frayed at the edge

Knitting and sewing!

Yes, today's content is all about knitting and sewing, after the distractions of the last two days!

First, what do you do with a pile of squares?

 

Well - influenced by the way I assemble quilts, I have started sewing them into blocks of four.  Certainly as far as patchwork is concerned, sewing squares into blocks and then joining the blocks keeps things square.  If you sew them into long strips and then join them, there is more chance of the end result being distorted, so I'm applying that principle to my throw.

 

Tomorrow afternoon when I go to patch'n'chat, I will be getting on with Oliver's quilt.  I thought I had sewn in all the ends, but when I laid the quilt out to take a photo - oh no, of course I has missed one!  Don't worry, I sewed it in before I took the photo

 

Now, I know the last photo is of a book - but it is a book about knitting, so I think it's allowed!  I was jumping up and down with excitement when I saw this book in Tesco this morning (ok, not literally, but in my mind I was!)  I so enjoyed the first book, (even if I did weep buckets at the end) I think I might have to read this before I finish the book I am currently reading (which is a big thick one that I'm only half way through).  So what is this wonderful book .....

 

While I'm writing this, we are watching the first semi-final of the cricket Twenty20 World Cup - it's exciting stuff!  (Yes, I know most of you will think that exciting cricket is an oxymoron!)  The second semi is tomorrow and the final is on Sunday.  We will hardly have time to draw breath before Wimbledon starts, then of course England play Australia in the Ashes Tests - but in case you think I'm a sports fanatic, don't worry, I don't watch rugby, despite living in the Borders, where they are all rugby mad (when not out on their horses!) and I only watch football when Malcolm makes me watch Newcastle lose play!

You are feeling sleepy, very sleepy .....

This morning I went for a session of hypnotherapy, hoping to learn relaxation techniques which will stop me clenching my teeth in my sleep, which causes pain in my jaw.  No, the above words were not uttered!  Although I was very focused on Judy's voice, I was also aware of my surroundings at all times.  There was a lot of visualisation, which I found very easy to do.  At one point she told me to visualise a box - I promptly thought of a big square wooden box, just as she said, a small box, so I thought of a small square box, just as she said, a rectangular box!!  Not only did I learn relaxation techniques, but I also learned self-hypnosis, so I can reinforce today's work.  I'll let you know how I get on.

But meanwhile, here are some of the lovely pictures I can conjure up, to help me relax

  

Just close your eyes and imagine the sand between your toes as you meander along this beautiful beach, or enjoy dipping your toes in the warm water

 

Picture sitting at the picnic table, perhaps with a chilled glass of wine, looking across the river to the mountains in the distance

This may be a manmade lagoon, but it was a little piece of paradise we enjoyed on a magical holiday!

Tuesday Treasures

I am very embarrassed that this week treasures are kept in this shoe box

 

I must, must, must make a beautiful box to contain these treasures - souvenirs of the first few weeks in the life of my greatest achievement - my son, Stuart (he's probably blushing already!)

 

This is the hat he wore we when came home from hospital when he was six days old - none of that coming home the same day nonsense thirty years ago.  Yes, I know, I was hoping for a girl and didn't knit a boy's hat (sorry, son!)

He was just a little baby,three weeks early, six pounds five and a half ounces and only nineteen inches(he's now six feet!!) and he looked like a little orphan - with the feet of his babygro hanging off his little legs and the sleeves turned up.  This was in the days when very few premature babies survived, so there weren't a lot of tiny things available - this was the only suit which fitted him!

 

His first bibs - isn't it funny the things we keep!

 

His first rattles - the one had at the back has a bell in it.  When Stuart was born, I also had a little six-month old poodle puppy - when Stuart was old enough to roll the rattle on the floor, she would go berserk!  She also tried to mother him - if he was lying on his changing mat on the floor, she would try to lick him, as if he was her puppy.  When he was outside the front of the house sleeping in his pram, she would sit at the window and bark as soon as he woke up!

 

These tiny little bootees are knitted in 4-ply - they are fabulous!  But they were too small, so he never wore them - but I couldn't part with them!

 

And here he is - my pride and joy!  I had two bibs on him before the photographer arrived, as he was cutting a first tooth and dribbling a lot - if you look at his right shoulder you can see he still managed to dribble on his lovely little suit!!

Oh dear, that was all a bit sentimental - back to normal tomorrow!!

Sunshine

Yesterday morning, the garden was bathed in sunshine, so of course, out came the camera!

 

Last year we got some bulbs in a free offer from a newspaper.  Malcolm planted them, and then we forgot all about them.  By the time they came up, we couldn't even remember what they were.  When these appeared in the alpine boxes, they looked like little tulips, but the flowers didn't open - then suddenly, they burst open to show these yellow flowers.  I have no idea what they are!

