"Snow and adolescence are the only problems that disappear if you ignore them long enough." Earl Wilson

Just a few photos to record the most amazing April day on Eigg in years

It snowed on and off throughout the day, leaving about 6 inches of lying snow and breathtaking views

but by the end of the next day it had completely disappeared

Eigg... such an amazing place!!!

"Lying in bed would be an altogether perfect and supreme experience if only one had a colored pencil long enough to draw on the ceiling." Gilbert K. Chesterton

Up till now I had a bed 

and no ceiling

Now, I have no bed

but I do have a ceiling!!!

courtesy of the orange machine which enables you to raise and hold steady a 25kg sheet of plasterboard ten feet off the ground and still have two free hands to screw it to the joists (thanks to Christine Booth for sourcing the Orange Beast and to her and John for lending it to me) I had the forethought to route and install cable for overhead lighting.

The master bedroom will act as a temporary kitchen for the next couple of months

"I do have a fantasy life in which I can grout bathrooms - but not for a living." Will Self

Come over to my place Will...there's a little job you can help me out with.

The rest of the room is almost done.

and waiting for another treasure unearthed at Candleclose Gallery

"I'm into designing houses and interior design. I like change. I like creating things out of nothing." Chris Kirkpatrick

Do is the one with the creative flair. She loves searching through charity shops and sales - visualising the end result which is always amazing. We worked at the room which used to be called "The visiting Minister's Room" according to a friend who grew up in the house. One of my current frustrations is not having a camera which enables me to show wide angle views. To get the full effect you just have to be there (and if you're committed enough to be reading this then consider yourself invited over to the island at some point) 

The thing I love about all of this is that it's all our own work. Do provides the ideas and the soft furnishings, I do the making and fabricating. It's so rewarding to look at the dado rail and think that it started life downstairs as a piece of 4 by 2 constructional timber. The 30's light shade was one of 5 similar which I got from an auction in Aberdeen for £28, the chiffonier was from Candleclose Gallery, again in Aberdeen and was a bargain. I'll try to get some better pictures if and when I get a new camera.

"Aim for the chopping block. If you aim for the wood, you will have nothing. Aim past the wood, aim through the wood; aim for the chopping block." Annie Dillard

People who see what we're doing fall into two camps. The first group are just as blown away by the vision, the possibilities and the challenge. They enthuse and make encouraging and complimentary noises. The other group don't say much at all - just kind of smile and nod sympathetically. As I mentioned here in an earlier post, it's a case of "How do you eat an elephant?" 

Well the next mouthful came serendipidously following an overheard conversation in the tearoom. We asked some friends if they knew anyone who wanted a caravan and Celia, sitting at the next table, immediately told us she had a volunteer arriving at the weekend and would we mind if she took us up on our offer. The next day Chris arrived with his tractor and within half an hour there was an empty space in the front garden.

With the van out of the way, the forestry team were able to move in and take down a couple of trees which had grown too big for their boots - (or should that be roots?)

The net result was the most amazing view from the house.

that, and a few logs for the fire

"People love chopping wood. In this activity one immediately sees results." Albert Einstein