Stone and Fire

The kitchen wall above the sink is finished!  Well, the removal of the plaster at least.  Now all I have to do is scrape out some of the clay between the stones and repoint with a sandy-looking mortar that makes it all look pretty and is pretty hard-wearing too.



Of course, it will have to be sealed, so that splashes from the sink don't affect it and bits of the sandy mortar don't keep falling off. Then the pipe from the bathroom will be boxed in and everything will be neat and tidy!

I have started on the chimneybreast...



...and I want to reveal the fire bricks, tidy them up a bit and remove the brown paint from the wood.  I have already got this far...



The big hole you can see on the right is where a stovepipe went into the chimney from an old wood-burning cooker.  I have some spare fire bricks to fill this up so it won't look so bad.

It's dirty work and so far I've removed about 12 bags of plaster rubble.  Some of it is still in my hair, I think! I must remember to wear something on my head (I was thinking of a shower cap!) and to take my protective goggles so I don't have to keep stopping to wash bits of plaster out of my eyes!

When it's all done, it will look lovely, I think, and give the room character.

I should keep at it and do something every day, but I've just finished a commission for a pair of mittens (sorry - I forgot to take pictures) and I have another pair that just need the thumbs making now...



...and then there is the little matter of a couple of tea cosies for a local shop and tea rooms...

So even though the weather has definitely become more like winter and we have had some rain this week, I have lots to do.