it easily. There’s autotyping going on with the phone plus random capital letters and missed apostrophes. I think I’m going to
Look for a cheap laptop just for blogging. I bloody well wish that google would just bring back the blogger app. Life was so simple then!! 

I didn’t want my first blog post of 2018 to be all about me drawers! Here’s the before n after drawer 3 photo! It was pretty much full of the same type of crap as drawer 2. So once it was sorted,I went back to drawer 2 and retrieved some items. So now, if you want cutlery it’s drawer one. If you want envelopes and assorted shite it’s the middle drawer. If it’s batteries, lightbulbs keys and pens it’s drawer 3! Also available for looking at are a scout badge from 2007 - it’s Miss 23’s so I cannot throw it away! A bike computer needing one of the new batteries lain underneath, a Whitby lucky duck, thete’s Three more somewhere, a load of Robinson’s marmalade golliwog badges collected years ago plus some little tokens for them off jars. You can see the mint green handlesd baby scissors used to cut Miss 23’s and Mr 20’s little nails all those years ago! The rubbers are from a trip to Eureka in Halifax many moons ago! The map is our English Heritage one with all our castles and places we’ve been to marked off. 
A lovely bloggy friend told me I needed her fancy book from Japan to keep your drawers in order! I’m politely declining thanks! As well as sorting me drawers, I’ve had a lovely wander down memory lane with my rose tinted glasses on! Sure there’s stuff in here I don’t need but it’s not harming anyone and it has a home! I’m lucky I have the space to fulfil my hoardy little habits!! 



I was like this as a child. I had a huge Old battered suitcase under my bed full of treasures and it would exasperate my mother that I’d be tidying my room for 12 weeks sold! I was! I was taking things out, stroking it and putting it back tidily!! My room was like the painting of the Forth Bridge. 


I have many Christmas tree ornaments dotted about and I love my mantle candelabra. 




 New Years Eve 2017 sees me painting my nails with my new Ted Baker nail varnish in front of a lovely roaring fire. The eagle eyed among you may spot the salt and pepper milk on the wood pile. We’ve had those solid beech items for twenty years. I’ve still got the receipt! £19.99 from Boots and they have a lifetime guarantee!  But we have newer ones, these don’t grind anymore so we are going to burn them!proof we can and do get rid! Though I’m not sure how I’d go about claiming the lifetime guarantee - there’s time yet....they are not on the fire yet....they might get rescued!!! 



I’ve also indulged in a little knitting and I wanted to show you my new craft room chair! It’s blue velvet and so comfy! I’ve been making do with a dining chair up til now and have been looking for aaaaages. Spotted this. Half price. Mine! 



Right, am off to enjoy a film with the HG. We sang a long toGrease t’other Night! 

Lots of love from 

Rachel *drawers in order* Radiostsrxcc


Drawer number 2

So this is the after shot of drawer number 2. I did do it the day after drawer number 1 but just getting round to blogging it today. Yesterday I was sick as a dog. Not sure if it’s what Miss 23 had or if I’d eaten something dodgy, but it rendered me useless for the day. Happily I’ve woken up much better this morning. Not totally tip top but a zillion times better! Anyway here are the contents of what I found in drawer 2. It had got to that barely enough room to open n shove something else in! For this reason, I’m not looking forward to drawer 3 because that’s the worst! I will do it after a cup of tea! 
So drawer 2. 
Paperwork/receipts for burning x3
Paperwork/receipts for filing x 3.
Cotton bud x 2 - assumption is they are clean 
Sanitary towel x 1 - unopened! 
Compass x 1 - for finding your way 
Envelopes x 77
Indian takeaway vouchers x 10
Sticky pad thing for car dashboard to put sat nav on x 1 - didn’t work but clearly not enough reason to throw it away. 
Pens x 21 ( inc yesterday’s drawer clear ) + 1 pencil 
Light bulbs - various types
Medical dressings ( unopened )leftover from kidney removal x7
Name banner - for birthdays
Doggy poo bags - obvs for Freddie
Our wills
Batteries ordinary x2
Batteries rechargeable- 7
Corkscrews x 2
Keys for top box for car
Yankee candle tea lights wax melts & car fresheners - loads
Old tax disc - from 2015
Kilt pin
Padlocks- for a suitcase from when Miss 23 went to NZ
Pegs- 2 - no idea why 
Tomy room thermometer when kids were little - battery must have run out! 
Photos of the kids
USB pen - been looking for that for ages
Golf multi tool x 2 ( he’s not even been in 3 years!!!! )
Battery recharger x2 - for all the rechargeable batteries 
Packet of quartz glow stones- no one knows who they belong to or from whence they came! 
Money - 5p
New handles for windows - not for my windows
Baubles - back on the tree 
Tennis ball- Freddie’s
A glove - plain black. ‘Not mine’ when I asked Mr 20 and the HG. Well it’s not mine. Must be Freddie’s!!!
An old camera - digital one
Leaflets- for days out
Stuff for a thermal foot bath - belongs to the HG! 
Various wires and leads I have no idea what for
Sunglasses - Miss 23s we think
Penknife x 2
Roll of insulation tape
Scissors - these last three sound like a murderer’s toolkit!!! 
Mini screwdriver - I’ve been looking for this for ages
Blu tac
Pizza oven instructions
Map of wales
Fancy silver ribbon 
Things that I’m throwing away
Packet of French radish seeds sow by 2014 plus millions of other rubbish

Pile of stuff for HG to say yay/nay to. X a billion - included above leads n other assorted what I’d call man crap! 


So this drawer is still full of crap, but it’s tidy. All the batteries are in one place and the pens! 

