quanglewangle

Just so I remember stuff…

God is in the details

German direction signs Look at how the left pointing signs are left justified, and the right-pointing ones are right justified. Together with the timeless DIN font this elevates highway signage to high craft. “God is in the details” Ludwig Mies van der Rohe    I am grateful to Anne-Louise Quinton @AnneQuinton for pointing out this collection of signs Read more →

One room done…

Before and after The sitting room, with the stove in, but before being re-plastered and the view now, with the shutters closed against the evening sun. Same window. Old plaster stripped off Shutters with sun coming through Read more →

Death of Andrew Coak

Flag on Pendeen Church at half mast Flag on St John’s Church, Pendeen at half mast Sunday 31 August 2014 for the death of Andrew Coak, with whom I shared a great great grandfather William Thomas Floyd. He was a good man, who will be missed. Read more →

Natural rockery

Pendeen Carn Quarry Rockery in the garden of a fine country house? No, the quarry at the back of Pendeen Carn in late summer sunshine. Click on picture for full size view. Read more →

Banksia ericifolia and scarifying the lawn

Trewidden Nursery had its twice annual opening today and we got a Banksia ericifolia, a native of eastern Australia, to Banksia in the foreground plant on the north bank of the big garden. It needs a low pH or will get iron deficient so may need some iron chelate. Apparently phosphate fertilisers must be avoided, so no growmore! See http://www.anbg.gov.au/gnp/interns-2002/banksia-ericifolia.html for more details. Splashed out £14.60 to rent a lawn raking machine from HSS in Pool. Read more →

Garden update Autumn 2013

Autumn 2013

It’s a year now since we planted the windbreak hedge on the south side of the part of the big garden nearest the house.

Garden with hedge

Garden with hedge

Click on picture for full size image

It is mostly Olearia virgata laxifolia with some Rosa rugosa and the old bay tree and olive we brought from Ipswich. The olearia has been a real success. They have grown from about 600mm when we planted them to over two metres. I cut them back to about 1.8 m a and thinned them out to lighten them a few weeks ago. I fed them well in the summer and they got a bit top heavy for our rather light soil.

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Witchfinder’s summer cruise 2005

[Written late summer 2005, but only just came to light again]

I can only take four weeks leave at one time in the summer but this year we wanted to Go Somewhere.  This would be our third summer sailing Witchfinder General, a Sigma 362 and our first boat.  Our first two summer cruises had seen us setting off from Suffolk and getting as far as Isle Of Wight along the English South Coast the first year; and Honfleur and the Cotentin peninsular along the French coast last year. Each of these trips had fitted into a fortnight and people kept telling us we had “done the hardest part”. Usually there are just the two of us, but this time we were joined by our son and his partner who have just taken up sailing but need experience to convince their insurer that they can be trusted to take their old (sorry, classic) wooden Nicholson out alone. So this year we decided to go further afield but where should we go? We thought we might get as far as Portugal, which would mean my extending my vacation to an unauthorised six or seven weeks, but would be happy with the Scillies or southern Brittany.

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House progressing

Sub-floor down, walls plastered…  Beginning of July the builders started. It was a bit more radical than I expected! They went right down to the stone, then waterproofed it and started applying layers of render to flatten and square off the walls.     One layer of render and first fix electrics          One layer of render and first fix electrics     Read more →