In praise of baskets -and tips on how to buy them

I love to browse op shops for things that are both beautiful and practical, and none are more beautiful and practical than cane baskets. All of these have been found in op shops, and I have not spent more than about $10 on any one of them. I have quite a number now, and don't yet see the need to stop collecting them yet. Nothing screams "simple living" than a basket actually being used. If I were a social media influencer this post would contain a picture of me in a floppy hat and a frilly dress, with a basket hooked over my arm, in my garden whilst I harvest flowers or something.

Instead I use them in the following ways:

This is my library basket. It is strong and sturdy and feels great when carried. I can keep my library books near my chair and pick it up and carry it away if I want to go and get more books! 

This is the laundry recycling station. We have laundry baskets, flat baskets for drying seeds, baskets to take the recycling to the bin, and baskets to corral the scrap paper for the compost. 

There is nothing like a good sturdy basket to take to the garden to pick your own fruit. 

But if you have too much fruit, you need a basket to put some out on the verge to enable neighbours to help themselves. 

And if your seed is dry, you need a basket to hold the seed heads while you separate the seed from the husks. 

When not storing fruit,  baskets can hold dried flowers or your keys.

They hold toys for grandchildren. 

They keep spare parts for quilting.

They cover plastic plant pots. 

They fill the space at the top of bookcases in a decorative way, whilst waiting for another task. 

A few tips for buying baskets:

1. Set them on a level surface and see if they stand upright without wobbling or looking wonky. Wonky baskets are very hard to correct.

2. The handle needs to be securely attached if you might want to use it to hold heavy things. I have been able to reglue a few handles which were coming unstuck, but each basket seems to have its own way of attaching the handle to the base, and you need to look carefully to see if it is repairable. I have one basket which I repaired by wrapping with string, and it is still going strong. 

3. I can make do with a basket that has a tiny break in the cane weave, but not if it affects its ability to hold the contents securely

4. Fashion will tell you that you need your basket to have a washed out French grey look, and I have seen people spray painting them to get that look. Personally I think the golden brown shades of cane to be universally acceptable. 

5. If a basket has been damp and has a mouldy look or smell , you may be able to resurrect it (non-food storage only) by spraying it with a teaspoon of clove oil mixed with a litre of water, and sprayed on the can very thoroughly, then dried in the sun. I have one that I gave this treatment to, and it is still very useful to take Nanna's supplies of games and toys when I go babysitting. Note: our grandchildren are too old to put things in their mouths! 

6. Always buy them second hand or in charity shops! The price is very much discounted there. 

7. Consider picnic baskets - but take out the inner loops which were made to hold utensils- you will then have a very sturdy basket for other purposes.

8. Don't carry a basket close to your clothes if you are wearing a loose weave fabric which may snag on a bit of cane which is sticking out a tiny bit. 

Do you love baskets too? 

 

Is that rain? and other adventures

Apparently Western Australia was in a 'heat bubble" with unseasonably warm temperatures in late April and early May. We had had lovely warm days of about 25C with cooler nights, but worryingly, very little rain at all. Finally about a week ago, the rain started to fall!

I was harvesting limes, grapefruit, tangelos and limes, and still hand watering the snow peas and garlic I planted expecting winter rains. I still have so much citrus at this time of the year, and often I offer it to neighbours for their use. 

DH made a lime chutney but was disappointed in it -he thought the skins should have been softer after cooking. We left it in the jar for several months, and have discovered that now it is exceptionally yummy! 

Our 3 year old passionfruit vine has finally started fruiting. I grew it up over the dead lemon in the front garden, bordering our neighbours' driveway, so we are all getting excited to see the large round fruit appear. I check it every day to see the fruits change from green to yellow, when they will be ripe. It has been too many years since we had our own fresh passionfruit. 

This beautiful view of King George Sound's entrance is from nearly a week we had away in Kinjarling Albany -our favourite place for a holiday, 5 hours south of Perth. We had a really really good time. Due to the late winter, it was warm and sunny most days and while it is a worry for farmers, I have to admit it was a lovely time for us. 

I found this original watercolour of a beach shack on Wadjemup Rottnest island, in the op shop. I really love it!  We are gradually filling up the wall space over the sofa bed with a gallery of original paintings.

The autumn weather has brought seasonal flowers in our native vegetation: banksia and eucalypts in particular. 

I have been pleased with the roses in my garden which have enjoyed the autumn weather and put on a nice show of blooms, too. I am trying to put more perennials in my front garden so that there is a more full, abundant look out there. 

