Filling up the freezers

I made my final car payment this week!  My wee 4yo car is now all mine 🚗 So that frees up a nice wee amount each month which I will be adding to my savings from next month.  But to celebrate I bought another freezer!!  Same silver colour as my fridge freezer and it fits nicely into the corner on the other side of the table.  It's not plugged in yet in this photo, it's just been dumped for the gases to settle!   I chose this Indesit one as it's able to keep food frozen for 12 hours if the power goes out.  

I popped into Lidl on Monday and got lucky again.  I knew I'd be able to use up everything and put it in my new freezer 😊  From the above,  I chopped and froze the melon (it was perfect!!) and peaches (had to skin them first.)  I made a sort of tomato relish by chopping up the really ripe tomatoes and cooking them with some sugar and vinegar.  Delicious!!  I've used some of the peppers in a sweet and sour sauce today.  I squeezed the oranges and froze the juice in ice cubes.  And Luna has been eating the cucumber with me as a snack! 🥒

Then last night my DIL gifted me some of her 10p fruit bargains from her Sainsbury's Local.  The plums and apricots have been poached and put in the freezer.  The kale was just sorted into a freezer bag and half of  the pineapple was used in the sweet and sour sauce.  Guess where the other half is??  Yep, the freezer!! 😂

I made a short video of the sweet and sour sauce as I just can't edit in a lot of clips and photos to a longer video within a reasonable time.  I've got other stuff to do!  It took 3 hours to upload a 15 min chat for editing.  So I think creating shorts of me cooking works better then I can just do a one take chat to camera for the other stuff with a wee bit of editing.  Thanks to Mean Queen for that idea!  What do you think?  Opinions welcome!

Luna doesn't like it!

Luna is a bit bemused that I have a table in the kitchen now!! The side eye is ridiculous when I'm eating!😂She had developed a bad habit of sitting right beside me on the sofa when I was eating and tried to lick my plate. So, yeah she's not happy.  To use a Scottish phrase "she's pure raging!" 😂😂

She sits and glares at me from the other side too!  But it's so good to have a space to eat and work at again.  And Miss Luna will just have to get used it!

Today I got my notepad out and sat with a coffee to try and work out some things regarding the YouTube stuff.  I now have an astonishing 1161 subscribers and that £1.76 video has had over 17K views!!  😱 I only re started the channel 2 weeks ago!

Thanks for all the input on how I should go forward with it all. I've decided I'm going to post 2 videos a week on Mondays and Fridays.  The Monday one will be a general frugal chat about what I do and the Friday one will be food related.  I know the Friday one will be more popular based on the analytics! I'll keep them to around 15 mins max and I'll try to do one take to the camera and then add in things when I edit it.  It's editing that takes up all the time due to the slowness of Clip Champ.  But as it's free I'm not complaining.

I'm still keeping my blog going as usual.  I enjoy writing too much.  I'm not linking them and I'm not mentioning this blog so they're completely separate things.  You'll still get to read the rubbish on my weekly doings!! 😂😂

Trip to IKEA and YouTube commenters!

 

I had a lovely day with my DIL, my eldest son's wife visiting IKEA in Glasgow.  I had a list and I stuck to it!!  I knew exactly what I wanted to see and what I wanted to buy.  I got a table and chairs for my kitchen.  It's Pinntorp, a gateleg folding table.  It fitted the space I had perfectly!

My DIL helped me build it.  We're both pretty handy with DIY so table and chairs were built in a couple of lazy hours.  It extends easily to seat at least 4 maybe more at a pinch.  I don't do big family dinners any more so I don't need a big table.

