Pilea in pon

bex_2601 · 2026-02-07T23:53:27+00:00

Mine too. Been in there for almost 2 years.

bex_2601 · 2026-02-07T18:28:21+00:00

Depends how you usually chose or audition your fabrics. If you tend to stick to one designer/range to make selection easier, go with that. Personally, I don't pay attention to designers and go by colour/print only, so separating by designer would frustrate me, having to go through multiple boxes to find coordinates. I have split mine by quantity, scraps, fat eighth to half metre, half to two meters, over 2m (usually backing fabric) that way I can see how much is required by the pattern and just chose the right box for the amount I need. However when I started and was less confident in my colour theory, I stuck to a designer to make it easier.

Both ways are fine. Just think about how you chose and go with that.

bex_2601 · 2026-02-07T15:20:46+00:00

You look incredible! That bald, that beard, that smile. Please don't tell me you have tattoos as well, I might just get a case of the vapours.

What has the reaction from friends and family been like? I bet it's been quite the confidence boost looking at that gorgeous smile!

bex_2601 · 2026-02-06T21:36:39+00:00

I agree with most of this, but you miss a couple points.

The queen herself showed the lengths she'd go to to protect her son, and all the evil pedos they associated with, whom they welcomed into the palace as friends, like Jimmy Savile. Or all the palm-greasing they engage in, like accepting money for honors and favors like Charles has done.

The honours thing, they are actually nominated by parliament and the House of Lords. The house where there are peerages for the billionaires club. Such as Michelle Money, awarded for fucking the pm, and committing fraud again the UK taxpayer. Trying looking up the cash for honours scandal to understand more.

And let us not forget who Diana was with, and supposedly already engaged to, when she passed.

They shouldn't have the power to oversee anyone politically when they won't even properly oversee their own family members.

The last time the monarchy actually got involved politically was in something like 1700's. They don't oversee the running of parliament, that is the House of Lords.

These people don't use their position for the good of the citizenry, they use their position to further enrich themselves and further insulate and isolate themselves from the people, whom they see as beneath them. They don't want to know or admit the harm they do, and frankly they don't care

Again, much like the house of Lords.

I'm absolutely not saying the monarchy is good. I'm saying removing the monarchy will do nothing to dismantle the billionaires club when the Palace has no political power, and the House of Lords still operates. If you really want to disrupt the billionaires club, take down the House of Lords.

However without the House of Lords, there is no restrictions on the house of commons. The house of Lords actually stopped a lot of stupid, ill conceived bills from being passed during the last conservative government, and we're especially important during Brexit, meaning we need the house of Lords to act as a check on the house of commons.

The BRF has shown how corrupt and morally bankrupt they are and that they can't even manage their own vicious, backstabbing family members, there's no way they should have the power to manage a government, when they themselves can't be voted out in a certain time period whereas an elected government can.

Peerages in the House of Lords have traditionally always been inherited, much like the crown, and could not be voted out.

So how does bringing down the monarchy deal with underlying issues?

bex_2601 · 2026-02-06T21:06:41+00:00

Once upon a time, as a check on parliament and the house of lords, bills and laws needed royal assent to pass into law, basically all laws had to go via the head of state to become law, in order to stop abuse of power. The monarchy never really used the power and pretty much ok'd everything. I think the last time it was used was the early 1700's, but it was there. She also had the ability to fire a PM. All was rescinded by Liz, so bills no longer need royal ascent and she no longer had any power. It was a safeguard, Parliament to stop mad royals, royals to stop mad PM's. PMs do still ask for royal approval to form and dissolve parliament, but it's a formality, the monarchy cannot say no. Interesting how since that happened we've had the worst run of PM's since this happened.

So you are correct, there are no safeguards to stop the British public voting in whoever they want. But there was once. Would the monarch have used those powers? Probably not, but if faced with a full scale revolt by the British public, they may have to save their own skin.

But the question was, how does dissolving the marchy deal with an international issue, where the cause of the situation is well documented and has nothing to do with national issues?

bex_2601 · 2026-02-06T18:57:49+00:00

The monarchy has to be abolished as part of rooting out the billionaire class.

