Category: HOME & GARDEN
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A Practical Man and his Backstage
It took me several years to turn my old house into a masterclass in backstage management. The theory is simple: you can’t have an opulent and uncluttered front stage without a well-managed backstage. All those practical tools and instruments need a home. Organisation is liberation, whereas a lack of organisation leads to procrastination and inefficiency.…
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A new garden
It won’t happen overnight but I’ve made meaningful steps towards an Alice in Wonderland-style back garden. It won’t be boringly manicured to death, it will be a wild haven where all are welcome (except other humans – unless they’re invited!) It’s a wild flower rather than grass garden which suits me fine, I can leave…
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Home Sweet Home
It’s been almost 3 months since I moved into my new house in Rugby, central England. Given that I’ve worked full-time (and barely taken a day’s leave) since I completed purchase on 13th December, it’s remarkable that I’ve managed to put my stamp on the place. Don’t get me wrong there’s years of work to…
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Home Improvement: Before & After
Some things take care of themselves, other things don’t and home and garden are amongst them. I do not recall the last time I painted the shed, fences, etc., but it certainly was not last summer. The algae build up suggests three years at least so it was well overdue. It represents about a week’s…
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The garden: Lots of colour and a new bench (for the cat apparently)
18 months of extra-ordinary rain has to be good for something. The flowers in my garden are certainly very happy about it, I am seeing record blooms and there’s every reason to expect more to come. The garden has been neglected in the last few years but this year I have managed to squeeze in…
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The Home Front @ Christmas
Now the 7th Christmas in the Droitwich house, how quickly it goes by! The house is all set for a calm and fun Christmas. There is a lot of work to be done over the “break” but at least I’ll be doing it in style in my festive grotto.
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Halloween ’23
It’s always an exciting time of year. It’s a shame that summer did not really happen in the UK, you always feel kind of cheated. The Halloween season always happens though, partly because it’s not dependent upon British weather. Cold and a bit spooky works just fine, as does much else.
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Ahead of the curve: preparing for my next house
It’s Sod’s Law that if you wait until you’ve purchased a house you’ll them struggle to find what you want to fill it with. I love these rugs; they come around in Home Sense every now and again so I grabbed 3. A time will come when they will make a big and inexpensive splash.
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New flooring, September 2023
Long in the planning, it’s not the kind of thing that costs a few £100 and we’re in a cost of living crisis so it had to wait. It was worth it though, looks amazing!
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New furniture, new garden look (May 2023)
A new parasol and seat cushions can and does add real freshness to a garden, as can be seen. In recent years the garden has taken a backseat, but I’m hoping next year will be a major garden year. I’ll do a proper re-seed and enjoy some quality grass. In the meantime, a few small…
Dr Martin James 