Ignore the 'mess' on the left hand side as I quickly moved stuff to set the table up.  But I'm thrilled with it especially as it leaves me room to fit in a second freezer!! 🎉 I make my last car payment this month so there will be some extra cash in the budget next month!!  I really miss having a big freezer so 2 wee ones will have to do.  More space to store bargains 😊

Thanks for all your lovely comments on my YouTube adventures.  As of tonight I now have 871 subscribers!  And the £1.76 video has had an astonishing 11K views!!! On the whole the commenters have been really supportive but I actually laughed and even put a 😂 in my reply to the woman who said she hoped my food was rotten.  Someone else commented on my £400 mixer (I'm assuming she thought I had a brand new Kitchen Aid and not a knackered 18 yo Kenwood!!)  And someone thought if I can afford to shop in M&S I shouldn't be using the food waste shop.  It's as if they didn't even watch the video!!! 😂😂😂 

Well that escalated quickly!

Oh my goodness!  I have 587 subscribers and my last video had 4.1K views in a day!!!!!  😱 It's rather overwhelming and very unexpected.  It seems to have appealed to a lot of people.

As much as I really love watching American frugal channels, I always feel we don't get the same level of deals and coupons here in the UK.  I also watch a lot of shopping and batch cooking videos but their target audience is feeding your family on a budget.  And since I retired I've watched retirement videos too.

There aren't many UK channels about older women living on their own, on a budget (by choice) and enjoying it!!  I think I've found a gap in the market!  Mean Queen springs to mind and I've found a couple more but haven't watched many of their videos yet.

I have a new found respect for YouTubers.  It clearly takes A LOT of time to put together their videos.  Yesterday I tried to photograph and film some of the prepping and cooking of the veg box contents.  I have tons of footage and photos and that took the best part of a day.  But I quickly came to realise that even a 5 min video clip takes up to an hour to upload on Clip Champ.  It's the free editing software on my laptop.  It has a paid upgrade option which I suspect is much quicker but I really don't want to pay (atm) to make videos.  And I don't want to be tied to my laptop all day either!

Roast butternut squash and apple soup 

I thought it would be a good idea to show everything I made from the £1.76 shopping trip (and a few folk thought so too) but it's going to take me hours and hours of uploading and editing.  So I've come up with a quicker video idea of a week's meal plan showing what 'could' be made with the contents plus a few storecupboard essentials. I'm hoping that with editing in a few photos (they upload really quickly) it will still be a useful video.  What do you think?

Huge big thank you to everyone who has subscribed and commented on my videos.  I haven't promoted them or even told my friends and family about them yet.  So it's all down to you guys kickstarting the process that seems to be getting them noticed!  I never thought much would come of it so wasn't prepared.  I really need to work out a way that I can keep blogging (not giving up on the blog!!) and making videos that are useful and still getting on with my life of doing up this house and garden on a teeny budget!! 😊

Jackpot!

 

Oh my goodness, I hit the jackpot today!  I think I got my best ever Lidl veg box plus a good amount of healthy food from the community food waste shop and M&S.  Everything in the above photo cost me £1.76!!  Honest!

I did a lot of walking too so I'm feeling blessed and virtuous and a bit sore tonight!!  I've frozen what needed to be frozen but I now need to work out some meals and recipes to make the best use of everything I got.  If you've got any suggestions let me know! 😋

New handles

 

It's been bugging me since I moved in that the 3 doors in my small living room all had different coloured and shaped handles.  One was even on upside down and the tubular latch had been removed.  No idea why!

So today I replaced the latch (don't look closely if you're a joiner!!) 😂

And I fitted new handles to the door that leads into the hallway and stairs.  This means I can close this door properly when I have to answer the front door and keep Luna safely in the living room.  The handles are just from B&Q (Breage is the design) and costs £25 for a pair.  The design is very ergonomic and actually feels nice when you hold it.  It'll cost another £50 to do the other 2 doors so hopefully I can get them done soon.  In the past when I've tried to match light sockets and switches throughout the house they stopped making the design I used.  So I don't want to wait too long, just in case!

I made another video while Luna was at daycare.  I was practising my editing skills on this one.  I can't believe the response I've had on the first video and I've got an amazing 343 subscribers! 😮 Apart from one narky comment, everyone has been so lovely!

My DIL asked me if I had ideas for more videos.  I've got a few but if there's anything you think I should cover let me know! 😊

Pushing myself out my comfort zone

 

I made some tomato sauce with some of the veg in the Lidl box.  I thought I'd film it since Luna was still at daycare.  Oh my goodness, seeing and hearing myself is way out my comfort zone!!

