Isn't she a beauty?

This is my mum's old manual typewriter.  It's lived in my loft for years.  The husband *briefly* asked if we needed to keep it when we moved last year and was *briefly* met with THE LOOK!  As if!!

We brought it down from the loft a few weeks ago after the Dude got a library book called 'The Story Machine', all about a boy who finds a typewriter and ... well it's fairly self explanatory.  So conversation developed and I explained I had a typewriter, did he want to see it.

So it came down, still in it's original case but it needed a REALLY good clean and the ribbon barely has any ink left (which isn't surprising given the last time it was used properly will be close to 25 years ago).  A little cleaning later and it's lovely and shiny.  The Dude had a little play but given the state of the ribbon he quickly got bored.  But I decided to investigate if you can still buy ribbons for manual typewriters .... and guess what?  You can, for less than a tenner too!

That got me thinking and I decided to investigate a bit more about this specific typewriter.  I even managed to find the serial number on it.  It is a Imperial 'Good Companion' Model 6 and based on the serial number I think it was manufactured in 1964.  So it's 51 years old.  And it works!  The Imperial company used to produce these typewriters in Leceister but the factory was closed in 1974. (The year I was born!)  When I was telling my dad what I'd discovered he informed me, he thinks it either cost £18 or £24 when my mum bought it.

I remember playing with it when I was younger and typing out nonsense just to see, and hear, it working.  I also remember my mum actually typing letters on it before we bought our first computer (which was an old Apple Mac!) so that must have been round about 1984. 

I've even managed to find an instruction manual online for it.  I'm so excited to have found out so much about it.  I've always loved this typewriter and I'm not sure why.  But I do know that I'll be getting a new ribbon for it and hopefully it will continue to be loved by my children.

Organisation

My main aim at the moment is to be more organised.  In many areas of my life - kids, housework, crafting, eating, work, you name it I reckon it needs to be better organised. 

So to begin this month is my first time at being a Bee Mama!  I mentioned a bit in my last post so I've given out instructions on the blocks I would like other lovely, generous ladies in our Sibling Together Bee to make and they then make their version of my blocks and send them to me.  I've already started to receive some and they are gorgeous.  Can't wait to receive them all and get the quilt all made up. 

Another thing which needed to be organised is some cushions for the kids rooms.  When they are lying in bed getting their bedtime stories, me and hubby end up sitting on the floor next and after a couple of minutes it tends to get really uncomfortable.  We aren't getting any younger so the cushions are mainly for us to sit/lean on, but also to look good in their rooms.

The big mega cushion top is for the Dude's room

 and this smaller one, which involved some pretty cool paper piecing is for Little Miss's room.  Next is some hand quilting I think for both them.  Another first for me! (so getting organised in the way of extending my skills)

The other thing we have been up to this week or so is trying to remove an ugly decking/planter which took up a large corner of our back garden, inherited from the previous owners.  When we first moved, we had ideas of planting potatoes and stuff (there was nothing in it, just a load of soil) but then over the winter and trying to negotiate past the tiny space between the decking and the grass (which was sodden all winter and still is!) we decided it had to go. 

So the mountain of wood has been removed (how many screw/nails are needed to hold decking together?) and now we are gradually removing the mountain of soil.  Which is a slow process.  We thought we'd hit jackpot and there was going to a slabbed area underneath all of this but no, optimistic hopes dashed when we started actually lifting the wood and just more bloody soil.  So the jury is still out on the final use for this corner but lots of options being thrown about.  I'm just pleased to have some more useable space. 

So slowly things are becoming more organised in some areas, not all but hey I can't manage everything at once!