frayed at the edge

Berwick : part II

Yesterday, we left Malcolm gathering driftwood on the beach.  Unfortunately he couldn't free this amazing piece from under a very large boulder - it would have made a great feature in the garden

 

he found lots of good pieces, but they were all wedged tight, and he didn't want to risk bringing the boulders down on top of him, trying to pull them free

 

I went on taking photographs, including some of my favourite arty ones of rusty things!

 

I also poked about in the sand, looking for other things to take photos of.  An empty crab shell

 

and a piece of glass, with the edges worn smooth

 

I also had fun deciding whether to have the lighthouse on the right .....

 

....... or the left of the photo

 

when looking through the photos to choose which ones to include, I came across this one.  You may wonder why the windows have been filled in  - unless you know about this tax

 

a neat stack of lobster pots on the quay

 

a seagull on top of an old chimney

 

and to finish, the first photo I took yesterday.  This was on the main road, just a few minutes into our journey.  There was a large lorry in front of us, so I only had a few seconds to take the photo as the caravan came into view, before we had passed it

 

I mentioned yesterday that I had missed the milestone of my 1300th post ....... and I'm offering a prize for the best story of a missed/forgotten significant event.  So tell me in a comment or email to have a chance of winning the fabulous prize (now I'll have to have a search in the studio for something fabulous!!)

 

 

Frothy!

When we do the housework on Friday mornings, we stop half way through for a cuppa.  Malcolm has coffee and I have hot chocolate.  We do love our gadgets, and this is one that was also a Christmas present for Malcolm.  It may look like a caffetiere, but it is a hot milk frother

 

it has a nylon mesh insert, which you pump up and down, creating creamy, frothy milk

 

I was busy at patch'n'chat this afternoon, working on both the revised version of Country Cottages and the June block for A is for Applique - the birds and the bees.  I have mentioned before that any photos I take there never come out well because of the lighting, so I waited until I was home to take these

the fusible web prepped ready to make up the cottages

 

the three elements of the birds and the bees

 

perhaps I need to work on my poetry!

 

what a delicious treat with our afternoon cuppa, Annette's light-as-air chocolate sponge, with cream and strawberries

 

the sparrows appear at the end of the afternoon to have a drink from the birdbath - although strangely they don't seem to be as keen to have a bath as they do in the freezing winter weather!

 

this one was giving a running commentary on the proceedings

 

I haven't been doing much knitting, as I have been doing so much sewing, but I have finally produced ....... well, hopefully I'll finish it at the weekend and show it to you on Monday!

 

I hope you have a good weekend - I'll be busy sewing!  Love, Anne

Decisions, decisions .......

Oh my, what will we start with, donkeys or sewing?  No contest really, it has to be donkeys (and horses - oh, and sheepies too).  I had a quick walk up the road yesterday, to see if the donkeys were about - they were, but in the far field, so I only managed to snap two of them

 

to make up for that, there were horses in the field across the road

 

there were also some chubby lambs ....... oooh, I'm thinking mint sauce and roast potatoes .......

 

an eight-legged lamb?

 

it's a hard life eating grass all day

 

Malcolm would appear to havve won the battle with the swallows ..... I saw these two starting to build a nest under the neighbours' roof

 

and now for some sewing!  I have been doing more handquilting on the "home is where the heart is" block

 

leaves and assorted twirly bits

 

echoing the curves

 

an assortment of hearts

 

echoing the wings

 

I put the binding on the scrappy strippy/strippy scrappy quilt (maybe I should call it strappy or scrippy?)

 

as there are so many colours in the border and the binding, it didn't really matter what colour thread I used, so I took the opportunity to finish up several reels of thread which just had a few yards on them ..... and for once the bobbin didn't run out with a few inches to go

 

I have to admit that I had a blonde moment, and cut far too much binding!

 

Leanne's House went back up on the design wall to be measured for the borders

 

the first border added

 

and the second

 

it's the last meeting of this session of Abbey Quilters tonight.  It is the AGM followed by a show and tell.  When I was folding Notes of Love to put in my bag ..... OOPS - I haven't embroidered the tiny hearts on the right of the centre panel of the heart!!

 

my sewing was interrupted for a while, when Malcolm appeared with a mid-afternoon treat .......

A change of plans

I had intended to spend the day in the studio sewing, but that didn't happen!  Malcolm had a day out arranged with his sister, Jennifer ...... but then the man from the company that installed the boiler phoned to say that one of the boys who installed it would come to the house first thing this morning to fill the hole in the wall, and do the final testing.  This meant I had to stay in the house until he arrived and carried out the work, so I decided to make some rhubarb and ginger jam

 

bottle last year's sloe vodka

 

and redcurrant gin

 

of course once the jam was ready I had to do a taste test (delicious)

 

I took my toast out to the garden to take the photo, putting the plate on the new table which Malcolm made yesterday (I must get him trained to take photos!)

