frayed at the edge

Thoroughly spoiled!

 

Yesterday was Mothers' Day, and Stuart as usual sent a cheeky card

 

as he was unable to visit (he and Alison will be down next weekend instead), Malcolm stood in for him and spoiled me all day.  I had a cup of tea in bed, then despite a dusting of snow ......

 

..... we headed out for breakfast.  I had the most delicious French toast with bacon and maple syrup

 

while Malcolm had scrambled egg and goat's cheese, with toast

 

as we left the coffee shop, I was given a little bunch of daffodils, which was a lovely surprise!

 

back home, Malcolm slaved all afternoon making a special dinner for me (ok, he had been to M&S for a meal deal!!).  Exquisite duck legs, cooked sous vide, with rosemary potatoes, to which he added green beans and carrots

 

and the pudding - oh my, a deconstructed millionaire's shortbread

 

and now, back to Saturday, and some sewing.  I added the next border to Mrs Billings

 

then made a start to appliqueing the small hexies

 

this is part one of the stitcheries - there are eight parts in all, but none of them shows a photo of the completed quilt, just a construction diagram

 

as well as the 32 stitcheries, there are 62 blocks with patterned fabric centres (I was going cross-eyed counting them, so decided to number them!)

 

I've made a start to cutting the necessary hexies (and look at all those lovely scraps)

 

and this morning I managed to track down a photo of the finished quilt on the Rosalie Quinlan website.  I think instead of having the hexies sticking out at the tio and bottom, I will put in half-hexies

 

meanwhile Malcolm was in the garage sorting out wood from his stash for his piece of furniture

 

there are serious power tools involved in this project!

 

and to finish ........ lambs!!  These little dark ones were in the field across the road when we came back from Berwick on Saturday morning

 

then this morning there were these teeny tiny white ones

 

the last two photos are a bit blurred, as these two lambs were quite a distance away - but they are so cute I had to include them

 

A new look!

Don't worry, you haven't come to the wrong place, I have just updated the header for the spring!  I have also updated my bloglist on the sidebar ...... do have a look and pop in for a visit to the new ones I have included.

So, back to yesterday and our walk back through the town.  Malcolm wouldn't let me "borrow" a golf buggy, to save walking back to the flat!

 

we don't usually see the walls from down below, as we more often walk along the top

 

this gate is small, to make it harder for the enemy (the dastardly Scots) to invade the town

 

 

this church is one of only two which were built while Oliver Cromwell governed the country

 

when it was built it had no altar, stained glass or bells

 

we spent some time reading the old gravestones

 

as this soldier died in 1800, we think he may have been killed in the Napoleonic Wars

 

next to the Cromwellian church is this more ornate one

 

which despite being in England, is Church of Scotland

 

across the road is this building, which has obviously been a church, but now appears disused

 

it had beautiful windows

 

then just a few yards along the road is  ....... yes, another church!

 

I stopped to watch this big machine working on a demolition site ........ Malcolm actually said that I could have one, when I said that I would use it to demolish all the politicians we don't like (that's a long list!)

 

we were looking at this menu outside a restaurant when I spotted the deep fried haggis ...... but what an insult to have batter made with whiskey, which is Irish ...... it should of course be whisky!

 

although winter is reluctant to leave, there are signs of spring

 

and we have to have some cake, as it is Friday.  Sadly not a home baked one, but some rather tasty muffins 

 

as the forecast isn't that good, I think we will head back home tomorrow, so no doubt I will get on with some sewing.  Malcolm has plans to make a piece of furniture for the flat, so probably he will be out in the garage playing with sorting out his stash of wood.  I hope you have a good weekend (and for my lovely Aussie friends, I hope it isn't too hot!!)  Love Anne

Fun on the beach!

 

 

We came over to Berwick this morning, and after lunch decided to go for a walk on the beach that is way over on the other side of town.  We went past the Bell Tower

 

then on past the golf course

 

we paused to look out beyond the lighthouse to Bamburgh Castle and Lindisfarne

 

 

 

 

then there was the beach below us

 

we very sensibly walked down the steps

 

but it might have been fun to go down the slide (stop sniggering, who said my bottom would get stuck!!)

