Improvising

So in these days of dreary chill there is one small upside, for me at least - I'm able to increase my storage space. Ok, I know that sounds weird, but wait and see...

At the front of the house we have what I call an 'airlock' - a small enclosed porch, so you have to pass through two front doors to gain access to the house. Not only does this provide added security and offer a very helpful access point when you have two small kittens you're trying to keep inside the house, but it also doubles up as a greenhouse and larder/'fridge. You see, as I said yesterday I had to bring all my pots in from the garden and I haven't that many places to keep them. The airlock provides an ideal spot, because it is bright and not as cold as it is outside, since it is brick and double-glazing.

Despite the brick and double glazing, it is un-heated, which means that it is far chillier in the airlock than in my lovely warm front hall (also helps keep the cold out of the house when you're going in or out). Therefore the temperatures in there are very much in line with what you might expect to find in a refridgerator, which is why, when you come in through the first front door, you are confronted not only with hubby's smelly running trainers (better there than inside the house, believe me!) but also with two large potted plants, a container of chilli con carne, a 4 pint bottle of milk, a large bag of carrots and a block of cheddar cheese. It's also a very handy place for cooling things down before refridgerating them - much like an old fashioned larder - without just sticking them in the 'fridge, which costs money as the 'fridge struggles to cool itself down again.

I have also, just this minute, stuck my large Le Creuset casserole onto a cork mat outside the back door. I've been boiling up a chicken carcass for stock and soup and, since I want to make soup out of it later, needed to cool it down quickly. What better place than outside in the settling snow?! Brilliant!

When I grow up I want a house with a real larder so I have these options in the summer, too!