 

we have had a change round of the garden furniture, so we needed a little table to sit between the two steamer chairs on the deck

 

I used the table later to take this photo

 

when I finaly got out to the studio, it was a bit late to start sewing, so instead I worked on a couple of designs.  First was the June block for Lucie's A is for Applique challenge.  The theme this month is the birds and the bees.  This is the first  draft of my block - I need to do more work on the birds!

 

I then did some work on the wallhanging that I showed you the other day, using the Moda squares for the borders.  The idea came to me when I was writing an email to Meredithe ....... I was complaining about havinng to do the shopping and the laundry, when  ........

 

but I do have sewing to show you, from the weekend.  I have finished stitching round the tree and fence on Lillyanny, and have also stitched the birds (yes, Anne, more ends to sew in!)  The next stage will be to satin stitch the birds' legs

 

I finished the Baltimore block for Abbey Quilters

 

so what was the detail of, that I showed you yesterday?  We were given a challenge at Abbey Quilters to make something on the theme of clowns.  It has to be ready for next Tuesday, the last meeting before we have our summer break.  I had a vague idea of what I wanted to do, so after a quick internet search, and employing Malcolm' drawing skills ........ may I present my wallhanging "I found Nemo!"

 

this is an example of my "sideways" thinking, as Nemo, of course, is a clown fish!!  I found some fish beads that I got years ago when we had a holiday in Western Australia, and some shells that I bought in John Lewis (a big department store) in Edinburgh!

 

to finish ..... the ongoing swallow war!  You might have seen a scarecrow, but have you seen a scareswallow?  This is Malcolm's creation to keep the swallows out of the garage - it looks as if it has a nasty weapon, but it's just a trowel which Malcolm had taped to a pole to reach something in the garden.  It certainly scares the swallows. and it gave me a scare when I opened the garage door yesterday, forgetting that it was there!!

 

 

More excellent sconnage!

We went for a long walk along the River Teviot yesterday.  The air was full of birdsong ....... and the smell of wild garlic

 

there were lots of wildflowers

 

not all bluebells are blue!

 

there were interesting old fence posts

 

an old raised section ......

 

...... and a new one

 

this swan was sailing serenely past

 

but the duck on the right stuck its head under water just as I snapped!

 

the river level is very low just now, but you can see from the detritus caught in this tree how high it can be

 

I love the way this tree hangs out over the river - it reminds me of the Pine Walk in Puerto Pollensa

 

I had to pause as I went to take this photo, as a car drove over the bridge ...... most inconsiderate!

 

we left the path at this point, and walked round the road and on to the bridge.  This is the view from the bridge looking on down the river

 

on the way back along the river, Malcolm spotted these ducklings with the mother.  They were being carried at some speed by the current, so it's not the best of photos

 

having walked so far, we of course needed some sustenance ...... and what better than a two-scone lunch at the mill -  as usual we had half each

fruit scone

 

cheese scone

 

back home I set the camera up on the tripod, in the hope of catching the tits going and out of the nest box.  Ah well, perhaps next time I'll manage to get more than its rear end!

 

I'll be back tomorrow with lots of sewing - I wonder what this is a detail of?

 

 

In a bind

I thought it was time that I put the binding on my Birdie Border Quilt.  For new readers, the quilt top was given to me by the lovely Helen when I was in Melbourne last year, and I had it longarm quilted by Kay before Christmas.  So on Saturday I made the binding

 

After machine stitching the binding on to the front of the quilt, I put clips on this corner to let you see how it will look when I get round to hand stitching the binding on the back (hopefully it won't have to wait another five months!)

 

I also stitched the binding on Notes of Love

 

today I was trying to draw better cottages for my wallhanging, but I was getting nowhere, so decided to put that to one side until I can get Malcolm to do some drawing for me.  Instead I got out this drawing, which I did several years ago for a little quilted wallhanging which I made for a swap.  OK, I didn't draw it, I took a photo of a teapot, cup and saucer and traced them!!

 

I decided to make an applique version, with a view to developing it into a pattern to sell.  These are the pieces drawn on fusible web

 

I decided to use these Tilda fabrics

 

this was the first version ..... the teapot doesn't stand out against the background fabric

 

this is the second version ...... better, but still not quite right

 

then, finally, I was happy with this one

 

I had printed out the wording for the original drawing from my laptop, but as I'm not sure about copyright for computer fonts, I thought I would rewrite it, using the same style of lettering as I have used for the A is for Applique blocks

 

the last stage was to decide on fabric for the border.  When I couldn't make up my mind, I arranged four different ones round the centre - I think I'll go with this!

 

when I was trying out the first teacup and teapot, I didn't fuse them to the background fabric.  This is a trial block from the cottages wallhanging, and it shows them off better than the patterned fabric

 

this afternoon I saw a great tit going in and out of the nest box on the wall next to the studio.  I don't know how many times I stood with the camera, hoping to get some photos - this is what I ended up with

 

however, when I went back into the house at the end of the afternoon, I was delighted to see a pair of collared doves in the front garden ..... I hope this is the original pair, reunited!

 

before I went on holiday, I tidied the studio ...... it hasn't taken long for it to descend into the usual state of (organised) chaos!

