Tag: grouting

Liquid Pearls

During the early part of this wet day I recovered the photographs and set header pictures for the following posts:

The Moment
Hopping From Seat To Seat

Light rain did not deter Martin from applying his grouting to the patio. First he three times pressure cleaned the paving, spraying the cracks between them and locating the “hot spots” to ensure the correct depths would be filled. Far from being problematic, the precipitation aided the process, providing a temporary rainbow effect.

Having left Flo, Dillon, and Ellie to brunch at Camellia’s Café in Everton Nursery, Jackie and I acquired provisions at Ferndene Farm Shop where I photographed

Fire logs and kindling alongside cut tulips and other flowers and

potted chrysanthemums.

Trays of bedding plants such as these primulas,

and pansies, and hyacinths, some of which bore their own liquid pearls.

Jackie deposited me at home and continued along Christchurch Road to collect the young family.

Once the day’s drizzle had desisted I made further inroads on the debris behind the oil tank and shed, transporting more to the Shady Path.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s wholesome chicken and vegetable stewp and fresh crusty bread with which she drank Hoegaarden and I drank Mendoza Malbec 2021.

The Talented Tattooed Tiler

This morning and into the afternoon Darren Gregory (Facebook Page DG ceramics) tiled our kitchen.

Darren is cheerful, friendly, fast, and efficient.

After cleaning the surfaces to be covered, Darren applied a ridged primer on which he carefully fixed the individual tiles. While waiting for the panel behind the hobs to dry, the craftsman repeated the process beneath the hanging shelves and the granite work surface. The primer is kept in a small tub, liberally applied with a flat trowel thingy, a bit like the blackboard duster that the schoolmasters of my youth might lob around the classroom; once the tiles are in place the adhesive is tidied up with a forefinger, smoothed over, and sponged clean.

The tiles that have to be cut are carefully measured, sawn, and clipped to fit. Surrounding the light switches was perfectly done. “Stay there” said Darren, as he applied a length of sticky tape to hold one in place while he carried out the operation.

I was a little premature in photographing what I thought was the completed work. The silicon gun had yet to squirt the final trim.

This evening we dined on roast chicken thighs, potatoes, parsnips, pork and leek sausages, sage and onion stuffing; crisp Yorkshire pudding; moist ratatouille; firm carrots and Brussels sprouts, all with meaty gravy, with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I drank The Second Fleet Coonawara smooth blend of Cabernet, Merlot, and Petit Verdot 2019