The -painted- Alcove

Hard to believe it's two months to the day since I last posted about The Alcove. In that time there has been priming, there has been undercoating and there has been glossing. There has also been, as predicted back in November, a deal of colouring in with a tin of Redcurrant Glory, as well as the sourcing of some hard-wearing clear matt varnish ("Diamond Hard" as it's called on the tin) to protect the colour on the shelves from scuffs and scratches. There has also been the intervention of Christmas, which partially explains the extreme delay in what is essentially a simple job. Still, it's done, and I can finally reveal the result:

As predicted there's enough Redcurrant Glory left for the fireplace on my side, so we'll (sort of) match, eventually. Happily (I didn't check this before I fitted the lining) the top shelf is still large enough to accommodate our memory jar, while the larger bottom shelf will hold a stunning ornament of some sort, as soon as we can find one.

The best part, naturally, is that we can finally bin that awful Japanese parasol. Oh, and since I stuck to my plan to complete other priming/undercoating/glossing tasks at the same time, the linen cupboard is now painted out and in use too. You could be forgiven for thinking that things are coming together. Still a long way to go though.