 

This house leek looks amazing!

 

More of the free bulbs - I was delighted when these flowered, as the colours are stunning.  The one at the back on the right is brown and gold - most unusual.

 

This purple elder is stunning, but in the autumn the birds eat the berries and deposit purple poo on the car!

 

This corner in the back garden doesn't get much sun, so is an ideal spot for hostas and ferns.  The caster oil plants were in pots - since being planted out, they have just got bigger and bigger.

 

Gorgeous!

 

I love alchemilla mollis - but who's that lurking in the middle?

 

Can you see the little bluetit on the corner of the wall, just keeping an eye on me before popping into the nesting box to feed the hungry chicks - who make some amount of noise!

 

I don't know what this is called, but it is so dainty and delicate.

 

My love is like ........

 

I bought this grape vine a couple of years ago for Malcolm - a proper one from a garden centre - but it isn't doing very well

 

Then I bought this one for him last year in Morrisons - it was half price as it had a sell-by date on it!  Not only is it flourishing, but it has grapes on it!

I know they won't grow that much, as our weather isn't warm enough, but it's still good to see them.

 

The weather turned very wet in the afternoon, and when it was time to come in from the studio, the rain was bouncing off the roof of the log store ( of course it was built by Malcolm!)

ps - I've made some changes to the list of blogs that I read - check out the new ones!

Chained to the sewing machine!

I spent yesterday afternoon and this afternoon in the studio, working on Oliver's quilt.  The construction of it might have been quick and easy, but the quilting is taking considerably longer.  I have now quilted all the tractors

 

They look lovely on the back, but not quite so lovely on the front ....

 

Non-quilters will probably be wondering why all the ends are on the front - it's so you don't sew over them - after you've had to unpick your quilting because you have sewn over the thread on the back, you make sure you don't do it again!!  I sat and sewed in most of the ends last night while we were watching the cricket, and I'll sew in the rest tonight, when England will be hoping to win to stay in the competition.

The next stage was to meander quilt round the tractor pictures, so I changed to the free motion foot and dropped the feed-dogs

 

The variegated thread gives extra interest

 

The quilting gives a lovely texture on the back

 

While the fleece makes a lovely cuddly quilt, it does stretch a lot, and by the time the centre is quilted, it has distorted quite a bit.  To try to stabilise the shape, I put the walking foot back on and quilted the borders with straight lines.  I quite often finish a quilt like this - I like the chequered effect in the corners

 

All(!) that remains now is to trim the edges and put on the binding - that will probably have to wait until Friday, as I have a rather busy week!

 

Malcolm very kindly washed my car for me today - when I'm heading back with the shopping trolley tomorrow morning, I will have to remember that I am looking for a RED car, not a MUD-coloured one!  And .... even as I type this he is busy cooking the dinner - roast duck with his signature orange sauce!

The big reveal

It's Friday, so of course this afternoon was chat'n'patch.  Pam has been working hard on a quilt which contains a lot of Laura Ashley fabrics, which someone had given her.  She has completed the main part, and had brought it in so that she could select fabrics for her outer borders

 

Although all the blocks are the same, the different fabrics make some of them look quite dissimilar.  Pam was in a bit of a state this afternoon, as she had just got word this morning that she has finally got a date for her hip replacement - so hopefully the next time you see her, she will be doing a quick Strathspey round the room!  Just behind Pam, you can see Jane, who recently not only broke, but also dislocated her elbow (ouch), but she is such a dedicated quilter, she was still sewing while encased in plaster from her upper arm to her wrist!

I was busy working on Oliver's quilt.  The quilting doesn't really show on the right side, so here is a detail from the wrong side, showing where I have been quilting round one of the tractors

 

On the knitting front, I have now finished my thirty squares, although there was a slight hiccup last night.  Before I started the last square, I counted the finished ones... and there were only twenty seven, instead of twenty nine.  Oh no, had I counted wrongly, I only had enough yarn for one more square.  However, further investigation revealed two squares which had jumped out the back of the basket and were tunnelling under the armchair to freedom, to a land where they could be what they wanted to be ... heck, they could even be circles (oops, sorry, a little flight of fancy crept in there!)

 

So, now, to the main event, the big reveal .....

We brought the mirror back from Indonesia - can you see that the curved band at the top matches the wall!  Malcolm gave me the phone holder for my birthday ages ago - it matches too!  We got the 'Anne's kitchen' sign in Florida, when we took Stuart to Disneyworld (that was in 1990!!)

 

I bought the antique hooks for Malcolm in Majorca this year - they look great with our two copper pans

 

Do you think I like chickens?

 

The kitchen was painted in matt paint, but we much prefer silk finish as it reflects the light - especially as the kitchen faces north west, and doesn't get the sun until late in the day.

