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It's hard to believe that a week has passed since the dodgy internet connection stopped me from sharing some dramatic shadows from our trip to Wales! I hope you enjoy finally seeing them. To see who else is joining in the shadow fun this week, head over to Hey Harriet.
To see more of our Welsh adventures, scroll back to Monday and Tuesday's posts!
When I went out for my walk this morning, my legs just refused to pick up the pace ...... so I ended up strolling along finding interesting things to take photos of .........
a fallen conker in the middle of the road
raindrops on cleavers (goose grass)
a fly caught in a spider's web in the middle
a neighbour's chimneys, reflected in a tiny puddle
I have been working hard on my Baltimore block, and by yesterday afternoon had most of the leaves stitched
But before I could place the last four leaves in the centre, I needed to make a ruched flower. I started by cutting a two inch wide strip, and pressing the two long edges into the centre
I marked one edge every inch
Then on the other edge, I started half an inch in from the edge, then marked every inch
Using a double thread I stitched across the end, then up to the first mark
At the edge, I took the thread over, bfore stitching to the next mark
After stitching several zigzags .........
........ I pulled the gathering thread - it is much easier to do this as you go, rather than waiting until you have done all the stitching
That was as far as I got yesterday, before I had to stop and make dinner (lamb rogan josh). So I carried on this afternoon at patch'n'chat. I finished the stitching and gathering ....
...... then curled the strip round to make the flower, stitching the loops in place. I put it on the block and pinned the remaining leaves
By the end of the afternoon, the block was well on the way to being finished
Of course Friday afternoon means cake - this week it was one of Annette's delicious chocolate sponges, with lots of fresh cream in the centre
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, love Anne
When we went through to the kitchen last night, just before we went to bed, we saw this amazing sky
The red line could have been made by a spaceship coming in to land ....... but it was probably a contrail! As I was taking the photo, a dark shape landed on the back of the telegraph pole across the road
I didn't manage to get a photo as it flew off, so you will have to take my word that it was an owl!!
However, the next photo is quite clear - if tractors can be described as cute, then this one has to be the cutest!
This one has been at work turning the hay
While this one was just a little too close for comfort as it passed me!
Having failed to snap the owl last night, I did manage to capture this goldfinch - but it flew off before i could zoom in (click on it to enlarge)
I was busy again in the studio today, making another four brooches
I have also started another little project (I know, I know, I said I wouldn't start anything new until I had finished some more UFOs!). Remember when we were away at the weekend, we saw a shop with 'patch' in its name that didn't have much patchwork? Then, when we were in Denbigh we saw this shop .......
....... but it turned out to be a children's clothes shop! Finally, we found a patchwork shop in Llangollen
I succumbed to a William Morris jelly roll, which opened out to reveal all these lovely fabrics
Having recently seen several friends working on hexagon quilts, I decided that was what I would use the jelly roll for
I know you can buy ready cut papers online, but I just draw round a template until I have filled the sheet of paper, then photocopy it - it doesn't take long to cut them out
The strips are just the right size for the template, and I quickly marked and cut the first strip
Soon I had half a dozen pieces tacked - just several hundred more to go!
When I was looking for something to keep this latest project in, I found this box, which I bought very cheaply when Woolworths closed - I think I hadn't used it before because of the rather lurid shade of pink!
This morning, I was standing at the bedroom window drying my hair when I saw a little sparrow fledgeling land on my car, closely followed by its parent. Abandoning my hair to finish drying itself, I rushed off to get the camera. The first shots taken through the window weren't very good, so I ended up standing on the camel stool that sits under the window(very awkward, as I have to stand on the outer wooden edges of the stool and not on the cane centrs), and pointing the camera through the small gap that the window was open (I didn't want to push it open further in case it scared off the birds). But as you can see, this photo was worth the effort!!
