make do and mend for tougher times

Evie74_2

Pops, an egg-slicer I can understand (I don't have one, but am mildly envious!;)). I have a colleague who owns a mango slicer. I know this because her daughter nearly sliced her finger off with it while scrabbling in the utensil drawer for something else - apparently it is lethally sharp. I didn't even realise that such things existed... Apparently I lead a sheltered life!

I have been looking online for cheap fleece blankets. Ikea seems to be the cheapest, but it's a day trip for me to get to one (they don't sell them online). Does anyone have the pale blue Ikea blankets, and if so, how big are they? I am thinking of using them for curtain linings as well as general snuggling. I could persuade myself into a trip to Ikea as I also need some kilner-type jars for preserving and they have those for a good price too. I wish they sold more online (or would open a store near me!)

Evie xx

Popperwell

Evie,
Never needed an egg slicer before but at 85p in Wilkinsons I can't be robbed, I'll keep it safe and out of harm's way...I think it has simularities to a wire cutter for cheese. But it is designed so fingers are not in the way...

prepareathome

Evie74 wrote: »

Pops

I have been looking online for cheap fleece blankets. Ikea seems to be the cheapest, but it's a day trip for me to get to one (they don't sell them online). Does anyone have the pale blue Ikea blankets, and if so, how big are they? I am thinking of using them for curtain linings as well as general snuggling. I could persuade myself into a trip to Ikea as I also need some kilner-type jars for preserving and they have those for a good price too. I wish they sold more online (or would open a store near me!)

Evie xx

Fuddle bought one I think so am sure she will be along soon to say about them, me I bought a dozen of the ones Mr T are selling for £2.47 - quite thick and soft, they are on click and collect and down side is you don't know what colour you are going to get - they took pity on me ordering so many and sent 4 of each colour ( pink, turquoise and grey)

Evie74_2

Thank you PAH - I saw the Mr T ones but confess (shallow, shallow lady am I) that I was put off by not knowing what colour they would be! I am going to need about 10-12 as well so maybe they would be kind and send nice colours to me too.

My fear was that they would be neon orange or giant zigzags or something. I really shouldn't be so fussy I know, because being warm is the main thing. Sometimes I am not very good at this OS malarkey.:o

Evie xx

prepareathome

[IMG][/img] tesco fleeces by prepareathomeearth, on Flickr


These are the fleeces - the colours have come out not quite as true sorry its the flash - blue is actually turquoise, pink is deeper and grey is a bit darker......

SpikyHedgehog

I tried posting earlier from my phone but it kept logging me out before I could post...

Welcome Nellie and everyone else new and welcome back Kittie.

Thank goodness you're ok, Byatt. It was scary enough reading, must have been awful being in it.

Work is still stressful, worst case scenario is bad and we won't know till the end of July. Hoping it won't come to that, but the stress of worrying about is not good. But I have been determined not to think about it this weekend so set off into town with DS1 (DS2 is with Errant Husband for the weekend) only to get a phone call from the work key holder to say the burglar alarm was going off, & as she wasn't at home, could I get there? No sign of anything to explain why it went off. Just to make us think about it, I think

Got DS2 a shirt & pair of jeans in the CS shop I dropped a bag of stuff of with, & a shirt for DS1. I hate paying full price for trousers for DS2 as I have to cut so much of so they fit my stocky little man, these were £1 so I was happy with that. Just got to wash them now before I have to make them over for him.

I've ordered 10 of the MrT fleeces - kept adding things that caught my eye to the basket, but took everything apart from the fleeces out in the end. Decided to have them delivered as I don't drive so the bus up to MrT would have been more than the delivery, & then took £4 off with a voucher. I've been doing better with not going round the the T express round the corner, so have hardly any points this time! I got 2 for every window I want curtains at + 2 over. I did have cute fleeces for the DSs & me for Xmas presents but took them out - till I know what's going to happen with work, I can't start to think about any more present buying.

Parents in law came round to see DS1 & I, knowing DS2 wasn't here - I'd been expecting a cancellation, so that was good. Grandad gave DS1 a fiver & he put it straight in his motorbike money box (hot choc tub, re-purposed as a money box with a slit in the top & a drawing of a motorbike on the front. We then used the family bus ticket from earlier to go up to MrA & see if we could get any fleeces from there (no, hence the MrT order) & got a roll mat for DS2 to take to Cub Camp next weekend - not as good as the ones I got the boys from the Range a few years ago, but it will do him. Resisted getting him any plates etc as he can take his ordinary ones.

I don't have a mango slicer though we had a mango the other week - DS2 saw them in the supermarket & asked what it was, so I got 1 for us to share & made a fruit salad with it in. But I do have a Good Grips lemon zester! I got it a good few years ago for 10p from a car boot sale.

Evie74_2

PAH - thanks for the photo, it's good to have an idea of the colours. Still tempted by Ikea because of the jars, but if I decide against I will go for Mr T I think. Am wondering if tomorrow (today!) would be a good day for an Ikea visit as hopefully most people will be watching the tennis. If DH is fishing though I may bottle out of it as the long motorway journey to Ikea with both my girls may be more than I can face.

SpikyHedgehog - I also have a lemon zester, I can't remember what brand or how much but I bet yours was more of a bargain!

I hope the work news isn't as bad as you fear. My DH is due to be made redundant in a couple of weeks so I do understand the worry, although we will still have my salary (such as it is) coming in. ((Hugs)) and crossed fingers for it not being so bad, and if it is as grim as you fear, you will always find a friendly welcome on this thread, and plenty of wisdom and kind words about making the best of it.

ETA: I'm going to turn in now, as my two little alarm clocks will be up and about at a monstrously early hour - good night all.

Evie xx

Popperwell

Night Evie,
Here's to a better day...

Spiky,
I hope it's better news for you. It's strange if you have work you worry that wages are good enough and whether you'll keep the job, I'm not well and I worry about living on a low income and equally worry about having it removed further from the other side. We're caught either way.

Whilst I can I may look into those fleeces they may be handy to put on a bed? Or around myself if I was sat up at the PC or was watching tv...

For anyone away to bed,
Take Care...

I'll probably sleep in longer in the morning and mess about on here a little while longer as my ISP allows unlimited access overnight...

prepareathome

I am still up as at last been sorting out the letters I found at dads when clearing out after he died, couldn't face it before - he kept every letter sent to him including all the ones from mum before they were married but not read them yet, just ones sent to him when he was in the RAF - a totally different person from the one I knew........

Anyway what I came on here to say was I know Ikea are cheaper for kilner type jars and if you are going to buy a few plus the fleeces then petrol will be worth it but Mr S ( if you have one near you) does them as well at £2.50 for a 1lt and £4 for 2lt actual kilner jars - I bought some last year and plan to buy some more. My local store sells them so presume most do as its not a very big store really. For me its just not worth the petrol to Ikea unless I want to buy quite a few things.

Right better get head down as granddaughter will have me up handish ( thankfully she is now officially a teenager and actually does want to get up at 7am any more so I am up before her now phew, not a bad grandma anymore sleeping in later than granddaughter - yesterday she emerged at just after 11am..........

Hugs, Love and Healing to all xxxxx

SpikyHedgehog

Suffolk has the rain now. Not sure how long it's been down pouring, but if it's like this later, I'm not walking to church.

Hope she doesn't sleep too long, PAH!