Second Post
Moving is a traumatic business and downsizing at the same time makes it worse. The cottage to which we have moved is itself in good condition with no major work to be done except building bookcases for our much reduced library. The garden is detached from the cottage through what in Hastings we would have called a ‘twitten’, a covered passageway. It is walled and was much overgrown (see below). It had two neglected raised beds and several large shrubs/trees.

‘Before’ march 2015
We have re done the hard landscaping and cut back or taken out some of the larger growth. We have begun to replant but as Winter is a comming we have taken a pause. The other good thing is that after some 40 years I am able to start cultivating Bonsai trees again and making new pots for them…

‘So Far’ october 2015
Notice the mop pail water feature, we also found a tin bath in the outhouse that will be pressed into service as a planter.

Old wash house
The other major project has been my studio. We discovered that we owned almost half of this brick outbuilding and that it looked just big enough to make a studio it will be quite a project as I will have to lay on power and fit a sink and clay trap in place of the Edwardian toilet complete with cobwebs, old doors and a fireplace.

This is as we found it!
jg October 2015