 

we may have had fun making dams to divert the water running out to sea

 

one of us played with a shell, floating it on a little pool (which one of us ...... well, it wasn't me!)

 

I made a stone stack

 

which was dwarfed by the slab of rock I sat it on

 

Malcolm joined in the fun, and together we created this larger stack

 

the sun came out, casting our shadows on the sand

 

Malcolm thought this bit of broken wall looked like a crocodile

 

there was very little driftwood on this stretch of beach, but we did pick up some little bits of driftwood and china (I must knit new fingerless mitts, my pink ones are getting a bit shabby)

 

these birds ignored us, as they poked about at the water's edge

 

there were lots of limpet shells on the beach

 

but these are live ones clinging to the rock

 

I've still got lots of photos from our walk back through the town, which I'll show you tomorrow.  To finish, on our way back to the flat we popped in here ......

 

....... for a cuppa  and a delicious lemon meringue tart

The strange case of the missing coat hanger!

When I read Meredithe's post this morning about covering a coat hanger, it reminded me of a lovely blue velvet coat hanger which my Mum had given me many, many years ago.  I looked through all my clothes hanging in my wardrobe and couldn't find it.  Where was it?  I eventually found it in the back of Malcolm's wardrobe!!

 

I heard you asking what was that on the hook above the coat hanger ....... it is a tiny macaron case, which my lovely Aussie quilting friend GJ sent me a kit to make

 

after I had indulged in my usual Wednesday morning soak in the bath (complete with book, mug of hot chocolate and chocolate biscuit), we headed out to Melrose for a bite of lunch.  I was rather taken with these rusty chickens

 

and I think Malcolm was glad that this shop was shut so that I couldn't add to my owl collection!

 

after considering several places, we ended up in our favourite Rhymer's Fayre for lunch

 

Malcolm tucked into the "super" toastie - stuffed with ham, cheese, pickle, tomato and onions

 

while I had the tuna melt - tuna, cheese, sweetcorn and mayo

 

and of course we have to have a photo of the Abbey!

 

back home, I had finished another little knitted blanket for Linus

 

with, just for Amy, a crocheted edge!

 

the Linus bundle is looking good

 

and so to the fabric that I bought yesterday.  As you know, Borderland Fabrics, where we go for patch'n'chat, was flooded recently.  The sad news is that Annette has decided to close the shop ........ but the good news is that she is having a major sale first, with 25% off almost everything.  So I popped in yesterday, and this is what I came home with

 

I have already used some of the red fabric to put a border on the black and red quilt

 

which I couldn't show you on the design wall because I had started another quilt.  I had cut these strips years ago from a pack of fat quarters, but then I had realised that I had turned the fat quarters the wrong way, and the strips were the wrong length for what I had in mind

 

so I sewed them together in pairs, then cross cut them into squares

 

I put them up on the design wall

 

then today I cut squares from the white fabric that I bought yesterday

 

and decided that I would put circles, made from the scraps, in the white squares - I prepped this one to see how it would look

 

this afternoon I stitched the last of the large hexies in place on Mrs B, which had to be left over the ironing board, because of the new quilt on the design wall

 

and back in the house, there is another Linus blanket on the needles

A walk in the woods

Yesterday morning we drove over to the Woodside Garden Centre, and having parked the car, went for a walk in the woods.  We had only gone a few yards when I had to stop to take this photo, of the sun shining on a tree stump

 

since we last were there for a walk, this new bridge has been built

 

it is a major construction, with metal supports

 

there were lots of snowdrops

 

and the wild garlic was just starting to come through

 

this may look like a weird woodland creature, but it is a pile of fallen branches smothered in moss

 

this flash of white caught Malcolm's eye

 

we decided that it was a fungus, but neither of us was willing to touch it, to examine it more closely

 

this bridge is a somewhat smaller construction than the new one

 

this fishermen's hut is slowly falling to bits

 

we eventually had to turn back, as the path got too muddy, but it was no hardship to pop into the garden centre for a spot of excellent sconnage!