Thought I’d share a few photos. 




This is a lovely vintage cake plate gifted to me by my ma in law. It’s so pretty. 
The necklace below is one exactly like I bought Miss 23 for Christmas. The name of the crystal is Lightning sun and it’s truly beautiful and on the back of my SW achievement I treated myself to it out of my Christmas money. . I think it’s beautiful.  



Saw these on Amazon and they made me giggle. But I was almost tempted to get some for the Spring! 

Right, a much needed cup of tea I think after existing on one glass of flat lemonade with ice yesterday. It’s my go to drink when I’m sick. 
Last day of 2017. I’m not even bothered about celebrating NYE. I don’t see the hype! Much prefer Christmas! I will leave my tree up until the 6th but I’ll be taking my cards down tomorrow and making them into tags for next year. 

Lots of love from 
Rachel *drawer of shame next * Radiostar x 

Thursday 28 December 2017

A drawer a day - edited


So I have decided to tackle and tidy one drawer a day. This is one of three in my sideboard. It's supposed to be just cutlery. As you can see, I like to collect battery operated tea lights and black biros. This is the tidiest drawer of the three. Knives and forks are now re sorted and tidied. Mats are in the correct place and I shoved the tealights and pens into different drawers to be tackled another day! I am going to invest in a different cutlery storage system because the one I have is rubbish! It's too small. This cutlery is our 'best' family silver*. We got it when we got engaged 24 years ago. Well the newest set on the white box is only a few years old but is a set of 4. Supposedly replacing the   stuff I have in the kitchen...yet to happen. I know this will set the teeth itching of many of my minimalistic bloggey friends! I like my stuff and I'm not bothered about making space. That drawer is my space for cutlery, so that's what it has in it!! No after photo because the dark brown table mats are on the top of the cutlery so nothing can be seen anyway! 
im just typing this out by the lights of my tree and my favourite favourite favourite film is just ending. The Vikings. Blooming brilliant. I always hope though that Kirk Douglas will beat Tony Curtis at the end!! 

OOOOOOODDIIIINNNNN!! 

Lots of love from 

Rachel *messy drawers* Radiostar 
Hahahahahahahaaaahahahaaaa


*family stainless steel. 


Ok ok here is the after pic - with placemats removed so you can see. You can see fish knives in their original plastic wrapping. I’m working class and Northern ffs, what the hell do I need fish knives for?!! I must have been so pretentious back in the day. What’s that? Get rid?? Nooooo, they are part of the full set and the equally unused fish forks need them!!! 




Wednesday 27 December 2017

Boxing Day milestone.

I'm not intentionally turning this into a weightloss blog. Indeed I may just regret this when it all goes tits up.   But I go to group on a Tuesday at 5.30pm. And there was a class despite the fact it was Boxing Day. I could have gone today at 9.30am but that would have mentally done my head in because everyone weighs less in a morning!

Sooooo
This week I have been running round like a headless chicken, burning the candle at both ends so I think some calories were burnt.
Anyway on the scales.... the little beep....







SIX POUNDS gone. Don't know where but those six pounds meant I got my hands on not one but three certificates and three shiny stickers! I bought a 12 week countdown  12 weeks ago which meant I got two weeks free and I've recorded the weekly results on baubles!







Shamefully I still have a long way to go. But I've not been hungry or deprived getting this far! I'm not going to blog about it much more as it's boring! But for now...

Lots of love from

Rachel *slightly less round, more of an oval shape* Radiostar xxx

Tuesday 26 December 2017

Christmas 2017

This year it's been truly wonderful. Miss 23, her beau and Freddie are here. The house was at last at maximum twinkliness after FIIIIINALLY finishing work on Friday 22nd. The HG finished the kitchen just in time. It's beautiful. Just the window to change and I've to make the new blind. The turkey was moist, the ham delicious!

Anyone else find though that even with the oven cranked up, it seems to take longer on Christmas Day? Eventually the little thermometer deemed it safe to remove the turkey and the goose fat roasted veg crisped up perfectly. We sat down to eat at 3pm, however I have to apologise if I made Her Majesty dizzy but I had to rewind her thrice with popping in and out of the kitchen serving forgotten dishes! I love the Queen. She looked gorgeous and I especially liked the way her hair matched her dress. Also I loved looking at the family snaps on the table at the side of her. I wondered though, if she watches The Crown and if she likes it! I'd raided M&S for puddings but nobody could fit any in! Infact the day was marred because poor Miss 23 fell poorly and headed to bed early. Poor thing. They are due to go back today as they are back at work tomorrow. I'm wondering if she'll be up to the journey. The weather is a bit treacherous too. Worry worry. Fingers crossed she's slept it off ( though the selfish part of me would love them to stay longer ).

As ever I was ridiculously spoilt and my gifts included a new gorgeous kitchen clock and steampunk style mug tree to go in the kitchen. I also got Nigel Slater's Christmas Chronicles. LOADS of sewing bits n bobs. Smellies, slippers and a gorgeous scarf from my daughter that I'd spotted and admired in a National Trust shop. A beautiful Robin mug to go with it too. My children outdid themselves this year. My boy bought me tickets to go see The Killers in July. Massively excited for that.


I sent out a few homemade gifts this year and I'm thrilled to little bits that they loved them! Will definitely make more next year - starting sooner though! ( we finish a whole day earlier on the 21st next year so I'll still be pushed for time! Wanna see some?! 
































Right, amoff to enjoy Boxing Day xxx 

Love from 
Rachel 4.5 stones lighter Radiostar







No goose fat roasted potatoes for me!