frayed at the edge

6 & 6 in 2018 : March report

 "Why" I can hear you cry "are you showing us a photo of snow, when this is your progress report?"  It's because this was the first photo in the file that has some of the photos for my report in it!

 

I assembled everything I need for my new project.  I have been working up to doing this for some time (ok, several years!), and the small piles of woolly bits on the left are just part of the woolly bit stash

 

finally, after much procrastinating, I am starting my Sue Spargo "Flowerbed"

 

the pattern suggests using woolly fabrics for the backgrounds of the squares, but I thought that might make it all a bit heavy, so I found this beautiful linen in my stash (bought for a long-ago project that never got done)

 

I cut the squares using the pinking blade on the rotary cutter, so that they don't fray while I am stitching

 

squares cut, pattern and applique paper ready, and lightpad set up

 

ah - a small problem, there is a pattern on each side of the page, so both show up on the lightpad.  So I photocopied each page, to make it easier to trace the patterns

 

the first pieces traced, roughly cut out and sitting on the fabrics ready for fusing

 

as you need to use a hot iron to fuse the pattern pieces, I covered the woolly fabrics with a scrap piece of white cotton, so that they didn't scorch

 

the first pieces cut out and laid in place.  There are still small circles to be cut, but I think I will use cotton fabric for them

 

everything for the first block safely stowed away in a pocket in my project ring binder  (the last project kept in the binder was my poor attempt at Mrs Billings!)

 

I then cut out the pieces for the other eleven blocks

 

making a start on stitching the first block.  The woolly bits are stitched in place with a simple whip stitch, and will eventually have all sorts of fancy embroidery and embellishment added ( this is going to be a long project!)

 

the first block stitched, except for the circles.  Once they have been added and the embroidery/embellishment done, the block can be trimmed to its final size

 

to see what everyone else has achieved this month, pop over to Meredithe's blog and after reading her report, scroll down to the linky thing.  You can still join in - if you have a blog, write your post, then pop it into the linky thing, or you can put your work on Instagram (#6and6in2018)

 

 

Strippy cushions

 On Wednesday I gave you a sneak peek at this lovely little bundle of batiks, from The Quilt Shop

 

the six fat eighths, pressed ready to cut

 

I cut strips of 4", 3" and 2", then mixed them up

 

and arranged them in two groups on the design wall

 

having stitched them together, I cut about a third off each one and swapped them over

 

the next stage was to layer them up, ready to quilt

 

the first one done, with a loopy flower meander

 

a little detail of the quilting

 

the two cushion fronts, quilted and trimmed

 

I delved into my stashes and found a pretty piece of curtain fabric for the backs, and a remnant of batik for the binding

 

I had hoped to get the first one finished to share with you today, but as I was sewing the binding on ....... disaster, I broke the needle (I was most annoyed, as it was a new needle!).  As I should have already been cooking the dinner, I had to abandon the uncompleted cushion cover.  So you will have to wait a few more days to see the finished cushions

 

it's Friday, so that means sconnage!!  We shared this one on Monday when we were in Morpeth

 

then we shared this one on our way up to Berwick this morning. It has been raining all day, so no walk on the beach.  Fingers crossed for better weather tomorrow!

 

it's the end of the month, so that means I will be back tomorrow with my March report for the 6&6 in 2018 challenge.  I do hope you will pop in to see what I have achieved.  Have a good weekend, love Anne

To return to the story of Sunday ......

........ on the way home, I got Malcolm to drop me off, so that I could take photos of the alpacas

 

but I couldn't get clear photos - I need to go back with my big lens to zoom in through the thick hedge

 

so I set off on the long walk up the hill home

 

pausing to take a photo of a nice bit of higgledy piggledy fence

 

but as I went past a field gate, what were these beauties at the other end of the field

 

two magnificent llamas!

