When Procol Harum sang ‘A Whiter Shade of Pale’ I’m sure they weren’t envisioning the vast range of ‘not quite white’ shades of white paint with which manufacturers bewilder us today.

Now the end is in sight for our smallholding’s eco-makeover the focus firmly on the interior fit out and finishes. We have even set a date to move all our stuff in.

My problem is that now all the walls of the building are in the right place, and we’ve insulated it properly, I am generally less fused about the finishes.

For example, who would have thought despite there being millions of slightly different designs of taps, it would still be impossible to find exactly the right one! Fortunately Emma, who designs wildlife visitor centres for a living, does have an eye for exactly what’s right, when I would just pick the first one that would do on the catalogue page.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I am entirely disinterested. I do sometimes also have a strong opinion, like when buying lampshades in Berlin for instance.

But when faced with twelve allegedly different ‘off white’ shades of paint, that all look the same to me, my face turns just ghostly, and I do what most men do, I leave it to Emma!