No - I haven't got the spelling wrong ---- this morning I finally saw a deer again, having seen one some weeks ago, when I didn't have the camera with me
Altgough we are still in July, there was a decided autumnal nip in the air this morning, and some plants have already gone to seed
But other plants are still putting out buds and new growth
Next month I have a sales table at the Southdean Show, so I thought it was time to knuckle down and make some things to sell! I looked out a pile of ready cut circles that I bought some time ago, with the thought that I could make something with them one day!
I sorted some of them into pairs
I took the first pair, and ran a gathering stitch round the edge of each circle, and pulled the stitches tight, to make yoyos (Suffolk puffs)
I stitched the two together and added a brooch pin to the back ......
......... and added a large button to the front to complete the brooch
I had an unexpectedly large meal at lunchtime yesterday, so I didn't want any dinner when I got home. As Malcolm had already cooked it, that meant there were some leftover vegetables to use up when I made dinner tonight. I also had a bit of stale bread to use up
I got out my trusty processor (it's about 12 years old!) and made breadcrumbs
Mashed the veggies
Mixed the veggies and breadcrumbs together, and added seasoning and a beaten egg
I divided the mixture into four portions, and formed it into potato and veggie cakes
I shallow fried them in sunflower oil - the trick is to get the oil quite hot, so that when you put the cakes in the surface cooks quickly and seals, so that they don't get oily
So what else were we having? On Wednesday mornings, the fishman comes to the house in his van. I'm usually in the bath when he arrives, so Malcolm gets to choose what fish we have. Today he chose breaded haddock, which I cooked on the griddle, with just a spray of one-calorie oil
To complete the meal, I made a very quick sauce with low fat creme fraiche and blue Shropshire cheese - simply warmed until the cheese melted
After all that effort, I thought I should get out the fish knives and forks!
The verdict ....... delicious!
On Sunday, we drove to Llangollen, where my resolve to overcome my fear of heights was to be severely tested ...... but first there were good things! I had arranged to meet Emily for a cuppa, and we spent a very pleasant hour chatting and sorting out her knitting (she was vey impressed with Malcolm's knitting knowledge!) Then we walked up to the canal, for a very enjoyable stroll in the early afternoon sun. We knew that our destination was four miles away - but as I am used to doing a hilly three mile walk every morning, four miles on the flat was no problem! There were lots of boats on the canal - here are a few of them
We had recently watched a programme on tv about the canal, so we knew that this funny looking bridge is to allow the farmer access between his fields on either side of the canal
There were also several wonderful stone bridges
Suddenly, we came out of the trees, and in the distance saw our destination - the Pontcysyllte aqueduct
The structure doesn't look very high in the photo - but if you click on the link, you will find out just how high it is! When we reached the start of the aqueduct, we were amazed at how many people were walking across ....... and how narrow the footpath was! In the end, I was more worried about falling into the canal as we passed people, than I was about the height!! If you look closely at the photo, you can see that the woman bending over is looking at a duckling, frantically swimming in front of the boat
Because it was so busy, it was hard to take photos, but I did manage to take a couple of the views
When we got to the other side, there was a path which took us slightly below the level of the aqueduct, and we could see what a massive structure it is
Of course, having walked across, I had to walk back again, but as it wasn't so busy, I relaxed a bit and managed to appreciate the experience of being on a structure which was built more than 200 hundred years ago!! We also had a chuckle at this canal boat having to back up to allow the man in the canoe room to paddle off the aqueduct, as he had the right of way!!
When we got back to the other side, we sat in the sun and had an icecream and a cold drink, before setting off back the four miles to town. We knew from the tv programmme that there are horse-drawn boats on the canal, and were disappointd not to see any ...... but when we got back to town, we discovered why - they go in the other direction! We were just in time to see this horse walking to his stable, having left the boat behind him
We were going to go out for dinner on Sunday evening ....... but our legs were so weary, we settled for a bar supper in the hotel!
