Ship shape and Bristol fashion

This morning after posting off a few odd and ends, I walked down to the allotment ready to continue to do battle with the shed. Yesterday’s work needed some touching up with more white before I could begin the next phase. Tracy came by to see how it was going and Steve added his usual sarcastic comments to which, I rolled my eyes and carried on.

The paint is a gorgeous deep navy which combined perfectly with the pale jasmine. Finally, two colours which go together without the tones clashing! Taking intermittent breaks, I slowly painted the front then the side facing Mick the Greek’s plot. Avoiding getting any navy paint on the white was difficult and it took much longer than I expected. Lunchtime came and went but I had painted three sides with the navy. As the sides dried, I made a start on the door and other small bits which were still dark green. After speaking to Sarah yesterday, I want to reframe the window which will not only help keep the shed dry but will tidy up the window area that has always looks rather tatty.

By mid-afternoon, the second coat on the front and sides were done as well as both sides of the door. Looking at it critically, it does need one more coat and then a touch up of the white. Inside the shed, the panels looked great but the ceiling definitely needs at least one more coat (two would be best) and the uprights need to be painted. The latter would have to wait until I picked up my smaller brush. Pleased with my progress, I then lugged almost everything out of the shed (yet again!) so I could put the new carpet down. Twelve carpet tiles went down rapidly but two sides of the shed will need smaller pieces. Realising I had no way to cut the remaining tiles to size, I stacked the rest against the back wall and began to bring everything back inside. The new folding table has six internal drawers into which I organised various odds and ends.

The bigger bits of furniture went back inside although their current position probably won’t be their final place. The shed will be clearer once I have finished with the cable reel table and got rid of some more rubbish. A few more minor decorative touches to go and I think it will be perfect.

Once everything was back in the shed, I dashed down to the chicken coop to sort out the girls. Aggie followed me around as I cleaned the coop. So did Hattie, but there is nothing intimidating about Hattie. Aggie is a different kettle of fish! As I reached down to pick up Hattie, I received a sharp peck on the back of my hand. I let out a sharp cry and turned to find Aggie looking smugly at me. I grabbed her and tucked her under my arm until she submitted. Hens can be aggressive but usually only when there isn’t a cockerel present. I’m not sure what this says for Tommy, but we can be certain, it’s not complimentary! Shooing Aggie away and bribing the rest with sunflower seeds, I collected three eggs in peace and filled to food bowl to take up to the greenhouse for the trio.

In the greenhouse, I was greeted with enthusiasm as I held the food bowl. Chickens are mercenary animals and as soon as the food was down, I was ignored. Rolling my eyes, I collected a further two eggs and left them to it.

Tomorrow’s plan is to dig over a couple of sections of the plot and possibly do a bit more painting if the weather continues to hold out!