Handycrowd media

28/11/2023

Imagine this as the door into a 'man cave'...

Bizarrely this was in a store selling second hand stuff, formerly a bank I presume...

I asked if the door was for sale, but sadly no...

24/11/2023

Ted forgot his gutters on last year, and the year before, and I suspect the year before that...

Don't be like Ted, give your gutters the once over during and you'll keep everyone at The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings happy ;-)

25/03/2023

Very important live test, proving that oily rags can spontaneously combust if not disposed of properly!

Head to http://squarespace.com/bourbonmothwoodworking to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code BOURBONMOTHWOODWORKING I Tried T...

20/01/2023

Finally got around to mangling the rough video into slightly less rough shape!

How to make new side panels for the runabout motorcycle...

I bought a crashed and blown up little motorcycle and set about converting it into a simple everyday runabout with no frills. That meant binning all the most...

19/01/2023

Always loved the soft colours of the London stocks.
As a bricklayer ya get a little tired of red over the years... :-)

London stockbrick makes up the fabric of the city, yet it so often goes overlooked. What secrets do these humble bricks hold? 🧱

London stockbricks were made from brickearth, which is found just below the soil in southeast England. Unlike London clay, it could be easily dug up and worked by hand. But the high silica content led to brittleness, so other ingredients including chalk and town ash were added.

Here's where it gets really interesting! Town ash is effectively the swept-up debris of London’s fireplaces. As a result, everything from small bones to fragments of clay pipes can be found in the bricks. 🦴

Using town ash was also the ideal way to reduce London’s rubbish heaps – making stockbricks a perfect example of what we’d now call ‘upcycling’. As Richard Perks puts it: ‘It was in this fashion that London came to be built out of the contents of its own dustbins’. ♻️

Interestingly, stockbricks were handmade even after machines for tempering and moulding bricks became available in the 1840s. Mechanization was not cost-effective for the small brickyards of London, especially as they moved as soon as a seam of brickearth had been exhausted.

Read the blog post to discover why Ulrike Wahl, stonemason, surveyor and SPAB Fellow, thinks this fascinating ‘urban vernacular’ should get more appreciation... http://ow.ly/qB9P50MuYoC

📸 Ulrike Wahl.

23/11/2022

New little video (I'm experimenting lol!)...

This is the video for you if you've ever something heavy to move, and you have no friends... ;-)

Moving heavy stuff is easy when you're young, because you just get on with it, picking up stuff that is way too heavy to lift safely, paying little regards t...

12/03/2022

New project for the spring! A little runabout motorcycle to get working and customise. It is only a couple of years old, but it's already been gently thrown down the road and starved of oil...

10/03/2022

02/02/2022

How proper bricklayers spend rainy days...
https://youtu.be/EKtLr6JXk54
Well done Stu!

Crompton Lock Brick Pier Cap designNew gloves for sale on amazon here : https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09MZGFKSP?ref=myi_title_dpFacebook: stucromptonInstagram...

07/01/2022

My God, those old guys knew what they were doing...

This is for sale right now... Needs saving desperately.

05/12/2021

Bit intimidating to think of folks opening a present... and finding my scribblings inside lol!

Oh well, hopefully better than socks :-)

How to be Handy [hairy bottom not required]: Build Money Saving DIY Skills, Create a Unique Home and Properly Look After Your Stuff

24/11/2021

Love the first sentence 'The greenest building is the one that already exists'...

'The greenest building is the one that already exists' Regular maintenance will help our homes to last longer and be more energy efficient.

It can be tempting to immediately focus on expensive, high-tech solutions when thinking about making our homes greener but we believe it’s best to start with practical, routine maintenance first.

Simple measures, such as regularly clearing out gutters and airbricks, will stave off the decay and unnecessary replacement of building components. Maintenance checks will also prevent your walls becoming wetter and, therefore, less thermally efficient. Using of compatible ‘breathable’ finishes, such as limewash rather than plastic-based paints containing petrochemicals, will help prevent moisture being trapped in walls. Keeping windows and doors in good repair will reduce heat loss (more on this tomorrow).

It’s a huge subject to explore but find some ‘quick wins’ to help keep our existing buildings greener ⬇️ https://www.spab.org.uk/advice/energy-efficiency-and-old-buildings-principles-and-priorities.

💚 Watch a free introductory talk on building care https://www.spab.org.uk/whats-on/lectures/maintenance-matters-0

☎️To get advice about maintenance, retrofit or if you any questions on old buildings, we’re here to help. Please call our free advice line on weekday mornings 0207 456 0916.