frayed at the edge

The things I do for you!

It was a bit wet when we got up this morning, but by the time we popped into Hawick the sky had cleared and the sun had come out, so I decided to go for a walk when we got back home to take photos of the lambs.  This involves walking for a mile there, then of course a mile back ....... only for you, dear readers, would I do this!!  Along the way, I kept seeing snowdrops - why do they grow in the verge and not in my garden?!

 

I think these are aconites but I don't have my wildflower book to hand to check

 

the "whomping willow" tree is still standing, despite the gales

 

I thought I would see if there were any lambs in a field some distance from the road.  This meant either climbing over this gate

 

or walking along this muddy path ....... I chose the path

 

but I should have paid more attention to where I stepped!

 

there were no lambs in that field - but there was this handsome chap

 

so it was on down the road to the other field, where we saw the lambs yesterday.  Are you ready to go aaaw and aaaah

 

and all those woolly little lambs lead to a knitting update!  My mojo is well and truly back - indeed it is working overtime!  I have knitted a blanket for Linus

 

the blanket makes a nice backdrop for my socks

 

I've started another blanket for Linus.  I'm using two balls of four ply in different shades of purple.  It's an unusual pattern, knitted on two different sizes of needles - you do seven rows using one pair, then seven rows using the other

 

yesterday I got out my swift

 

and my ball winder

 

to wind this hank of sock yarn

 

in no time at all the hank was turned from this

 

into this

 

I popped the ball into my yarn bowl

 

and started another pair of socks!

 

and to finish - I grew up drinking Irn Bru (Scotland's other national drink) and I still drink it (although I do drink the sugar-free one now).  Over the years there have been wonderful (and at times controversial) adverts for Irn Bru, and one theme is celebrating its 30th anniversary - "made in Scotland from girders".  I bought this special edition can the other day.  I have to show you it in two photos, because of the curve of the can

 

ps - never mind a vodka and tonic, I can recommend a vodka and girders!!

 

 

Return of the mojo!

I don't know what happened to my knitting mojo.  I think it went on holiday and has been sunbathing on an exotic beach, being brought bright pink cocktails, full of fresh fruit, by handsome young men!  But eventually it dragged itself back home and I finally finished the socks I have been knitting for rather a long time.  Here they are soaking, before being put on the blockers 

 

why are you shouting at me?  Oh, that's why, the not quite matching socks.  I have to admit that I just couldn't face working the rest of the pattern, so finished the second sock in one colour ......

 

........ but you won't see that when I wear them with my snazzy new boots, which Malcolm gave me for Christmas

 

and as I waited until after Christmas to get the boots in the sales, I was thoroughly spoiled and got these ones too.  I love the way they look as if I have already worn them for months

 

 having finished the two colour socks, I had a look in my stash and came up with a ball of sock wool which I bought on our last holiday in Australia

 

although the pattern says child's first sock, it has been sized up to fit an adult

 

I am really enjoying knitting this pair

 

and it won't be long until they are finished

 

I have even bought another ball of sock yarn, to knit another pair!

 

I may have been slightly influenced by the smart packaging when I bought these needles 

 

and look what I found when I opened them - tiny test tubes!

 

and so to the Friday cake - Annette's deliciously spicy fruit loaf

 

I am looking forward to our sewing day tomorrow - I hope to get the two little quilts finished that I layered up yesterday.  Then we will head over to the flat on Sunday.  I hope you have a good weekend, love Anne

I may have been knitting .......

....... since I was seven, but I was intrigued when I saw this article in a knitting magazine, as I had never encountered this stitch before (and yes, that is a man prancing about in a dress!!)

 

so of course it was over to Mr Google, and by good luck I found a class on Craftsy which was half-price.  I watched the first section, then started on my sample piece.  The brioche stitch produces a reversible fabric, and you can do knit or purl brioche ....... it looks the same, it just moves the stitches

 

but having worked a reasonable practice length, I didn't have time to watch the next part of the class to see what came next, so I branched out (groan) and produced a tree!!

 

to which I started to add some leaves

 

but then Malcolm came to the rescue and gave me this book for my birthday (it's Nancy's class that I am watching on Craftsy)

 

as soon as I have mastered all the stitches, this scarf will be first on the to-do list!

 

Malcolm also gave me this fun little kit for my birthday, which I'm looking forward to knitting

 

when we were out for lunch on Wednesday at Harestanes, we spotted this apple tree.  What a waste, all these apples left to rot - yes, they will feed the wildlife, but surely some of them could have been picked and used

 

I had to dissuade Malcolm from attempting to take this impressive log pile home with him!

