Braving the lean-to....

When I moved into my home last year I opened this little door, and very quickly closed it again. Finally, a year later, I have braved the mess that lays beyond this old door with its peeling paint.

This brick-built lean to is at the back of my home - it is part wc and part a small pantry that can be accessed from the kitchen. In the long term I hope to knock down the lean-to and extend the kitchen out into the garden. So, I've no plans to 'renovate' this space...but I decided that I at least needed to clear it out and ensure that it is maintained in a reasonable condition (in order to protect the integrity of my home).

So, this was the sight that greeted me when I opened the door:

This is what was left in the space by the previous owners. Pieces of broken up old furniture, an old radiator, and the remains of their wood pile. It was also housing copious amounts of spider's web and the spiders themselves.

I pulled everything out so that I could sweep out all of the dirt and mess. This is the pile that subsequently made a trip to my local council recyling centre.

Hideous, I know...

But, whilst this space is never going to win any decor awards, it is at least reasonably clean, and can function as a wood store until I am ready to plan a future extension.

It was a satisfying, if somewhat unedifying job - so I'm pleased I finally completed it.

And to ensure that this post contains some slightly more attractive images, here are my hydrangeas coming into bloom in the garden.

I had long planned a garden with white hydrangeas, so I'm delighted that it has come to fruition.

And in other, completely unrelated news, I spent last Saturday morning baking. I've made friands several times before usually using a citrus and poppy seed recipe. This time I tried a new Mary Berry recipe, which resulted in these delicious raspberry and almond friands...fortunately, I took them with me when I visited a friend that afternoon, otherwise more than would have been advisable would have been consumed!