About

I am a half-German Yorkshire woman, now living in Scotland. I retired in 2023 at the age of fifty-seven after a long, what they call 'portfolio' career spanning art & design education, heritage management and latterly, charity governance. I hold a masters degree in philosophy from the University of Lincoln, but consider my 'trade' to be interior design. I have also been a floral decorator for high-society events and worked in a snack bar by the side of the M62, albeit when I was sixteen! So now, in my semi-retirement, I am trying to be a writer, whilst I renovate the old farmhouse that I now call home. This is a very hands-on renovation so I am learning all the time, and I watch in wonder as my partner Ant, applies himself to any task presented to him with skill and determination. It is this fortitude that brought us here in the first place, and it forms the very tenet that keeps us going. We don't have central heating and I cook on a wood-fired stove. Most people think that's weird, but we have chosen to adopt a slow way of life, something more akin to what our grandparents would recognise.  

 

So, whether the subject is de-nailing an old timber floor, installing a reclaimed fireplace, restoring a herbaceous border or digging a french drain, I hope my writings bring you some amusement and maybe, if you're planning a similar project, some inspiration too. One thing I have learned is that it is simply never too late. 

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