 

 

for our Friday cake, Annette had recreated one of her Mum's recipes

 

little individual pies which were a cross between a sponge and a pastry ........

 

......... filled with apple - they were delicious, and some of us may have eaten two!!

 

we came over to the flat as soon as I got home from patch'n'chat, and we have had fish and chips for dinner - the perfect start to the weekend!  I hope you have a good weekend, love Anne

 

 

Very cute knitting, but first ..........

......... let's get the food out of the way!   We went to Melrose this morning and popped into the deli for lunch.  Malcolm had a cheese and pickle toastie

 

and I had cheese savoury sandwiches (usually I am good and have brown bread, but today I just fancied white bread for a change!)

 

so, the cute knitting.  I was delighted last week to learn that my bloggy friend Rachel is to be a Granny later in the year (I'm not giving away secrets, she has posted about it!!)  When I told Malcolm (some of you may remember his valiant attempts to repair her dishwasher?!) he suggested that I knitted the booties in the tiny kit that he had given me some time ago

 

so I did!

 

then I started a teeny cardigan as well

 

I finished knitting my hot water bottle cover, designed by the wonderful Kate, some time ago

 

but needed to use these

 

 

for the finishing touches

 

I have finished my first sock (and have started the second one)

 

I decided that I couldn't put up with these disorderly scrap baskets any more

 

so while Malcolm was perusing a hundred and one kinds of screws this morning, I bought this extra large pink bucket

 

that's better!

 

I had planned to work on the remaining space quilt this afternoon, but got sidetracked into having a good tidy, but I did remember to take photos of the three that I have finished

 

and to finish - why was Malcolm looking at all those screws this morning ....... to finish the garden door for the lovely neighbours

Bottoms up!

As we were eating breakfast this morning, more and more swans swam into the dock.  There must have been something tasty to eat, as they kept sticking their heads under the water and their bottoms in the air

 

but suddenly there was a commotion, and an adult swan, with its head hooked over the back of a cygnet,  pushed it away from the group, with another cygnet swimming ahead of them as fast as possible to get out of the way

 

there must also have been something tasty on the ground (perhaps from a ship being loaded/unloaded) because the pigeons were having a good peck

 

when I looked out of the window later, I saw some activity on the far side of the dock

 

and in a shabby little boat which had been moored overnight against the pilot boat

 

there appeared to be trouble starting the engine, with much pointing and shaking of heads

 

the man with the new depth gauge soldiered on trying to lower it.  Every time he got out of his machine he had to walk round behind the lobster pots, which must have been somewhat annoying

 

at that point I had to go for my shower, and I was surprised that they were still trying to get the gauge in place when I came back through

 

I had the unkind thought that he might fall off the boat and provide me with some good photos ......

later we went for a cuppa and an exceedingly delicious cheese scone

 

we popped into Serendipity and I couldn't resist this lovely card, by local artist Anne Johnston Gill

then in a charity shop I picked up this rather grubby bag of threads

 

there is a little label inside each reel.  Coton a repriser is darning thread ....... I would have put in a link, but I could only find ones in French!

 

it is lovely thread, and I think it will be good for fine embroidery

 

Malcolm had been doing more work on his wine box chest of drawers, finishing the top and sanding it.  The last stage will be to wax it

 

we got back home at lunchtime and I spent the afternoon in the studio.  I finished the quilting on the space quilt, then I spent the rest of the afternoon working on this ......... but you will have to come back tomorrow to find out what it is!

 

to finish ....... the sun appeared this afternoon, much to the delight of this robin in the front garden

Missing book!

Last night I couldn't find a book ......... I started by looking in the bookcase in the lounge (sorry, I had to use flash to take the photos this morning, so some of them look a bit strange)

 

do you like our little blue and white houses?

 

we were given one each time we flew Business Class with KLM - as you can see, we flew with them quite often when we lived in Indonesia. We never drank any of the contents,but it has evaporated from most of them!

 

neither was the book in the piles guarded by JDtractor and SockMonkey on the coffee table

 

I knew the book wouldn't be in the kitchen bookcase, as it only has cookery books - it used to have gardening books as well, but for some reason they have been relegated to the hall cupboard!

in Malcolm's study, it wasn't on the Hedgehog bookcase, which we bought way back in the 80s at a craft fair in Winchester.  The man who made it said that he put the shelves at an angle, as he thought that women used bookcases to display ornaments, so they wouldn't be able to do that on the sloping shelves!

 

the other bookcase in the study didn't have the book either (the name plate on the bottom shelf was given to Malcolm in Indonesia - unfortunately they put his names the wrong way round!)