 

I know I keep saying it, but I love my dresser - and did you notice that cheeky little monkey has sneaked into the photo!

Have a lovely weekend, love, Anne

Bad bits and good bits

Well let's get the bad bit over!  This morning I was at the dentist - this time for a check-up, which I should have had in February, but our dentist left and has only now been replaced.  The new dentist, Katya, is an absolute sweetie.  She's Greek, tiny and looks about twelve!  At least, she was a sweetie until I had to have five x-rays, need fillings in three teeth and other treatment for my gums.  I had to make six (yes, six!) appointments - I might as well go and live in the new dental centre!

However things improved after that, when Malcolm treated me to lunch in the Pickled Orange.  Then it was home to do the second coat of emulsion in the kitchen.  It's amazing how much the colour deepens with a second coat - we are really pleased with it.  However, it's not quite ready for the 'reveal', but I will tease you with a little bit of the 'feature' wall

 

It's a stunning deep red, which shows off the dresser beatifully.

Even with all the hard work going on, Malcolm had time to prepare this for dinner

 

This is a freezer/store cupboard dinner - meatballs from Morrisons which were in the freezer (the fresh meat kind, nor the Swedish style ones), a jar of Dolmio sauce, some herby cheese ..... and to make sure it was healthy, fresh basil from the plant on the kitchen windowsill.  Just to make it even more delicious, I had unearthed a packet of cheese doughballs in the freezer (which amazingly had less calories than a serving of pasta!!)

 

Once we had cleared up after dinner and I had finished a last little bit of painting ....... ok, I know we had a bottle of wine last night, but this was a special occasion, finally finishing the kitchen!

 

Yes it's fizzy, but it's not champagne - it's a lovely bottle of Prosecco - cheers!!

Ready, steady .......

........ paint!  Yes, today I finally started painting the kitchen.  Malcolm had long since done all the prep - filling and sanding, and all the cutting in.  So first, a quick explanation of why I've been lagging behind.  You know I was having dental and medical problems with my mouth.  The dental problems all got sorted, then finally - a diagnosis for the pain.  Unfortunately, I have neuralgia.  No problem said the GP, just take these pills.  First week - fine, the pain was going away. Second week, increase the dose... and - oh dear, I came up in a rash.  Not just a few spots, but a huge rash (I heard that Martians were queueing up to put a penny in the slot to look at me through a telescope!)  So, no more drug number one, now on to drug number two and so far so good!

So this is what I did today...

 

dust sheets in place

 

equipment organised

 

painting underway (don't look at the ancient trousers!!)

 

goodbye dull green, hello lovely blue

 

the perfect end to a busy day

Tuesday Treasures

I saw this idea on another blog some time ago, and thought  - that's a good idea.  However, I always forgot about it until about Thursday and another week had gone by.  Now I can't remember where I saw it - so if it's your idea, I hope you don't mind that I have stolen borrowed it!  The treasures aren't anything of great monetary value, just little things in my life that I treasure.

The first one is a little Wedgwood bowl with a silver rim.  I think perhaps it was originally my grandparents.  It was one of my jobs as a child to polish the silver rim - being careful not to get the polish on the bowl.  Sadly, the bottom edge has several chips, but it's amazing that it survived a home that had three rowdy children - as my Dad played cricket, he was keen that we all could catch a ball, and 'catching practice' wasn't always held in the garden, much to my Mum's despair, as balls were thrown about the living room!  Of course, there was the famous time when my Dad threw an egg to my Mum (forgetting she didn't do catching) - who stood and watched it smash on the kitchen floor!  So - my first treasure, a little much loved bowl, which sits on the bookshelves in the lounge

A busy weekend

I don't know where the weekend went - suddenly it was Monday morning!  However, progress was made with the squares for the throw - I have now done 19 from 12 balls of yarn, with 7 left, so I'm hoping to do 30

 

I didn't get as much work done on the baby quilt as I had hoped to, but I did get it ironed and then layered up with the fleece (sorry about the patch of light, but I have veluxes in the studio roof, and the sun wouldn't oblige by popping behind a cloud)

 

I put the walking foot on the machine

 

I did get a little of the quilting done, but I'll wait until I've done some more before I take another photo.

 

This afternoon I went for my last session of acupuncture.  I'm still amazed how having needles stuck in you makes you relax, but yet again I fell asleep!  While I enjoyed the sessions, I'm not sure if they were of any great therapeutic value......

 

When I came home, my eye was caught by this iris, which has just flowered in the front garden

 

I also couldn't resist taking a photo of these two poppies.  Although they are past their best, they remind me of blowsy old theatrical ladies, all too much rouge and black stockings wrinkled round their ankles - and a half bottle of gin hidden in the chamber pot!!