So glad to have a warm and comfortable home for the winter season, so grateful to have some rain at last! This is Dora who loves to sit on quilts, and will seek them out if they are available anywhere in the house. 

Thanks for visiting! 

A quilt finish, a new machine and more fixing things

When I wrote my last post about fixing things, DH had a plan on how to fix the pot plant stand which was buckling. I am happy to report that this circle of wood which he cut and fixed to the base is exactly the reinforcement it needed. 

I can now turn the ficus benjamina around towards the morning sun, to help it grow more branches and become less uneven in its growth habit. 

This week I dropped some things off at the op shop, and as usual went inside for a quick look. This original watercolour  (below) was in a broken frame and stuffed in a crate. I  saw it, loved it, and so bought it for $7 and another empty frame for $5. DH helped me trim the matt to size and installed some piano wire to the frame to hang it up.

We are both delighted with it. It would appear to have been painted in 1983. 

Some time back I decided that we would try to feature original art, or buy prints directly from the artist, but each art work had to cost less than $50. Since that time we have added some very lovely works to our home. 

My friend's elderly mother received this 1960 Elna from her sister. As she doesn't sew, my friend offered to find it a home, and thought of me! It works well but I need to get the wall plug rewired. I have downloaded the manual and so know where to give  it some oil. Stay tuned for how the project goes. 

Finally here is the 'forest floor' quilt I have just finished, using batik jelly roll fabric I was given by a friend. It got a bit sidelined over Christmas, but I am happy it is now complete. As my tshirt says "done is better than perfect". 

 

So that is all for this week. I hope you have some joy in fixing and finishing things too. 

BUY these things at an op shop! They are useful, hard working and durable*

 I was browsing in one of those kitchen tool type shops recently. They have lovely things, and I had 20 minutes whilst waiting for my husband. What shocked me, though, was the price of things I have at home which I got at op shops and have loved and used for years.

In each case, buying them from the op shop extends their useful life, saving them from landfill. (However, only buy them if you can actually use them. The Op Shop Goddess likes people who are considerate of others!) 

1. Wooden salad bowls, plates and boards

We buy wooden salad bowls and use them a lot around here. Mind you, some of them looked pretty drab in the shop as no-one had cared for the wood for years. That large teak salad bowl was desert dry and had tuned almost blond in colour. We brought it home and gave it a wash, then layers of lovely food safe Orange Oil (an Australian product and I don't have any links to the company- substitute whatever food safe product you can find) were applied and this is how it came up. I wash it in soapy water, dry it and use it over and over, but about once a year, I slick the orange oil over it and take care of it.

Sometimes we have found a nice handmade bowl -but someone has put plastic estapol on it. DH sands it back and then gives it the orange oil treatment. 

Salad bowls are of course, just a bowl which can hold all sorts of useful things. Many foods are most flavourful when at room temperature: tomatoes ripen slowly on the bench on a cute raised bowl . If I had chickens I could put eggs in them. 

Scones look lovely on a table when served in a wooden bowl with a linen napkin lining. Bread is  a natural on a wooden platter or shallow bowl or a wooden chopping board. 

There is nothing to stop us using wooden bowls for mixing bread or cake batter and other things in -I must confess I never have, but once upon a time wooden mixing bowls were standard in kitchens. 

Wooden chopping boards and cheese boards can take a bit more of a sanding back, because they are flat and thicker -DH gives ours a turn in the workshop if they need it. to freshen up the surface before treating with the food safe oil again. 

Oh, just so you know -wooden salad bowls were $70 or more in the kitchen equipment shop! 

2. Serviettes or Napkins

I have a lovely range of wash and wear table napkins which we use a lot. No need to have single use or disposable  ones. These are generously sized, easy to use and easy to wash-honestly, I don't worry if they are used for greasy fingers or to wipe tomato spills-after all, they cost only cents. I can't remember any of them staining that badly though. I have a couple of sets of colours to go with my table settings. You can shove them in the picnic basket and not worry. 

These are cotton and synthetic blends mostly, which is why they are pretty indestructable.  I would rather use all natural fabrics, except in this situation where the fabric already exists, and is practically bombproof. 

3. Table cloths

I have a couple of table cloths which fit my table and were bought at op shops for tiny amounts of money. They make it look like I made an effort, and are so easy -just wash and fold. Recently I borrowed a book from the library about how to emulate French Country style -and guess what? Table cloths were recommended! If you have ones that don't need ironing, or find them at the op shop for a few dollars, why not put them out and enjoy them?  

