On Tuesday I decided to clear some clutter from my bathroom. I was going to start with some easy task like removing the big box of useless cat toys and picking up the towels all over the floor, but as is my habit, once I got started it was hard to ignore the rest of the filth. Six hours’ cleaning worth of filth and untidiness, actually. I usually just scrub down the basin area and bleach the bath, but this time I took it to the walls and ceiling. It’s possibly the first time the ceiling has been cleaned since the room was done up about 30 years ago… And goodness, did it make a difference! See, I figured if I were to take pride in a room (for once) it would have to be something nice to begin with, and there’s no way this bathroom can be considered ‘nice’ while sporting its current wall colour. We called it ‘apricot salmon’, because at first it’s this orangey sickly colour but then you look again… and you’re really not sure of what it is. My bedroom walls used to be a similar colour before I painted them lemon and lilac to match a particular Harry Potter t-shirt that I used to wear constantly. So I dared to ask father whether I could paint the walls. Usually this sort of request would be answered by outright denial of the need for it and then something along the lines of, “what’s wrong with the colour it is now?” That’s exactly what I got, so I asked a few more times throughout the day, affirming that it would not come at his expense or labour, and would add value to the house. I showed him scrubbed and unscrubbed sections of wall and ceiling to point out the difference it made. I took pictures of the room and used photoshop to change the the wall colours for him to see my plan. He looked around and stated that the ceiling would need sanding back because it was oil paint but that he probably had lots of white paint in the shed, and that the walls would need an undercoat and he’d have a look at his work for paint. Not only was he responsive but he was offering to make it easier. And I found out his work stocks lots of paint, so all I need to do is go in and pick some swatches. I decided on a rather light but rich plum colour, something that would still look okay with the old tiles and floor.

In the meantime, to stave off impatience, I took plans into my own hands and went out to various bargain shops to find new fittings and essential bathroom items that would suit the room enough. I came back with purple and white hand-towels and face-washers, a 5-piece black toothbrush/soap holder set, a small gold mirror, a shelf unit, some sort of potpourri, another shower curtain, mats, and a shiny new shower caddy to replace the gross white rusty one. All up, the difference was quite refreshing.

The night before, and the day after.

The colour I'd like the walls to be, though it will be lighter and more rosy because father doesn't want any dark colours.

Last night I was also delighted to win something I think was a veritable bargain in the world of fabrics. Twenty meters of green upholstery fabric in a delightful damask print is now on its way to me! My heart was beating rather fast and I was very anxious in the last minute of the auction, but my high sniping bid ensured I came out the victor. It worked out at about $3.35 per metre. I am off to see the crafty vixen behindVanyanis this afternoon, to plot over what we shall do with it. I was thinking 18th century sacque-backs or one of these robes for myself, or perhaps a Victorian skirt, but perhaps I need to think outside the obvious. And when it arrives we’ll be able to gauge what it’s most suitable for anyway. It really is time to stop spending for this fortnight.

The only other exciting news I have right now is that on Sunday my teacher’s giving a recital in the retirement village my grandparents live in, and I’ll be playing some things there. I decided on Bach’s E minor Prelude and Fugue #1 (BWV 855), the second movement of Ravel’s Sonatine, and I’m accompanying the darling Alice Emerald while she sings ‘If’, a favourite Nyman composition of mine. I don’t feel entirely technically prepared but I don’t usually make a fool of myself so I’ll just draw on everything I’ve been told and hope for the best.

I’m off to use the improved bathroom now!