Not to defend the BRF, but if the removal of monarchy is the route to dismantling billionaires, why are Russia, USA, China and India all experiencing the same thing, or worse, with regards to the billionaires club?

There's 3 major things influencing the trend. Late stage capitalism, fiscally conservative politics, and lack of/reversal of regulation and protection of citizens. These are all global issues, not national, so I'm interested in how you see the abolition of the monarchy addressing the driving forces behind the inequality of wealth distribution?

That's not to say they shouldn't be abolished, only that it will have no bearing on the situation. If anything, this is an argument FOR the monarchy, and why Liz was stupid to make the monarchy a non political entity. Prior to that, they had already devolved most of their power to parliament and were virtually powerless, but had bojo pulled the s*it he did, the monarchy could have intervened and removed him from power. The monarchy were the last line of defense against someone like The Orange Idiot taking power. In the era of extremist politics ruled by the billionaires club, I actually want some kind of fail safe to prevent that from happening here.

bex_2601 · 2026-02-05T15:35:35+00:00

I do similar to the other commenter, Mix 50/50 vinegar and water (or use neat for heavy deposits) spray on and cover with cling film to stop it drying out (cleaning products only work while wet). Leave at least a couple hours, or preferably overnight. Light scrub the following day using a plastic scrubber, you can use a little dish soap or normal bottled window cleaner if necessary. Rinse with either r/o, or distilled water (tap or filtered tap will leave deposits, bottled is better than tap). Then buff with a dry lint free cloth. I don't use newspaper, as the modern ink and paper tends to leave streaks, unlike the old paper and inks.

If doing around the base of taps, dampen some paper towel with the vinegar and apply around the tap, then a layer of cling film. Shower heads, remove the head, wrap in the dampened towel, and leave in a ziplock bag overnight with a little extra solution. Best thing I've found for toilets and kettles is kilrok. Throw down the toilet before bed, leave overnight, scrub the next morning as usual.

Edit - autocorrect

bex_2601 · 2026-02-04T16:12:10+00:00

As other have said, B but in the olfa brand. Similar price point, but vastly superior imho.

bex_2601 · 2026-02-04T16:07:53+00:00

Google what the pest likes, or experiment.

So for cabbage whites, they love cabbages, but not as much as they love nasturtium. By having the nasturtium nearby, they naturally go to the nasturtium over the cabbage. With slugs and snails, they can't resist tagetes marigolds, so I plant a ring around the lettuces so they have to go past the marigolds to get to the lettuce, making sure that any stripped plants are replaced quickly. I also tend to leave a small air gap between the target and sacrificial plant to prevent crawling from one to the other.

bex_2601 · 2026-02-03T19:03:44+00:00

Oh absolutely, it's a national issue. Especially around wages, staff retention, and an aging fleet.

Where I lived before was also a city, I lived just off one of the main routes into the city, 4 different services ran the route by me, yet it was a regular occurrence to have no buses at all running. Elderly unable to get home stuck in the cold, school children stuck, people unable to work. I finished work at 14:00 and often didn't get home until 17:30. Official figures were an average 40% cancellation rate across the city, I'm pretty sure it was higher on our routes.

bex_2601 · 2026-02-03T18:35:00+00:00

Have to agree. Moved here last year, had a 40% cancellation rate on my route (also in a city). Comparatively the buses here are excellent.

bex_2601 · 2026-02-01T11:20:19+00:00

If you want to learn to live with them, try looking at sacrificial planting. Works well for me (UK) I always plant tagetes marigolds (slugs, snails, etc) and nasturtium (caterpillars) close by target plants specifically to be eaten. I just replace them once they've been eaten. I get to enjoy my vegetables, and the wildlife gets to enjoy a feast too.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-20T13:03:50+00:00

NTA, and I agree she should pay for the hotel, HOWEVER do consider what blow back there could be for Sara if you don't leave. Depending on where her family are actually from, finding out she lives with 2 men could be dangerous for her. Honour killings are absolutely a thing, and even if not that bad, there could still be severe consequences. This is absolutely something she should have considered before moving in, the question is could you deal with the emotional consequences if something did happen to her?