 

who were as curious about me as I was about them

 

this one came right up to the gate

 

and immediately became my new best friend, as it posed prettily for me

 

however, the other one kept its distance, looking somewhat aloof

 

as well as the llamas, there were two little ponies in the field

 

one of which meandered over to the gate

 

one final look at the llamas, before I headed on home

 

to finish, I bought this little bundle of fabrics last week in The Quilt Shop.  Come back on Friday to see what I have been making.

I'm back!

Thank you for your continuing kind thoughts and good wishes for Jennifer.  She is slowly getting better, although she has a long rehab in front of her.  She will be in hospital for some time to come - for the moment she has to have a nurse with her when she gets out of bed, and won't be able to put her weight on to her bad leg for another 6 weeks.

 

I was going to do a catch up of photos from the last week, but we would be here for some time, so here is "what I did yesterday".  The sun was shining in the morning, giving some good shadow shots

 

these are the plants on the kitchen windowsill

 

both these wine glasses have a chip in the rim, so have been demoted to ornaments

 

we went over to Amble for a walk in the sunshine

 

enjoying the blue sky

 

down at the harbour we saw two boats racing

 

and being easily overtaken by this one

 

this is an old lifeboat, which now runs trips to see puffins.  I will have to get some sea-sickness pills so that I can go on a trip!

 

this is the current lifeboat, which came roaring into the harbour

 

but this one with its crew of pigeons was going nowhere

 

the next two photos, of eider ducks .......

 

....... are for my long-time reader, the lovely T-a, who is a great fan of them

 

I walked out alone, along this extension of the pier .......

 

...... so that I could take a photo of the lighthouse through the gate.  When Malcolm joined me, I said wasn't I brave, walking out there on my own, as I really don't like being over water.  He said, why would you worry, it's solid concrete under you

 

oh no it wasn't, as I saw when we walked on!

 

having read the information board

 

of course I then had to take my own photo of the island

 

I have lots more photos to share with you, but I will keep them for Wednesday.  So do come back to see my new best friend - although those of you who have been  following me on Instagram (@annetaydon) have already had a sneak peek!  To finish, a bright clump of daffodils in the verge in front of the house

A short break

Just a quick post, to let you know that I will be taking a short break, as we are busy with hospital visiting and generally helping Jennifer.  She is doing well, and can walk a few steps with the help of a Zimmer.  She is being transferred to a smaller hospital in Morpeth this evening, which will save a lot of travelling to visit her.

So, a photo to show what I was busy with over the weekend ....... a bit of work on the Grandmother's Flower Garden, one cushion cover finished with the other three just needing the binding hand stitched on the back, and a start to a knitted blanket

 

I hope to be back next Monday, but if you miss me ........ I have finally starting posting photos on Instagram.  You can find me @annetaydon

Making waves!

First, an update on Jennifer.  She had tripped and fallen on Wednesday morning, breaking her right leg very badly above her knee.  She had major surgery yesterday to insert a metal plate to repair the break.  But when we visited her this afternoon, she was remarkably upbeat and positive.  She is facing a long recovery, so we are so pleased that we moved here last year, as we can be on hand to help.  She said to thank you for all the lovely comments  you left for her.  Before we went to the hospital, we went to Newbiggin-by-the-sea for some lunch.  The weather was terrible, with huge waves pounding on to the beach

 

and threatening to engulf "The Couple"

 

it was all in stark contrast to our sunny walk on the beach last Friday

 

these rocks are fascinating, where they have been eroded by the elements to show the different layers

 

this hollow is confusing, as it looks as if the water is sitting in one side, but it is a vertical hollow

 

we walked to the end of the beach, then came back up on to the promenade

 

where the sunshine gave us .......

 

........ lots of shadow shots

 

I remembered my own advice to look up - and captured old chimneys and blue sky

 

and a seagull 

 

whoever had walked on the sand before me had somewhat larger feet than me!

