One of the first things we needed to buy for the house was a new washing machine. The previous owners had taken theirs with them and we’d sold ours to the folk who bought our house. Buying a washing machine is a surprisingly mind-boggling task. Spin speed, drum capacity, energy rating – just what is the difference between A; A+; A++; A+++ anyway?!? We decided to go for something as big as possible on our budget and ordered online.

What really should have been a simple plumbing and installation exercise became my first important lesson (elementary really) in measuring up. We have a utility room (cupboard) where the washing machine was to be housed. There were all the necessary connections in place and plenty of room for the machine to fit. Slightly less room, however to actually get the machine into the room.

Hours later with the shelf dismantled, door removed – finally we had the ability to have clean underwear! Hopefully that’s not going to have to be moved again any time soon!