Hooray - it may have taken a long time, but finally today I finished the zebra cushions for Stuart! It's so good to cross another thing off the to-do list.
posed on my favourite chair!
I like the effect of the faux chenille
I used the same fabric as the binding on the opening on the back
Next on the agenda is to finish the gnomes - hopefully next time you see this ........
....... it will have been transformed into three Christmas gnomes!
...... and Mia is gorgeous too!! Yes, I know you can't really call a six-foot tall young man a baby - but he will always be my baby!! Emma took these photos last night when Stuart called in to give Mia her quilt and shawl and forwarded them today so that I could pop them on the blog
Stuart, Mia and cute quilt
Stuart, Mia and her shawl
the two gorgeous babies!!
...... to everyone for all the kind words for Malcolm - it means a lot to him to know that so many people are thinking of him. He went down to Ashington first thing this morning and is staying overnight in the hospital with his Dad, who unfortunately is still very, very ill. Malcolm and I had a chat last night about writing about his Dad, and we came to the conclusion that I would tell you what was happening, but I won't say much more for the moment - we just didn't want you to think that I was posting my usual nonsense regardless of the turmoil in our lives.
So ..... I didn't go with Malcolm today as I had a major appointment at the dentist! I know, it's all been going on for months, but another two appointments and it should all be over - but then comes the real pain - the BILL. I took the opportunity of a day in the house to get on with domestic things - doing the ironing (my least favourite job) and cooking for the freezer - I still have a big pot of bolognese simmering!!
During the day, I had an awful thought - when I did the post about the sticky toffee cake, I had a whole packet of butter in the photo - but I didn't say how much to use! Please don't put in the whole packet - I used about 60g. I have now amended the post - I just had the most awful vision of people melting a whole packet of butter.....
Of course, I have still been knitting, and the first little Christmas gnome is taking shape
I'll finish his beard tonight, and get started on number two - I think I will do him in green!
Stuart was planning to visit baby Mia tonight, so hopefully he will phone later with a full report!!
Did you think I had forgotten the photos for the Friday Cake Fan Club? Of course I didn't, I just thought I would keep them until today!!
lemon drizzle cake and date and walnut loaf
And the third cake? Following the success of last week's no-cook chocolate brownies, I thought I would have a go at no-cook sticky toffee cake .......
I crumbled the cake into a bowl and added twelve dates, cut into quarters. I melted the two Mars bars in a small bowl over a saucepan of hot water, then added approx 60g butter to melt and mixed it well. I added this mixture to the cake and dates and stirred it together - that took a bit of effort as it's decidedly sticky! Next, I put it into a loaf tin lined with clingfilm, then into the fridge to chill. Last, I cut it into squares
So .... how does it taste? Absolutely delicious!! As you can see, I cut it into small squares, as it is very rich. I think it would be even more delicious with a little cream or ice cream!!
I should have done the ironing this afternoon ..... but instead I got organised for my next knitting project (I finished my shawl yesterday)
These little fellows are so cute - I had intended to knit them last year (possibly even the year before) so I thought I had better get a move on to make sure they are ready for this Christmas!
Their little hats are so cute! I've been saving up yarn - odd balls from the bargain basket!
I'm spoiled for choice for their beards - maybe I'll just have to knit lots of them to use all the different colours ......
Yesterday morning there was a wonderful rainbow in front of the house. Unfortunately, I couldn't get far enough back to get all of it in one photo! (I suppose I could have climbed the fence into the field behind the house and run up the hill .....)
the left hand side
the right hand side
the centre!
This afternoon, there was a dramatic sunset .....
...... but this isn't it, this is the reflection of the sunset on the clouds in the east .....
As always, today was taken up with all things domestic (except for the laundry, which I did yesterday!!) I am going to visit Stuart on Wednesday, so I offered to make chilli con carne for dinner. I thought I would cook it today, as I think it tastes better if it matures for a day or two!