 

I knew it wouldn't be out in the studio, with my sewing, knitting and craft books, so that only left the somewhat overfull bookcase in the guest bedroom

 

and yes, that's where the book was

 

an update on Patrick's facial hair!  Last night he still sported his luxuriant moustache, but he also had noticeable stubble, which would suggest that he is growing his beard again!

 

today's cake was a chocolate and fresh cream sponge - yes, every bit as delicious as it looks!!

 

and to finish, a photo of the Birthday Boy, wearing his ball end sweater!  Stuart sent me this photo of Fraser's Dad in the sweater - I haven't heard yet if he liked it!!

 

we aren't going over to Berwick until Sunday, as we will be having a romantic Valentine's dinner at home tomorrow (yes, even after 28 years of marriage, we still have romantic moments!) I hope you have a wonderful weekend, love Anne

A delightful book!

When a book-shaped parcel arrived in the post last week, I was slightly worried, as I couldn't remember having bought a book.  Had I ordered it in my sleep ...... well, that was a possibility ........ there was a big bit in the news yesterday about a girl who ate in her sleep!  When I opened the parcel, it was to find that the lovely Imogen had sent me another knitting book to review

 

this one is just as delightful as the last one, so it was hard to select just a few of the wonderful patterns to share with you.  But you won't be surprised by my first choice - an owl!

 

I know this jumper is intended for children, but I could be tempted to knit one for myself!

 

this scarf reminds me of the first thing I knitted at school when I was seven.  However that scarf wasn't as cute and colourful as this one ...... it was plain yellow, but one end was pointed and tucked into the other end.  I don't think there woud be a battle to get a little one to wrap up warmly with this fun scarf

 

the patterns are well written and clearly laid out, and the photographs are beautiful

 

if you are looking for quirky knits to give as gifts, or cute sweaters for the little persons in your life, then this is the book for you

 

of course, this is the point at which I have to say that I have not received any payment for this review!!  So now for a quick update of my knitting.  I have to admit that I haven't made any more progress on my socks.  I have reached the stage where I have to pick up the stitches on the heel flap, and for some reason I just don't like doing that!

 

I have in the past knitted socks with the "afterthought" heel, and I unearthed this pair from the bottom of the knitting basket.  When you get to the point where you would normally knit the heel flap, you knit the stitches onto a length of waste wool, then knit on to the end.  My waste wool isn't a strong enough contrast to show up properly, so I have stuck in a needle to show you where it is

 

I have knitted the heel in a different wool, so you can see where it fits in once the waste wool is removed and the stitches picked up

 

it is certainly much a much quicker method, with no heel flap and no gusset shaping, but the heel is shaped the same as the toe, and I find that the socks don't fit as well 

 

the ripple rug is growing - I have just started on the first repeat of the colours.  You will notice that I am knitting on straight needles, although the pattern says to use a circular needle.  Unless I am knitting in the round, I don't particularly like using a circular needle, and my 282 stitches just fit on to the straight needles!

 

it was only after I inserted the last photo that I noticed that the toe of my pink boot is in it!  The ripple rug is very quick to knit - there are only two rows to the pattern, one of which is simply knit, and it is easy to knit the other row once the pattern is set

 

I don't know where this week has gone - it has just flown by!  As usual tomorrow I will be doing my share of the housework in the morning, before heading off to patch'n'chat.  Do come back tomorrow to find out what the Friday cake was!!

 

Smiling again!

I forgot to tell you yesterday that I was at the dentist in the morning to have my new crown fitted.  There was a slight delay as Mr GoodScrabbleScore couldn't remove the temporary crown.  He pulled and he tugged, and he tugged and he pulled, and eventually had to resort to the drill.  I am delighted with my lovely new crown - perhaps Malcolm will capture me smiling over the weekend!

I have shown you the driftwood drying in the garage, but I haven't shown you my seaglass and assorted bits, which have been drying on the draining board in the utility room, after being thoroughly washed with bleach

 

it'a amazing the great assortment of pieces that you can pick up on a short walk

 

this old shell has been home to a host of other small creatures

 

I like this partial shell

 

having previously framed some for Malcolm's shower room in the flat, I framed these ones for my bathroom at home

 

I was glued to the Great British Sewing Bee last night ....... but I still can't decide if I like Patrick without his beard, but still with a moustache!  (he's still gorgeous, but is he slightly les gorgeous!)

 

we were delighted that there was a contestant from Jedburgh, a lovely lady called Annie who is a retired dairy farmer and cheesemaker (we have eaten her delicious cheese).  Here she is with the delightful Claudia

 

Patrick and his fellow judge May examining a piece of sewing (the funny dark shapes on the right hand edge of the photos are from the large rubber plant which sit beside the tv)

 

while I was watching the programme, I was casting on my Ripple Rug.  As I had to cast on 282 stitches, I used stitch markers to show where the 100th and 200th stitches were, to make it easier to keep count

 

now for the star of tonight's post - Malcolm's wine box bookcase.  He has made the basic carcase

 

there will a shelf in the middle section, and after some deliberation, he has decided that instead of putting pine panelling at the back, he will put a piece of plywood and cover it with wine corks!