I did invest in a tripod ages ago but I'm just using my android phone to film and Clipchamp for editing which is the free software on my laptop.  Already I've learned about unflattering camera angles 😱 and sound quality when you're cooking.  I know a microphone would fix the sound issues but it's not in this month's budget so I'll just have to speak louder!  I can add photos and text so I'm definitely making my brain work hard!

As I've now been officially retired for a year 🎉 and I've moved house as planned, I need to start building my 'retired life.'  Teaching myself to make videos is just one thing.  What else could I do to push myself out my comfort zone?  Any suggestions?

I finally did it!!

 

I finally got round to changing my YouTube channel name and made my first video on living well on less!  Eeek!  Be kind, I'll get better! 😁

The Welsh dresser

 

Thanks for all the comments on my Welsh dresser/sideboard.  Don't worry I am NOT painting it, I just said I had thought about it in the past.  It's currently 'staged' with a plant and my Odin and Frigga statues.  

I don't know if it's Welsh (as in made in Wales) it's just always been called that in the family.  But it came from my maternal grandpa's side of the family where there are Welsh relatives.  He was from Rochdale in Lancashire and never really lost his accent despite living in Scotland most of his adult life.  According to my mum it was originally my great gran's dresser which was then passed down to my great aunt who lived in Wales.  It's not what you'd typically think a 'Welsh dresser' looks like especially as it had a huge mirror and spindles in the middle section.  The wee bit I have with the oval mirror would have sat on top of that section.  I suspect it was a parlour dresser and not a kitchen one.

The top two drawers have these part flower carvings.  These drawer fronts are solid wood whereas the lower four have veneer fronts which have a few bubbles.  They're a different colour which is why I'd considered painting them in the past.

The top piece is also solid wood and has leafy carvings.

You can see how bashed about it is close up.  It came to me like this.

Although I suspect this bit was scraped in the move!

The handles are rather pretty too!

I kinda like it exactly as it is scraped and bashed up a bit.  It can hold a lot of stuff!  The bottom two drawers are currently full of yarn and knitting stuff!

Long time readers may remember this photo from lockdown.  I saw it in my memory app this morning and thought I might try putting my rainbow of gin bottles on the sideboard.  Then I also saw in this photo one of the lamps and my Frigga statue!!  Lol! 😊

More playing around with colours!

 

I finally cleared and tidied my sideboard.  It's been a dumping area for 'stuff' since I moved in. It's old and been in the family (my Welsh side) for many years but isn't valuable at all.  In my old house I didn't have the top bit on it.  There was actually a middle piece too with shelves and a mirror but it was really badly damaged.  I didn't know if it would fit in my wee living room but brought it with me just in case.  I've toyed with painting it many times as it's very battered and scratched.  But now I love it just as it is and it holds it's own amongst all the colour!  However, it was proving difficult to find artwork to go above it.

After many different combinations of pictures, mirrors and lamps ( I kept sending photos to my DIL for her input!) I finally settled on the above.  I moved the painting from above the radiator (got a different plan for that wall now although the radiator will still be colourful!) and it all fell into place.  The lamps had different shades so I changed them to 2 orange ones (more stuff I brought with me 'just in case')  All 3 prints are by the same artist Gerry Baptist.  I just love his use of bright bold colours.  They came with the showhouse we (ex husband and I) bought in 2003 so they've moved with me in 3 house moves now.  The one on the left is called Olive Grove Orange and the middle one is called Le Chateau.  I haven't tracked down the one on the right yet. It has a beautiful blue and pink sky which matches my pink sofa and ties all the colours in the room together!

I unpacked the box that contained my rainbow of gin bottles.  They're all empty except for the orange one.  They're sitting on top of the yellow corner unit I bought on impulse during lockdown at hugely discounted price.  The brown wall will be painted Natural Calico next week so the colours will pop a bit more (I hope!)