 

this morning I spotted this big fat pigeon poking about under the bird table

 

then this afternoon a robin appeared and sat at the edge of the bird bath

 

would he venture into the water?

 

he decided that he would rather have a meal instead!

 

I'll be back tomorrow with lots of sewing - and some knitting

 

oh, the agony!

Yes, this morning I had my last visit to the dentist for the current block of treatment, and had to pay the bill ....... oh, how that hurt!!  But now I am celebrating, as he fitted the new partial denture that he made for me, and my smile has been restored.  So this bottle of cava may well be opened after dinner!

 

we quite often drink this cava when we have our annual holiday in Majorca ...... where it costs about a third of the price here!

 

I also got us another little treat

 

now, I could lie through my (new) teeth, and tell you the I baked this cake

 

or I could be truthful, and tell you that I bought it in the supermarket!  We had some with our afternoon cuppa, and it was delicious!

 

although the partial denture replaces some back teeth, which you couldn't see were missing, I just feel that my smile has been restored, so I thought I would take a photo to share with you.  Not such a good effort, as I was looking down at the screen on the camera

 

ok, now I am looking up, but I have nearly cut the top off my head!!

 

then later on, I remembered that I can flip out the screen on the camera, so I can take a selfie (this is not something I usually do!)  By this time I was doing the housework, so please excuse the old t-shirt I have changed into

 

we are staying at home this weekend, so no doubt I will be out in the studio sewing ...... and hopefully on Sunday we will get out for a walk.  Have a good weekend, love Anne

Back on the straight and narrow

As we seem to have had rather a lot of treats recently, I thought we ought to get back to some healthy, low-calorie eating.  So yesterday I decided to make some vegetable chilli.  I finely chopped onion, celery, mushroom and green beans, and sweated them in a little oil

 

then I added chilli powder and ground cumin

 

and a little bit salt

 

and cooked it some more, to cook out the raw flavour of the chilli powder

 

you know that I don't like raw tomatoes, but I do like a nice rich tomato sauce in chilli and pasta sauces.  A tin of tomatoes would be fine, but the carton was on special offer!

 

the carton of tomatoes added, and it's looking good

 

the with the tomato puree added, it is lovely and rich.  I left it to simmer until the vegetables were soft, then left it overnight for all the flavours to infuse the veggies

 

today I took these two sweet red peppers

 

and slit them open, scraping out the seeds and membrane with a teaspoon

 

I filled them with the chilli and popped them in a hot oven for about 30 minutes

 

yummmmmm - it looks tasty

 

but how about adding some extras - grated cheese and jalapenos

 

so was it delicious?

 

definitely (and Malcolm enjoyed it too!)

Sun, sea and sand

Yesterday afternoon we decided to go for a walk, as the sun was shining and the sky was blue

 

that of course meant a lot of looking up for photos, to include that lovely blue

 

fortunately we passed a good selection of old chimneys

 

and the gulls were enjoying sitting in the sun

 

we walked under the old walls, to head for the lighthouse ....... this shows you the turns in the breakwater, which you don't see when I take photos of the lighthouse from the beach

 

I love the way this tree grows out through the wall, and then back in through the railing

 

but I did tear my eyes away from the blue sky to snap these two swans

 

although there were lots of other people enjoying a walk in the sun, I managed to take a photo of the lighthouse without anyone in it 

 

this morning we decided to take a run down the coast to Seahouses, which of course means passing Bamburgh Castle

 

we popped in for a cuppa, which was served in pretty china

 

there was a slight delay in the scone arriving, as it was heated for us

 

this little wagtail insisted on standing in the middle of the road

 

whereas these two large crows were much safer perched on a church weather vane

 

down at the harbour, Malcolm had his eye on these pieces of wood, but unfortunately they didn't fit in my bag!