4. Tea towels

Many opshops have souvenir type teatowels which are made of linen, and will cost very little! I buy them and wash the shiny sizing off, and use them in the kitchen. Have enough to change them every day! 

5. Glass storage jars

I store my food in glass in the pantry and in the fridge whereever possible.  Glass jars are expensive to buy new, but cheap in op shops. They can be refreshed in the dishwasher and come up nicely. If you need lids they can often be found online. Here is an Australian supplier. 

Yes, I do freeze food in glass jars! So long as you leave a 'headspace' for the food to expand as it freezes you will be fine.

If you are lucky enough to have one of those bulk dry goods stores near you, you can fill up your glass jars with all sorts of spices and flours and bypass the plastic bags in the supermarket entirely. 

6. Baskets

Baskets are the MVPs of my house. 

 I have dedicated baskets for my library books, so I can keep them safe by my favourite chair, and then pick them up and go the library when it is time for a renewal.

Decent baskets with useful handles and a fair capacity can be picnic baskets, shopping baskets, harvest baskets, fruit baskets, there are so many uses.

Those little flat bamboo baskets are great for drying herbs 

The lovely thing about baskets is the way they feel -sort of old fashioned and they swing as you walk.

One of mine needed a bit of a repair when I got it -the edge was a bit broken and likely to catch on things. I wrapped some string around it and now it is fine. I believe in making things last -no need to hide a repair, enjoy it. 

And, of course, there is always a creative use for baskets.

7. Kitchen tools 

I have a number of kitchen tools that I picked up at Op Shops. I like things like tongs, strainers and double boilers that will fit a number of saucepan sizes. The good thing is that if they don't work, you can easily return them and let someone else have them. 

*Footnote

You can also barter these things for a jar of your home made pickles, or get them for free from a local share/swap site, or find them in garage sales. Whatever, if you use them they are not in landfill. 

Djilba! Waiting for the spring

 NOTE: this post contains messages of support for COVID vaccines. If you don't agree, please don't leave me any messages. I am not interested and will block you. 

We are, we hope, moving into Djilba, a season of the Noongar calendar, where winter rains slowly give way to Spring showers, and the birds and animals and wildflowers get active in their breeding and flowering cycles.  This month has been the wettest July in 26 years, and we actually had 18 days in a row when it rained. We are all feeling it! It is lovely to see the rain recharge the rivers and tanks, but we miss the sunshine. I am missing the hours I usually spend each day in the garden. 

The Bureau of Meteorology has predicted that we will have a drier than average rainfall over the next three months , whilst the centre and east coasts will be wetter. 

We have had plenty to be thankful about this month. DH had important and delicate surgery on his back, and is now at home recuperating. This is yet another example of the wonders of our Australian health care system. The whole thing -his scans, his operation and his hospital stay- was exactly and completely free! This precious Medicare system is one of the jewels of our community welfare system -a part of that 'commonwealth' which every nation should attempt to provide to its citizens. Where there is a need, it should not be money which keeps you away from medical care. This has become especially imporant in the pandemic. My DS and DDinLaw have both had their full COVID Pfeizer vaccines, and we are most grateful. DD -also in their age bracket -however has not been invited in as yet. DH and I will have our second AstraZenica vaccines this month. 

Melbourne's arts community made a wonderful ad to encourage everyone to get their vaccine.  It  highlights the fact that, in order to get back to the good things -music performances, art shows, festivals, theatre -we will all need to be vaccinated. Current modelling suggests we need more than 80% vaccinated to be able to put the vulnerable into a safe situation. Some won't be able to have the vaccine, so the rest of us need to do it for them. 

This month DD and I enjoyed the Stirling Players' production of Into the Woods. My son was playing in the orchestra. We loved it! DH and I also were able to enjoy the Classical Guitar Society of WA's 60th anniversary concert too. At the moment we are without any COVID restrictions in WA, but we all know how vulnerable we are to a break out from quarantine, and it could all go away again. 

I finished my quilt!  I have updated the "Quilting and the creative challenge" page of my blog to reflect this. Just need to wash it and then it is ready for giving away to our Community Quilt group at WAQA. 

I have added a lovely watercolour picture to the dining room wall. I found it in an op shop.DH says it makes him think of fishing boats leaving Oyster Harbour in Kinjarling Albany. I reckon it makes me think of my Welsh relatives who worked on coastal boats operating out of Beaumaris. 

Well, that is about enough of our activities for this post. Thanks for reading! 

