Newbie alert!

[Hepsibah]

Hi, I'm Hep (not my real name ) I live in Gateshead and keep hens and ducks on my two allotments. I also have a trio of bantams at home in my garden.
My OH is the master of salvage (he says) and won't buy anything if he can get it free or make it himself. He's in the middle of building a shed for the garden so we can put a big freezer in it and dry hams and sausages.
We are self sufficient-ish, would love a smallholding but it's beyond our tiny budget so we go as far as we are able to in a tiny three bed house in the middle of a council estate.
I love cooking for my family (three kids aged 13, 10 and 8 as well as hubby), soapmaking (the lovely Leedarkwood taught me), knitting and quilting.
I'm going for a look around....

[Muddypause]

Welcome along, Hep.

'Master of salvage' - I like that.

[Wombat]

G'Day Hep,

I can identify strongly with your situation and what you are acheiving. All I will say is - Good onyer mate, keep up the good work!

Nev

[Millymollymandy]

Hi there - are you the same Hep as on ACL? Welcome to the forum - we are a happy bunch of SSish-ers here!

[Hepsibah]

The very same. I expect there are a lot of familiar faces here. Thanks for the welcome.

[Steve Hanson]

Hello and welcome

I am an newbie here too, I like the signature.

Best wishes

[ina]

Hi Hepsibah

Welcome to the site! Sounds great what you are up to - I always admire it when somebody manages to do so much in "ordinary" circumstances, i.e. council house... Your hubby sounds like my friend's OH: I've started to always ask him first if I need something new - anything from bits for the coldframe to a connection for the cooker. Willie is bound to have it somewhere in his piles of stuff. His wife says he has a PhD in frugality! (Unfortunately he also picks up a lot of proper rubbish at sales etc - which she then tries to sell at the next carboot event... Or, like in the case of about 60 car batteries he had collected, takes to the recycling centre by the boot full, because they aren't worth anything any more!)

See you around
Ina (also occasionally on ACL!)

[shiney]

Hi Hepsi

Welcome to the forum from another 3 bed council house dweller! We all do our bit, from where ever we are.

I hope you enjoy the company and wealth of knowledge here.

[Shirley]

Hi Hep

Nice to meet you!!

I also keep chickens - and did keep ducks, geese and sheep before we moved up to Scotland... one day we'll have them again.

I'd love to try soapmaking - I really must give that a go sometime (probably sometime when there are no kids running around I guess!)

Shirlz xx

[Hepsibah]

You really should, it's so easy. I can whip up a batch in about ten minutes. It's well worth doing, you get a seriously luxury product for pennies. My lot won't use shop-bought stuff any more.

[hedgewitch]

Hello and welcome to the forum. I'd love to hear more about your soap making, I've given it a go myself a few times but I cheated and used melted glycerine soap.

[woolcraft]

Hi Hep, Unreal. I live in Bishop Auckland - Is County Durham the selfsufficiencyish capital of the UK? Two new members in two days. Good to know of other likeminded folk nearish by. Sue

[Andy Hamilton]

Hello there hep and welcome.