Thanks for all the suggestions on what to put on my Harry Potter shelf.  At some point I'll indulge in something a bit unique.  For now I've put a special bottle of gin up there as I thought the shape was perfect and it has a wax seal.  It's a limited edition 2021 Stirling gin called OlypmiGIN, info HERE.  It has gold flakes in it.  My youngest son gifted me it when he moved out.  It's still unopened.  Not sure if I'll ever open it now.  The Niffler looks like he's trying to get the gold which if you know about Nifflers is very appropriate!!! 😂

It's starting to look colourful!

 

While Luna was at daycare today, I finished painting the first wall and some of the woodwork.  I haven't painted the door yet as I was undecided on the colour and it needs a new handle.  You can see how dingy and grubby it is compared to the white surrounding woodwork!  I had a thought about painting the door the same Natural Calico colour as the walls.  I did a quick research and was delighted to discover that paint colour actually comes in Satinwood!  Hooray!!  So I did a wee click and collect order from B&Q on the way to collect Luna.  I'll paint the door next time.

My books are back in the bookcase, the orange is peeking through nicely. This chair will be reupholstered when I've saved up.  I'm thinking green velvet or similar.

My Harry Potter items are back on top but feels like something is missing.  It needs something else on the left hand side to balance the height of the books.  I'll have a think about that.

I'm planning on painting the radiator red to pick up the red roofs in the painting above.  I had ordered some samples of radiator paint from B&Q and they came today.

They come in sets of 6 in the same colour family.  This is the red set.  Costs £5 and was free postage.  I'll test them in situ before deciding which one although I'm leaning towards bottom right one.

This wee stool was painted in Annie Sloan's Emperor's Silk a few weeks ago and waxed.  I gathered up Luna's toys into a basket to keep them tidy but she keeps emptying it! 😂

I took the chance to give everything a deep clean and hoover while I had uninterrupted peace (Luna barks at the hoover!!)  It felt good to get that done.  My living room is starting to come to life with colour! 💖🧡💛💚💙💜

Making (slow) progress

 

Yesterday was Luna's first gotcha day!  It's hard to believe that it was a year ago this wee lunatic came into my life and turned it upside down!!

Exactly a year later barking at birds outside on the road at 8am on a Sunday morning!!

Today she went back to day care for the first time in 3 months!!  It was fab for me and I know she had a ball.  I was able to paint the wall behind where the blue and orange bookcase will stand.  It's now had 3 coats of Natural Calico (free from my Lovely Mum as she bought too much!)  Bits of it still look like it needs another coat.  That mocha colour is proving hard to cover!

I started the other side of the door into the kitchen and it's had 2 coats now.  It definitely needs another coat. 

It's taking shape slowly.  I've booked Luna in again for Thursday so will hopefully get the woodwork done too on that wall then the bookcase can be moved back and the books will go back in.  I've accepted I can only do a wee bit at a time so I'm not setting myself a deadline on getting the whole room finished.

I had hoped to do a wee bit of gardening today as well but it's rained heavily.  Yesterday my neighbour kindly came into my back garden and fixed some wobbly planks in the fence.  He had removed an overgrown vine from his side that was damaging my side and is adding more planks to his side.  So my fence will be nice and secure thanks to him and his son 😊

Tomorrow I finally get rid of the prepayment meters for my gas and electricity.  Hooray!!  I've already paid 2 months worth of direct debits so I'm building up some credit for the Winter already.  I'll have a Smart meter so will hopefully be able to monitor my energy usage more closely.

Comments in spam

 

I don't know why I checked my spam folder but I did.  And I found loads of your unpublished comments in there.  So apologies especially to Sue, Joy, Jackie and Sue in Suffolk as I found loads written by you.  Plus a few others.  I have no idea why!!  I even found some of my own comments.  How is that even possible??????

I've gone back as far as December last year and published them all.  I read all my comments and try to reply to them all.  I don't always go back to historic posts and answer them so apologies if you've left a comment on an old post and I haven't replied.

I'll check my spam folder more often from now on.  Blogger has a mind of it's own at times! 🙄