More painting photos..

As promised, a few more pictures of the progress of the painting. The black, red and cream is all but finished on the starboard cabin side. There will be a red line between the cream and black, and a black line, between the cream and red around the panels.

Andy - who didn't manage to escape the photo!

Neil has built the cratch front, and it's looking really good. No photos of the inside today as there is even less to see, as a lot of the cupboards have been removed for oiling. Some fitters would have done the oiling with the cupboards in situ, but Ali says that they like to take them out so that they can get the oil on every bit which is not possible with them still in place. We are impressed at how thorough they are.

We then went on into Loughborough to visit Bonnie Brooksbank at the glass design studio where she works - we had decided to have something special in the small oval portholes in the front doors - firstly because we wanted something unique on the boat, and also to keep out the light at 5 o'clock on those bright summer mornings (the ports are flush with the doors so they can't be 'bunged' and we didn't want curtains). Rog wanted the Swallows and Amazons crossed pennants, but I wasn't sure. When we got to the studio, Ali's sister Helen was also there doing some glass work and she got on the computer to see what she could come up with, and this is it:

It is the cover from the latest edition of the Swallows and Amazons book - the colours are exactly right for our bedroom, so Bonnie is going to do a version of it for the ports - minus the writing. Thanks, Helen, for finding it - we owe you a beer at Sawley Marina's Open Day (hope you are coming!)

Just as we arrived at the glass studio, Ali called and asked us to call back in when we had finished as our corner Bubble diesel stove arrived 5 mins after we left, and we wanted to have a look at it in place to see whether there would be room to fit a row of Vicorian tiles each side. Sadly, there wasn't as there is only a four inch space, and the tiles are 6 inches wide, we will have to re-visit East Midland Tiles to choose something else.