I know that looks like a very big pot - but there is some for Malcolm as well!! Of course you can't have chilli without all the extras
I also did some 'baking' - this is loosely based on a recipe I saw recently in a magazine - no-cook chocolate brownies
Very simple - a bought cake, butter, chocolate and sultanas (there should have been golden syrup as well, but I don't have any!) This is so easy - melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pot of hot water
crumble the cake into a bowl and add the sultanas. then once the chocolate/butter mix has cooled, stir it in
Line a baking tin with clingfilm (I used only half the amounts of the original recipe, so instead of a square tine, I used a loaf tin) and press the mixture in. Pop it in the fridge for several hours. Once it is firm, cut it into squares (quite small ones, as it is very rich!) and dust with icing sugar - yum, yum, yum
Once all the cooking was done, I sat down to finish off a shawl I have been knitting for Malcolm's sister, Jennifer. It's just a little shawl - more a shaped scarf. The edging is knitted first, then stitches picked up all along the edge. The shaping is achieved by knitting short rows. It's knitted in aran, so was very quick to do. By the time I finished, it was starting to get dark, so I had to use the flash to take the photo, so the colour isn't true - it's a lovely soft slate grey, with little hints of heather colours through it
I am so pleased with the shawl, I am going to knit one for myself!!
........ of the knitting basket! Now that the shawl is finished, I thought I should see what UFOs were lurking at the bottom of my knitting basket. Fortunately there were only two - and I have now finished one of them
Fingerless mits, knitted in beautiful sock wool which I bought from my lovely friend Helen . I can wear them covering most of my fingers for warmth, but if I need to do something, then I can roll the edge back
I should have put them on at eight o'clock this morning, as it was rather chilly when I went out to take this photo of the moon
We went up to Selkirk this morning, where this turret caught my eye - but Rapunzel was nowhere in sight!
We had lunch at the Lochcarron Visitor Centre - the last time we were there it was raining too heavily to take a photo of this quirky piece of topiary - today it was lovely when we went in for lunch - but I thought I would wait until after lunch to take a photo - and, yes, it started to rain as we came out!!
On the way home, we stopped in the carpark at Homebase to take a photo of Ruberslaw, the hill behind our house - fortunately the sun had come out again!
When we were on holiday, my friend Lorraine looked after the house and watered the plants for me - but I forgot to bring this one in from the studio - oops! But I think it still has a certain appeal .....
There are very few flowers left now in the garden, but this little rose managed to survive the heavy rain
And finally ..... the mystery has been solved as to why an Argentinian blog kept showing up in my stats. The writer got in touch to say that she surfs the Web to find tutorials to include - and she did say she would remove mine of I didn't want it included. However, as it is a link to me, I don't mind at all - unlike the time when someone had photos of one of my quilts on her website, without saying it was mine!! Do pop over and have a look at the Argentinian blog - there are some good links (it's not all in Spanish!)
And finally, finally, I started the baby quilt this afternoon - but which fabric did I use - you'll have to wait to find out!!
Oh yes, I was in the middle of my post yesterday when the naughty little gremlins crept in!! Malcolm had been trying to sort things out for me, but things still aren't quite right - it's just so annoying!! Never mind, let's get on.
Before we went to Carlisle last week, I washed the baby shawl and blocked it using the wires I bought recently - they make things so much easier! On Saturday I threaded pink ribbon through the eyelets ....
I took the photo on my favourite chair!
detail of the ribbon
I bought this book on Sunday - not just for the recipes, but because I couldn't resist a book with such a daft title!!
and if you think that's daft ....
dafter ......
and the daftest footnote!!
Yesterday (Monday) we went out for a walk after lunch. Usually we head up the hill from the house, but we went downhill for a change!! I'm glad we did, because we saw these beauties!