 

the crocus were enjoying the sunshine

 

back at the flat and looking out over the dock

 

the water was still - perfect for reflection shots

 

we waked over to town for a bite to eat, and on the way back, stopped on the old bridge to take more reflection shots

 

it was just getting dark so the streetlights were lit on the bridge, so they too were reflected in the river

 

Malcolm requested this shot, with the rowing club  enclosed by the bridge and its reflection

 

then this shot is looking over to the opposite bank

 

it's Friday, so that means a round up of scones and other tasty things!  We shared this scone last Saturday - it has sun-dried tomato, feta cheese and olives in it (I picked the olives out of my share and gave them to Malcolm!)

 

then yesterday when we in Amble, we were somewhat naughty and not only shared a (small) cheese scone

 

but also a toasted teacake (which meant we had a very frugal lunch!)

 

two last photos from our beach walk.  Malcolm picked up a lot of driftwood .......

 

....... and a lot of golf balls - we have no idea where they came from!  

 

the forecast for tomorrow is miserable, so I will be keeping warm and dry in The Attic, and getting on with some sewing.  Then on Sunday we will visit Jennifer again - I'll have to get her some little goodies (today I took her my "emergency" bar of chocolate - I always have a bar of posh chocolate in the cupboard!).  I hope you have a good weekend, love Anne

A bit of a crisis

Oh dear,  Malcolm's sister Jennifer had a nasty fall today and has broken her leg (and possibly damaged her knee).  She needs surgery, so we are waiting for the phone to ring with an update on what is happening.  So, as you will understand, the last thing on my mind this evening is composing a post.  All being well, I will be back on Friday, and in the meantime I will leave you with this photo from our beach walk, love Anne 

A long walk on the beach

The sun was shining on Friday afternoon, so we decided to go for a walk on the beach.  We wondered how it would look after the "Beast from the East".  The first thing we encountered was this enormous tree root ....... if only we could have brought it home for the garden!  

 

then a few yards on I found two pieces of sea glass

 

I wonder where this ladder came from - it's amazing what you find on the beach after a big storm!

 

I would have shown you the groynes ........ but they were completely covered! This means that over the last few years, the level of the sand at this end of the beach has risen by at least 6 feet.  So instead I'll show you the lighthouse

 

there were dozens of crab shells

 

and quite a few lobsters as well, victims of the Beast

 

this fish looked as if it had escaped from an Alien film - I almost expected Sigourney Weaver to appear 

 

and of course there were tyres! 

 

while Malcolm  picked up driftwood, I picked up rubbish.  It didn't take long to fill two small bags which I had in my backpack - next time I will have to take a proper bin bag with me 

 

I came across this sea urchin shell sitting on a brick

 

so I added a crab, a lobster and a mussel 

 

we left the beach and walked along the promenade.  As I took this shadow shot, I said to Malcolm to wave, and he promptly obliged!

 

further along the promenade, we went back down on to the beach.  This shows how the sand level at this end of the beach has dropped.  The rail was painted last summer, and you can see how high the sand was then, where the bright blue paint ends

 

I thought these newly exposed rocks looked like the skeleton of a dinosaur

 

Malcolm spotted these stones stuck in the layers of rock

 

a cloud of gulls rose in to the air as I walked towards them

 

this is a piece of old bone, with a frond of seaweed on it

 

including my hand in the photo shows how tiny the frond is

 

at first glance I thought this was an exotic plant which had taken root in the pebbles, but it is a piece of rope which has frayed

 

I still have lots of photos, so I'll share them with you on Wednesday.  To end, yesterday was Mothers' Day, so as usual Stuart found a cheeky card to send me (perhaps I should send him my hairdressing bills!!)

 

inside the pretty package was this tin of exceedingly delicious sweets - I am being very generous and sharing them with Malcolm

 

and this weekend was the first anniversary of moving here ........ which of course meant a glass or two of fizz to mark the occasion!

A most enjoyable day!

Yesterday morning, we decided to pop over to Rothbury - after being stuck indoors all last week, we were itching to get out and about.  This is the great pile of snow I was standing in front of on Saturday- as you can see there is still an awful lot of it!