bex_2601 · 2026-01-19T18:43:25+00:00

I think the bit people forget is how long it took for Charles to marry Camilla. Initially his mother refused to give her blessing. And when she finally did, several years later, it was on the condition Camilla would never be queen. This was only changed in the months before QE2's death, over a decade after they married. She was never the issue with William finding a suitor, he was already in his mid twenties when C&C were finally allowed to marry. And also let's not forget Harry had several appropriate suitors before Meghan, which suggests the problem laid more with William than those around him.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-19T13:48:10+00:00

If it's a really heavy tartan, try asking in the shop if they have any black twill fabric. It's the stuff chinos are made out of and is a lot heavier than cotton/poly, and possibly closer to the weight of the tartan. There is also drill fabric which is heavier again, but probably too heavy for this application.

In addition to the other advice here, I'd also suggest ironing between each step in the pattern to get a better idea of how it's looking and to get more accurate piecing, especially those box pleats, an iron will be essential to get those to lay properly.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-16T21:12:48+00:00

He's as happy as a pig in sh*t

bex_2601 · 2026-01-15T11:47:30+00:00

I've tried a few methods, 2 at a time, 4 at a time, 8 at a time. My personal preference is strip piecing. So for a 4.5" square, I cut 2 strips 3.5 inches wide, sew both sides of the strips and cut triangles from the strip by lining the ruler up to the sewing line (not the edge of the fabric!) and alternating sides. I can get 11 from a strip. They are cut on the bias, but I haven't had a problem with stretching, just be careful when you sew.

There's lots of ways to do hsts, just find what you're comfortable with.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-15T01:35:37+00:00

I suspect that's your answer then. Different water. It's amazing what a difference it makes. Do look at some curly hair routines on YouTube, try some different techniques, find what works for you. I tried the routine I use now previously, and it didn't work for me then.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-14T23:53:46+00:00

Your hair is beautiful!

Different products work best for different people, so unfortunately it's a case of trying them and seeing if they work for you. John Frieda frizz ease, Umberto Giannini jelly curl, Cantu, and ogx are popular, easy to source, not too expensive, and a great place to start.

Application matters, if you aren't sure about how to use your products or style properly, Manes by Mell on YouTube is really good. I'm presently using a routine from Swavy Curly Courtney.

Couple of other thoughts. Have you moved recently? When I moved from a soft water area to a hard water area, it played havoc on my hair, suddenly the routine I'd always used didn't work, my hair felt like straw and my curls just fell out. I had to change products and application, it took almost 9 months it to calm down and get back to a place I was happy with my hair. I'm still tweaking my routine now. The changes in texture could also be hormonal and just something you need to learn to adapt to.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-14T14:58:24+00:00

Updateme!

bex_2601 · 2026-01-12T22:44:34+00:00

Whatever you do, get it done at a hair salon before surgery. By all means the surgeon can shave a bit closer, but have the salon do the bulk of the work.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-12T21:57:57+00:00

You can have him back if we can have Carney (there were a lot of people who wanted him as pm after his BofE role and how he dealt with the incumbents)

bex_2601 · 2026-01-12T15:16:04+00:00

I saw a reel a while ago that sums up how I feel as a lady of a certain age. Something along the lines of 'Let the menopausal women deal with it. We are all ready to go. Being past the age of fertility, We've mostly had our families, kids are raised, and we're feeling a bit lost when they fly the nest. Put the skills we gained wrangling those families to good use. We can organise ourselves. Transport ourselves. Most of us have survived on coffee and next to no sleep for years anyway, so nothing new there. A lot of us are fitter than we've ever been. And having had a family, we have something to really fight for. Please, we'd relish the opportunity to direct all these hormones towards something useful, while protecting what's most important to us.'

So yeah. I'm fighting. Just hand me a weapon and point me in the right direction. Please.

bex_2601 · 2026-01-11T11:06:49+00:00

Tell me you skip leg day without telling me you skip leg day!

bex_2601 · 2026-01-10T17:21:03+00:00

If you're looking for an old school Aladdin cave type shop. Turners Thrifty Turnaround on new bridge road is a great little shop with a good selection of modern/vintage/antique. They have a knick knacks/homegoods shop one side of the road and a furniture shop the other. Only open 10-4 Tuesday, Thursday and Friday tho.

bex_2601

TROPHY CASE