Today we went to visit Malcolm's Dad. We took him to Newbiggin for lunch. He wisely stayed in the car when we went for a walk ...... it was just a bit windy, and the sea was a bit rough
We saw a bird that we didn't recognise - it was quite far out, so even with maximum zoom, we still can't tell what it is - if you know, please leave a comment!
On the way home, it started to rain and the sky looked quite dramatic. The next two photos were taken from inside the car (what, you expected me to get out in the rain ... don't be silly!!)
It's funny when it's raining, but you can see blue sky! Well, I'm exhausted after all that catching up - I'm off for a browse round all your blogs!! Blogspot/blogger is refusing altogether to let me comment just now, so please don't think I've deserted you - of course I think everything you write is wonderful and your photos super!!
After falling in love with the gorgeous bull, today (fickle thing that I am!), I transferred my affections to a cute ram. However, this isn't a real live one, but a toy one that we saw this morning in a shop that has just opened in Hawick, called 'Quaint or Ancient'. The shop is a wonderful mix of quirky gifts (quaint) and antiques (ancient!). I have named the ram Tuppence (another name for a ram is a tup) and he has joined Jacob - I think next time I will have to buy some ewes!!)
It wasn't just me who bought something in the shop - Malcolm couldn't resist some of their lovely blue and white china
It looks lovely on our blue and white place mats and table runner, as does our bowl of pot pourri and autumn squash
Also new in the kitchen is the tea cosy, which I finished yesterday - I turned in the edges of the openings and needle-felted them in place, to make it fit better. When I took the photo, the light wasn't very good in the kitchen, so I took the teapot, resplendent in its cosy, out into the front garden
I paused on the way back in the door to take this photo of a pot of winter plants that I bought in the supermarket on Monday when I was doing my weekly shop!
I took this next photo late this afternoon when the sparrows arrived for their teatime
feed from the bird table. They are very fussy and eat all the choice bits from the bird food, leaving behind one kind of seed - but I refuse to put out more food until they eat it all up!
On Friday, my lovely blog friend Lee celebrates her birthday. We are in the middle of a postal dispute, so I didn't want to post her card (and there may be a little pressie too!), so I'm 'posting' her card on the blog (clever!!) Again, because of the poor light indoors, I took the card outside - there was a slight problem though, as it was a little bit breezy, and every time I went to take the photo, the card would blow over!! Finally, I managed to get a photo .....
..... but I then went indoors to take a photo of the inside of the card (you'll probably recognise the location - it's a chair in front of the French doors that I use quite a lot!!)
I know it's only Wednesday, but we're going away for two days, and although Malcolm has booked us into a hotel with wi-fi, just in case I can't do a post tomorrow, I wanted to make sure that Lee got her birthday card on time - Happy Birthday Lee - I hope you have a super day with your family - and enjoy the wine after your detox!!!!
....... with our new neighbour! He's gorgeous - young and handsome, with beautiful big eyes ....... and oh, you should see his muscles!! Would you like to see a photo of him?
isn't he lovely!!
I was slightly worried when he came over to the fence - he is very big!!
Now I have some lovely news to share with you. Stuart's colleague Emma gave birth to a daughter yesterday. She is called Mia, and Mum and baby are both fine. I took another photo of the hat and socks ......
and now I can tell you what I have been knitting over the summer, which has been a closely guarded secret, as Emma reads the blog .........
........ a shawl. It's not quite finished, I am just sewing on the last of the edging, and then it will be washed and blocked (stretched). It's knitted in two-ply, so it's quite fine ...... and it's a well travelled shawl, as I knitted quite a lot of it on holiday!
When Emma told Stuart she was pregnant, he promptly said that I would make a quilt for the baby!! So today I had a browse through my stash, and came up with four very different ideas
very, very bright
tasteful pastels
fun cows
very cute sheep
I can't decide which one to choose - perhaps you could leave a comment and tell me which one you prefer!
This week's word for 'weekword' has been chosen by Leenie - do pop over to her blog to find out what word she has chosen - and maybe you could join in this week!
