Island Time

After many months of waiting, the stainless steel worktop is finally in its rightful place, atop our plywood kitchen island. And we're really rather pleased about it, not to mention relieved.

The house couldn't be sealed until the worktop had been brought in through one of the window holes upstairs but it was damaged in transit and had to be returned to the factory for repairs. So it was rather an eventful part of the project. And don't even get me started on the tap...

We picked the materials for the kitchen on the basis that they wouldn't date and would age well. There are no handles to deteriorate either - just cut-aways on the doors and drawers. I'm sure it won't be much fun to sand down the stainless steel or the plywood but at least we won't have to replace the kitchen as it gets battered over the years.

Unveiled

The scaffolding and the shrink wrap came down last week and we could finally see the house in all its weatherboarded glory. The moment that all the neighbours have been waiting for!

Luckily we like the paint colour even though it's so much lighter than we originally intended.

Think Tank

Our water tanks are going to be cleaned out today. They've been disconnected during the renovations - both in and out - so last winter's water is ready and waiting for us. But we thought it would be a good idea to have the sludge vacuumed out first so that our drinking water is as fresh as the cloud juice offered on this Auckland restaurant menu.

Fleeced!

Are these the same rams back in our field, having been sheared, or different ones? Who knows?!

Growing Wild 3

Growing Wild 2

Apparently you can make clover wine but it takes ages to collect all the flowers that you need...

Growing Wild 1

Any ideas what this pretty little weed might be?



It looks like gorse or broom but it's much smaller and seems to be a creeper.

Here it is with a kind of daisy for scale.