Gardening DIY

Just responded to Broadway in the heat mat thread..... now I love a bargain. But the thought of making a heated bench from scratch really fried my brain.  even if getting the bits in opposed to buying it would have saved me quite a few pounds.

I have loads of sweet peas on the go....my brain is in overload thinking about the frame. I need a super tall one!The thought of building one is horrible.

I'm not lazy - but I am let down by lack of DIY enthusiasm..to be honest I feel a bit scared when I have to build something. 

Anyone else just like the plants and can't be bothered about the frames and paths! I've a mudbath to slip through before getting to my greenhouse doors at the moment!! ......I bought a load of second hand slabs of FB 6 months ago and they are just stacked on the side who's laid a patio?

I did lay a patio many years ago. we had lots of old floor tiles from renovating the house. I think I laid them on sand and mortared them in, with a slight slope to where I put a grid. I once rescued a family of small frogs from the grid. 30 or so years later, it is still relatively level but lots of weeds now grow in the cracks. It looks a bit of a mess but I am loathe to do anything about it, it would be a big job to remortar. The alternative would be spraying with weed killer. and it provides me with a lot of interest watching the dunnocks, wrens, bluetits etc searching from tuft to tuft

You probably know my answer before I say it. I really enjoy DIY.  Currently in the middle of building a gate and rose arch. And a house, I may of mentioned that a couple of times already   .

I'm the gaffer's assistant when it comes to DIY. P does things 'properly', I tend to botch (I come from a long line of botchers, father was a master).

I wanted a hard standing outside the gh and my idea was to just plonk some slabs down on the soil, hope for the best and live with the resultant slopes/unevenness,  but no, P said the area had to be levelled and blocks bought to support the slabs to make the area level, and I must admit the result was far better than I would have achieved. Ages ago we laid a patio outside our summer house, we were much younger then!

            

A picture of patio in its current state. There is a low granite block surround to it from a local secondhand materials place (long gone).

   

You probably know my answer before I say it. I really enjoy DIY.  Currently in the middle of building a gate and rose arch. And a house, I may of mentioned that a couple of times already   .

Even just doing an extension I felt that it stole my time....and I wasn't building it! Just getting in all the materials and finding the kitchen knobs or light was so time consuming. Now I've got the room there's still loads to do but all I want to do is make things ( art projects/jewellery or be in the garden)

A picture of patio in its current state. There is a low granite block surround to it from a local secondhand materials place (long gone).

I think it's pretty with the weeds - could you rake them out and plant some erigon or thyme.

I'm the gaffer's assistant when it comes to DIY. P does things 'properly', I tend to botch (I come from a long line of botchers, father was a master).

I wanted a hard standing outside the gh and my idea was to just plonk some slabs down on the soil, hope for the best and live with the resultant slopes/unevenness,  but no, P said the area had to be levelled and blocks bought to support the slabs to make the area level, and I must admit the result was far better than I would have achieved. Ages ago we laid a patio outside our summer house, we were much younger then!

    

That's exactly what I need! I am happy to be the assistant- just not great at being the master botcher
My lovely neighbour made me a gate last year - I was the assistant- handed out the tools, run for the pencil and painted it etc. I think I just like doing projects with people. My husband says he will do it but doesn't like to start

P took the construction of a very small hardstanding very seriously, just as he did the greenhouse, bless him. He planned out the area, the degree of slope both ways, sussed out the number of slabs and blocks required, etc. I was amazed at how expensive the materials were for just that small area. Neither of us are great DIYers these days apart from mending things. Brickwork, blockwork and building things from scratch are a bit more than we can cope with. Now if you need a thingummyjig mended and a special hook fabricated out of a bit of ali riveted onto an old whatsit, he's your man

You probably know my answer before I say it. I really enjoy DIY.  Currently in the middle of building a gate and rose arch. And a house, I may of mentioned that a couple of times already   .

Even just doing an extension I felt that it stole my time....and I wasn't building it! Just getting in all the materials and finding the kitchen knobs or light was so time consuming. Now I've got the room there's still loads to do but all I want to do is make things ( art projects/jewellery or be in the garden)

Are we going to see pictures of your new kitchen, Scarlet, you know how nosy we (I) are (am)