Now that we are back home and the internet connection isn't disconnecting every couple of minutes, I can show you more of our weekend! To finish off Friday, here are the little goodies I bought
lovely coarse wool to knit a bag, which should felt well
a kit to knit a very cute sheep teacosy
oops - another book
On Saturday, we headed first to Denbigh, to visit the castle. We were a bit perplexed when the women who sold us our tickets said that the castle was closing for a year ..... as it was being knocked down and rebuilt. Howver, she clarified what she meant - it is the visitor centre that is being replaced, not the magnificent ruins!
Next we went to Conwy, where there is an even bigger castle. To reach it, we walked across the suspension bridge
This was when I had to be very brave, to climb long spiral staircases, and stand on top of very high walls and towers
we were standing on top of a matching tower!
yes, that's Malcolm's hand!
the enclosed bridge on the right carries the railway
the people are dwarfed by the walls
After leaving the castle, there were more heights to scale, as we went for a walk round the town walls
there is only a railing to stop you falling off!
we were above these wonderful old chimneys
looking down on the smallest house
But then - the reward for surviving all those stairs and heights ....... fish and chips for dinner (and bread and butter)
However, Saturday's heights were nothing compared to where we went yesterday! Come back tomorrow to see just how brave I had to be!!
Regular readers know that two of the things I really don't like are stairs and heights ........ so, how did I spend today? Going up and down very scary spiral staircases, standing on high castle towers, and walking along the top of old town walls!! However, quite a lot of shadow shots were captured along the way! I intended to show you lots of photos, but this is a very dodgy internet connection, which keeps cutting out in the middle of uploading ..... and the only photo that I've managed to upload went in the wrong place, above instead of below the text! Ah, well, there's always next week! To see lots of shadows from around the world, pop over to Hey Harriet
Now, I'm sure today's heading has surprised you!! We are having a long weekend way down here in Wales - somewhere that I have only been once before.
We broke our journey at Farfield Mill. After a spot of lunch, we had a look round the mill - it's a restored Victorian woolen mill, with lots to see. There are artists' studios, with wonderful things to buy, but of course photography is not allowed in that part of the building, but I was able to take a few photos as we went round the other parts.
this display is over a stairway!
the water turbine which powered the machinery
part of an old loom
I would have shown you some more photos of the old machinery, but for some reason several of the photos refuse to upload! After leaving the mill, we stopped in Sedbergh. I got all excited when I saw the name of this shop ...... but it only had two pieces of patchwork!
We also had a walk round the church, where we saw this old sundial (but who put the ugly light under it!!)
I have to confess that I bought one or two little things at the mill ..... but despite several attempts, the photos just won't upload!!
We'll be out and about exploring tomorrow, but hopefully I will still post Shadow Shot Sunday. Then on Sunday, we are having a very special outing, which I will be able to tell you all about once we are back home on Monday.
I hope you have a good weekend, love Anne
After yesterday's meagre crop of photos, I thought I ought to try harder today ...... and ended up taking 108!! Of course a lot of them went into the recycle bin, but here is a selection of the better ones.
the just-after dawn chorus
never too old to cuddle mum
I think this mare is in foal
I had to consult my birdbook - this is a serin
I'm coming to get you .... our everlasting sweetpea reaching out for a dead clematis
a sparrow fledgling
a female sparrow
a male sparrow
I managed to pick this cherry before the birds ate it!
a swallow showing off its forked tail
this would be a good address for me!
To finish, some beautuful red roses in a neighbour's garden
Having been out for most of the day, I sat down after dinner to transfer my photos to the laptop, and realised that I hadn't taken anything much today ...... oh dear, let's see what I can do with what I have!
It was grey and wet this morning .....
unlike the same scene yesterday morning .....
But there was one creature enjoying the wet - this rather long earthworm
Whereas this lovely grey horse just looked bedraggled and miserable!
It's not just the rain which wets me on my walk - it's also the drips from the trees. The water running down the middle of the road is from the trees
And there is no chance of avoiding the drips at this spot where the trees meet over the road!
After all that misery, there was only one thing to be done after breakfast ...... a long soak in the bath with a good book and a mug of hot chocolate (and I pinched one of Malcolm's little bite-sized cakes!!)
ps - note to self. please be more organised tomorrow!