 

and of course to finish we have the Friday cake - our favourite apple and sultana

 

we'll be heading off to Berwick in the morning, hoping for good weather to get out for a good long walk.  I hope you all have a great weekend, love Anne

Retail therapy!

We don't have a lot of shops in Hawick, and since the turn of the year several more have closed, so I enjoyed a good bout of retail therapy on Tuesday.  First I bought some trousers, which you will probably see me wearing in future photos,then I bought some undergarments, but you definitely WON'T see me wearing them!  So here is a quick selection of my purchases.  First, from Poundland (yes, everything costs £1) this frame for my silly card

 

and a box of long matches for lighting the stove

 

from Wilkos, home of bargains, but not quite as cheap as Poundland, tiny pegs (I do have a vague idea for using them)

 

and little price tags which will be good for the next batch of driftwood trees

 

Stuart and Alison gave me this absolutely fabulous charm/bead for Christmas ........

 

....... so I popped into Next and found this pretty bracelet to put it on.  There were also some extra charms, one of them a cupcake - so this will be a perfect bracelet to wear to patch'n'chat

 

of course we had to have a look in Hobbycraft.  I wasn't going to buy any fabric, I wasn't, I wasn't ........ but then I saw this bundle of six spotty fat quarters for only £7!

 

when I saw this Duck Tape, it too had to come home with me!

 

my pile of goodies from Ikea

 

another four black picture frames, more pockets for my filing cabinet, and the metal curtain rods are for hanging up my remaining bigger quilts - you can see I have hung up the Country Cottages quilt

 

I used one of the frames and some of the Duck Tape

 

to frame this card, which states my preferred age!

 

having finished the ball end sweater, I had a look in my knitting basket last night, and unearthed this sock, which I started in November!  The pattern, by the fabulous Kate, is actually quite quick to knit, so hopefully I will get them finished soon

 

when I ordered the yarn for the ball end sweater, I thought I had better get a few extra balls, as I wasn't quite sure how much I would use of the various colours.  There were five balls left, so I looked out the Ripple Rug pattern, which I have already knitted two of, so I know that it is an easy knit if there is something on tv that needs a bit more attention ........

 

........ like later tonight when the new series of the Great British Sewing Bee is on.  I have to concentrate on swooning over Patrick, one of the judges.  However the main debate won't be about the sewing, but whether I preferred him before he shaved his beard of (what, me, shallow??!!)  I'll be back tomorrow with a progress report on Malcolm's wine box bookcase  - it's looking good!

 

 

Catching up!

We're back home after a very enjoyable visit to Stuart and Alison, so let's get going and catch up on yesterday's news.  First of all, the ball end sweater.  I modelled it yesterday morning before we left

 

I might have posed some more, but it was far too cold, as you can see from Malcolm's dashboard, when we set off a short time later ...... yes, it does say minus five!!

 

when I spoke to Stuart on the phone on Monday, he recommended Tea Jennys for lunch (that's where he and Alison bought my special tea that I have in a special mug on Tuesdays)

 

it was very busy, so I couldn't take a general shot of the interior, but I sneaked a photo of the wallpaper without getting anyone in the shot

 

every teapot comes with a cute teacosy - and isn't the old china fabulous!

 

Malcolm had delicious leek and potato soup with excellent bread

 

while I had a slightly different version of cheese savoury sandwich, with a very good salad

 

after lunch we walked past the house we lived in from 1990 to 1997 (when we went to live in Indonesia).  I have to say now that we lived in the downstairs of the house, we didn't own all of it!  It had actually been built  for the two spinster daughters of a local builder, unlike other similar sized houses in the area, which were built as a single house, but were then split into two flats

 

Malcolm made the fence (which is looking sadly neglected), cutting the shaped top of every piece.  He made it a panel at a time over quite a few weekends

 

he also made this rustic bridge ....... we were surprised to see that it had lasted so long!

 

we did some shopping, but you will have to wait until tomorrow to see what I bought.  We had an enjoyable evening with Stuart and Alison, and Fraser called in to pick up the ball end sweater.  He was delighted with it, and hopefully will send me a photo of his dad wearing it, to share with you.  On our way home today we called in at Ikea - but again you will have to wait until tomorrow to see what I bought.  So I'll finish with some snowy scenes from our drive home