 

and it might have caused a problem if he had taken the pieces propping up this boat!

 

there were two men busy working on refurbishing this boat

 

and there were lots of other small boats in the water and up on the quay, as there are few trips to the islands at the moment

 

we decided to go on down the coast to Alnmouth for lunch, choosing the Village Tearooms

 

Malcolm had crab sandwiches, which he assured me were delicious (I have an agreement with Mr Crab - I don't eat him and he doesn't make me violently sick ...... I have the same agreement with Mr Prawn)

 

I had stottie filled with hot roast beef and gravy - very, very delicious!

 

we dodged the flying golf balls ......

 

to go for a walk on the beach

 

there were lots of other people (and dogs) on the beach, but I managed again to take a photo with no-one in it

 

someone has had fun with driftwood, building a cosy little den - I hope Malcolm doesn't decide to build one in the back garden with his stash of driftwood!

 

in the distance dark clouds were appearing

 

but as we walked back to the car the sun came out again, to shine appropriately on this Inn

 

I'll be back tomorrow with lots of sewing.

 

 

My few purchases

I really was quite restrained in my purchases on Friday.  First some new pins - I have used so many pinning the edges of the stitcheries that I had run of of pins this size.  These are lovely fine French pins

 

I was delighted to get these patterns at what I think are very reasonable prices

 

my biggest purchase was this new cutting mat.  Here it is sitting on the old mat, which shows round the edges

 

although both mats were sold as measuring 24" x 36", that is the overall size of the new mat, but the working area of the old mat

 

when I had popped through to the kitchen on Saturday night, two things caught my eye.  First, the light thrown by this little fishy wax burner

 

and second, this candle, which appears to be floating in the air, but is actually sitting on the kitchen table!

 

we had stayed at home for the weekend, as the weather wasn't very good, and when we went to Jedburgh yesterday for a walk, I decided to switch the camera to B&W, to go with the grey skies.  First, we have two views of the old bridge

 

this may need a little bit of refurbishment

 

unlike the house next door, which is for sale

 

and this recently refurbished one on the High Street is also for sale

 

this tiny window is in Mary Queen of Scots house

 

as is this stone detail

 

and is this Mary's ghost looking out of the window ........ or is it just my reflection (with Malcolm looking on)!

 

of course we have to have a couple of shots of the Abbey

 

then it is back to colour for the delicious cheese scone we shared after our walk

 

we came over to Berwick this afternoon, and I have just been hanging out the bedroom window to take this photo of the rising moon!

 

A grand day out

Maureen came over at nine this morning, and we set off, not in my little car, but in Malcolm's bigger and better car (thank you, dear, for lending it to me!).   We were off to the spring quilt show at Ingliston.  You know the form, I can't really show you the quilts because of copyright issues, so this is just a general view of quilts based on Church Saints

 

but then, what is this ....... our very own Kay Bell had a display of her quilts, and when I asked her if I could put some photos on the blog, she said of course I could (thank you Kay)

 

this is Kay's description of the white quilt

 

 

and this is her description of the lavender quilt above it 

 

I could quite happily have taken this one home with me

 

Kay makes it sound so easy!

 

I love the way the straight lines of the centre are softened by the applique

 

she doesn't mention the beautiful scalloped border!

 

unfortunately the lighting wasn't very good on this stunning quilt

 

Kay mentions her free-motion quilting

 

here is just a little sample of it

 

you now by now that when I go to the quilt show I have macaroni cheese and chips for lunch.  I was delighted that they have gone back to using proper plates, after serving it up in nasty polystyrene containers

 

I met up with so many friends that I think that I spent more time blethering than looking at the quilts!  All too soon it was time to head for home, but we stopped off at the garden centre for a cuppa, and we shared a rather tasty cherry and coconut scone

 

amazingly, I hardly bought anything ...... come back on Monday to see what I got!  Have a good weekend, love Anne