 

although the roads are clear, there is still a great deal of snow on the verges

 

arriving in Rothbury, we parked in the car park down by the river, and walked over the footbridge into town

 

the view up the river from the bridge

 

a little splash of colour against the snow

 

after the snow-filled skies of last week, it was so good to see some blue

 

it's not every day that you see a tractor parked on the main street in town!

 

it will be some time before this pile of snow melts - the truck behind it gives you an idea of the size of it

 

I do like an old, weathered church door

 

another splash of colour

 

on the way back to the car park, we walked over the road bridge

 

snow drops in the snow!

 

of course we went for a cuppa, choosing the Elm Tree Coffee Shop, as they do a "morning special" of a cuppa and a scone for £2.80 ....... a bargain!

 

Malcolm ordered a fruit scone

 

and I ordered a cheese one, but of course we then had half each

 

on the way home, Malcolm kindly pulled off the road so that I could take photos of these magnificent beasts

 

I like the way their horns point in different directions

 

but I was glad that there was a stout hedge between me and those horns!

 

back home, I started prepping the dinner.  I know there are four chops on the plate and there only going to be three of us for dinner, but the chops were packaged in twos in the freezer.  I had found a recipe on the internet which I thought I would try.  I rubbed the chops with olive oil and sprinkled them with a sea salt and herb mix

 

I then put two tablespoons of sugar and four tablespoons of honey in a bowl, zapping them briefly in the microwave and stirring them together

 

after browning the chops, I put them in a foil tray and spread them with half the sugar/honey mix and popped them in the oven for 15 minutes.  This photo shows the chops turned over after that first spell in the oven, with the rest of the sugar/honey mix spread on them, ready to go back in the oven for another 15 minutes

 

I had decided to serve green beans and mashed potato

 

it was an excellent dinner (we may have had a starter and pudding too) and Jennifer went home with a doggy bag with the extra chop

 

to finish, a bit of nonsense!  JDtheTractor and CheekySockMonkey decided to deal with the pile of snow still sitting in front of the house

 

I think they are going to be there a long time (did you spot them at the bottom of the pile?)

 

indoors, the Gnome Sisters declared that they weren't going out to help, preferring to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate

 

while the Gnome Brothers said that hot chocolate was just for girls, and they were going to drink beer - oh no they weren't, the beer was returned to the fridge!!

 

we came up to the flat this morning, and have been for a long walk on the beach this afternoon, so do pop in again on Monday to see the photos!  Have a good weekend, love Anne

Worth getting up for!

After all the recent bad weather, it was a joy this morning to see this wonderful sunrise

 

I should have been making the breakfast, but got a bit sidetracked taking photos

 

do you remember Malcolm re-covering the dining chairs just before Christmas.  At the time, I looked out this beautiful piece of fabric, which I bought when we lived in Indonesia (so I have had it for more than 17 years!), as I thought it would look good as a runner on the dining table

 

having had a hunt through my furnishing fabrics, I found one for the backing, and soon had the two fabrics pinned together

 

I was brave, and used a metallic thread for the quilting

 

a detail of the quilting

 

I made the binding with this African fabric, which I bought in 2001, at the big quilt show in Houston (well...... you have to have fabrics for a while before you can bear to cut them up and use them)

 

getting ready to join the two ends

 

the line on the left is where I cut off the extra fabric

 

the two edges lined up ready to stitch

 

pressing the seam open - as you can see I use steam when I am pressing seams, and the camera lens got a bit steamed up!

 

 

the binding folded in half and pressed, ready to stitch the last few inches in place

 

 

this shows the reason for joining the binding with a diagonal seam - when it is folded in half and stitched in place, the seam is staggered, so that the bulk of the seam isn't all in the same place

 

I have to admit that the runner then sat for some days .......

 

until I made a start to hand stitching the binding on the back, when I was at The Quilt Shop today

 

Malcolm's sister Jennifer is visiting for dinner tomorrow, so once I publish this post, I will have to hit the cookery books for a recipe involving pork chops!