Workshop and Tools

Our garage is on the opposite side of a small courtyard from our house, and there is no electricity or heating. And it's winter so there's not much daylight either. And it's stuffed to the gunnels with firewood, sea kayaks, bikes, and all of Lisa's posessions while she floats around the Southern Ocean. So several days were spent making the place habitable. All I need now is a kettle.
I toyed with the idea of building an invertor to light the garage from a car battery, but eventually decided to make up a hefty extension cable and bought a length of 1.6mm² rubberised cable. I bought a £10 56W flourescent light fitting and suspended it from the rafters in the garage, but it was still a bit on the gloomy side, so I made a reflector out of cardboard and tinfoil. This made a lot of difference and the garage is now well lit.
At the beginning of each session in the garage I trail the extension lead across the courtyard and poke it through my letterbox.
My first extravagance was a Black and Decker workmate. I'd always thought these things looked a bit flimsy in the past, but having used it now for several weeks I can vouch for their worth. I've found myself spending a fortune on tools for this project, as I've always relied on pilfering my fathers tools in the past. Now I live in Devon and he's in Derbyshire, so I've got to fend for myself in the way of tools.