After weeks of comparing washers online, making careful judgements on energy use, spin quality, noise levels and company reputations.. Lottie and I went to a local shop yesterday to see a few models in reality - ready to catch a bargain if it could be had. Though we spent a good twenty minutes arguing about Zanussi's, Hotpoints and Whirlpools, we came across a brochure of black Hoover appliances. Within five minutes we had bought it, even put a deposit on a matching tumble dryer. Without looking at the specifications really.

It arrived today in the flesh. I had to get up for it early on a Saturday morning, and just ten minutes after Lottie had buggered off to the horse stables, the delivery guys arrived. They had it installed in a flash - only struggling to shift it across the carpet, poor lads - and I took the liberty of washing my own jeans soon enough. That's the benefit of not having a washer from the stone age really: even guys like me can wrap their head round how to use it. Unfortunately it danced about a bit as the spin came on (wooden flooring and carpet to blame I'm sure) but it's otherwise not a disappointment at all. Sofar it hasn't asked us "is it coz I is black?", but ehrm, yes it is.