Fun bargains in winter

Last weekend we celebrated Solstice with a bit of a family party. The grandchildren came over the day before to help decorate. We talked about longest days and the way the earth moves around the sun -all sorts of things, and they decorated small trees and we spread candles and greenery around.   The next day DGS1 turned up with his stuffed toy from the Frozen movie -Olaf the snowman! Great idea, as this is the closest we will ever get to snow during out winter! 

Due to the restrictions in place to keep us all safe during the pandemic, we couldn't have our friends over for a Winter Feast but we still had a lovely day. As it happened, it was sunny day and we were able to be outside. Our DD helped the grandchildren to a long painting session -I think DGS2 must have painted about 14 pictures in about an hour. I had made beef cheeks into a pie, and we had an apple and raspberry crumble to follow. 

The weather has been a wonderful mix of rain and sunshine. When we can we get out the bikes and go to the park. All of the kids' bikes we have here have been found at our Tip Shop, which is a social enterprise employing vulnerable people and saving things from landfill. DGS2 loves his balance bike.

DGS1 now has a big bike at our place with trainer wheels -it was $15 at the Tip Shop, and DH just tidied it up, oiled it and made sure the bell worked! He was delighted with it -"it's perfect!" he declared.

In the same vein, we have noticed that we really like the kind of ambiance you get from table and floor lamps on a winter's day when it is grey and cloudy outside. I got the idea that our lounge room could do with a standard lamp, and went online to see what was available to fit our 'traditional/cosy' decor. That meant that we didn't want any modern lights, nor anything too fussy. I found a wooden lamp secondhand on marketplace, and bought a new shade.  The whole thing cost $105 which was a third of the price of new lamps which look like this.

The sunshine and rain have been great for the garden. I have continued to make compost, and am pleased that the new mulcher I got for Mother's day has improved the quality of the mulch a great deal. I have moved some roses and planted some native plants like this one, for the birds and the insects. It is part of my on-going campaign to add flowers to my edible garden, and to ensure that there are mid and lower story plants among the trees. The garden is by no means full! 

I have been working on a quilt, using some gifted panels with a gardening theme. It is almost at flimsy stage -I have found one of the border patches has a hole so I have to take it out and replace it. It is a generous single bed size. 

We continue to experience the house, following our insulation upgrade, to be a bit warmer overnight and less in need of extra heating, although there are of course days when a glass of wine and a fire seems just right.

My state of Western Australia is doing very well so far in the COVID19 epidemic, and we are moving out of restrictions for everything except interstate travel on July 18. As a result, my choir is working on a regime to enable us to sing together in a very modified way, and we are now holding small dinner parties in our homes. This is a wonderful feeling: today I can go to my library and get some new books! 

If you are still in more resticted times, I hope you are coping well and staying safe. None of us can go back to normal yet, but life is still good. 

Thanks to all who leave comments -I love to read about your responses and your different lives. 

November already!

We made it to our favourite Mullaloo beach this week, for the first walk on the beach of summer. I get such joy from walking right down near the water's edge on the wet sand in bare feet. There is something so relaxing about it! We always smile at the young families bringing their babies down for their first beach experience- the babies are often quite overwhelmed. When they come back as toddlers they run straight towards the water!

We are so lucky to live close to the beach! The weather is certainly heating up here -we had 40C the other day.

There is a eucalypt in flower on the way to the shops. Look at how pretty the pink gum caps are -and that flower with the deep green centre is a stunner. The flowers are low enough for me to see as I walk. I would like to use this colour palette some time for a quilt - I think it could be spectacular with the right pattern.

I have got the top of my quilt sewn up this week. Yesterday I took it outside so that I could pin it together. It fitted the table, and was such an enjoyable experience -so much easier than doing it on the floor. I am going to start the quilting this week coming. This will be a wall hanging. 

We are picking blueberries and watching the tomatoes ripen. 

My current Nanowrimo word count: 18000. On track at this stage to finish the goal of 50,000 words by November 29.  

DH and I have sorted our clothes and discarded a huge pile. The good ones we have sent to an op shop  (charity shop) nearby. We had this sudden realisation that if we had less clothes, we could get away with fewer chests of drawers when we get around to re-modelling our bedroom. Up till now we have been stuck with wanting to have lovely wooden chests of drawers -part of our commitment to buy second hand and good quality -but they all seemed small.  Well, maybe we just had too much stuff! I am now more confident we can get what we need this way.  

DH finished blow-torching the weeds in the paving -was it last Christmas or the one before I bought him a special gardening tool which uses a flame to burn weeds? Anyway, it is, while quite slow and a bit stinky (just the smell of burning leaves) it does work very well and gradually the weeds are becoming less and less out there. 

That is my week. How is yours going?