 

 

Home is where the heart is ........

........ is the theme for the April block for Lucie's  "A is for Applique" challenge.  In a previous post I showed you the fabric that I had chosen, and the little stitcheries that I hoped to use in some of the blocks.  I don't very often draw out a proper pattern - I just scribble a vague plan.  This was the first version ......

 

....... and this was the second version

 

I had decided to use the idea of hearts as flowers

 

as always I used a cereal packet to make my templates.  Here they are ready to mark out the pieces on freezer paper

 

I stitched the little stitchery to two pieces of fabric, the top piece is for another stitchery, and the larger piece is for the applique

 

after a great deal of thought, I came up with this wording for the stitchery

 

I'll show you the next stages tomorrow.  It has been very windy today, and when I opened the back door to go out to the studio, two of the Indonesian puppets under the hall table blew over!

 

this is how they should look

 

these bigger puppets are too heavy to blow over

 

to finish, some rather sad photos!  We had a pair of collared doves in the garden for several weeks, but now there is only one of them, who flits between the front and back gardens, calling for its mate.  For the past few days, it has taken to sitting on the wooden steps in front of the lounge window

My life in clothes

Until recently, I hadn't heard of Yvette Jelfs, then I found her wonderful new hat shop in Hawick.  Shortly after that there was a big article about her in the paper, then she popped up again on Saturday (click on the photo to enlarge it)

 

I thought it would be fun to give you my answers to the questions!

q: what's the last piece of clothing you bought

a: these two summer dresses which I bought on Monday - not from a fancy designer shop, but from Sainsbury's!  I am perhaps being somewhat optimistic that we will have a good summer!

 

q: best ever bargain

a: I bought this jacket some years ago when we were on holiday in Hampshire.  I can't remember what I paid for it, just that it had been very expensive, but I got it for about a quarter of the original price.  It is a silk/linen blend, with beautiful embroidery and beading

 

q: who has great style

a: the Queen!

 

q: name your favourite High Street shop

a: does M&S count as a High Street shop?

 

q: what are you addicted to buying

a: cute little cardigans

 

q: any fashion disasters that you'd care to tell us about?

a: that would have to be the electric blue platform boots from the mid 70s.  Sadly I don't have a photo of them .... I think they were abandoned to the back of the shoe cupboard as I couldn't walk properly in them!

 

q: what's your favourite item in your wardrobe?

a: I am embarrassed to admit that my favourite is my comfy everyday trousers from M&S.  To make it worse, I remember my Mum wearing them years ago!  I am probably wearing them in most of the photos you see of me - I have them in black, navy and brown.

 

It has been snowing again ...... this was the front garden this morning

 

the garden has been full of birds

blue tit

 

blackbird

 

sparrow

 

robin

A little flock of birds!

It was an afternoon of birds at patch'n'chat.  First Margaret, having finished her dog quilt, had moved on to birds

 

then Maureen was working on her version of the Lovebirds

 

finishing it just before it was time to go home

 

Katy, just back from a wonderful cruise, was working on tiny log cabin blocks

 

and showing of this delightful bag, which she bought on her travels

 

the Friday cake was very, very delicious ..... I think conversation came to a halt as we all savoured the beautifully light sponge, cream and raspberry jam

 

the forecast this morning said that there would be a band of snow moving in from the west, and another from the east.  For most of the day, we only had the odd flight, but it is snowing now.  I am supposed to be going to Kelso tomorrow for a Linus Coffee Morning ..... I am starting to think there is a gremlin trying to stop me going to Kelso!!  Whatever your weather, I hope you have a good weekend, and to cheer up those of you who are enduring the continuing winter weather ...... a quirky photo taken on a very sunny day in Sydney last year!

A mouse's tail........

......... don't worry, we don't have an unwanted visitor, all will be revealed shortly!  It didn't take long to make the bag, which was just as well, as it is called a quicky bag!  I started by removing all the pins and giving the square a press.  The next stage was to mark the quilting lines

 

and stitch them (the chalk pencil marks will rub off)

 

after folding the square in half on the diagonal, I folded the left hand point over to the right hand edge

 

I stitched along the fold on the left, then slip stitched the diagonal fold

 

that formed the first of the seven pockets

 

having folded over the right hand point and stitched the fold, I marked the next seam

 

having stitched the seam, I flattened out the resulting kite shape, and slip stitched the right hand seam

 

this formed more pockets

 

the last pockets were formed by slip stitching the left hand edges

 

once it was all stitched, I was pleased to find that I did indeed have seven pockets!

 

the last stage was the fastening.  The pattern suggested two large buttons and an elastic hair band, but I didn't like the look

 

so I got out my basket of trims

 

and one of my many button boxes

 

so finally we get to the mouse's tail!

 

having chosen the dark one, I starting stitching a spiral

 

when I had one more round to stitch, I formed a loop long enough to go round the button

 

and stitched the end in under the last round

 

the finished fastening

 

all that was left to do was sew on the button, and the bag was finished

 

all I have to do now is decide what to put in it!  To finish, a cute robin in the garden this morning