frayed at the edge

Celebrations!!

We are celebrating our wedding anniversary today ....... 31 happy years!

 

please pop back in on Thursday, not only for this month's 17UFOs in 2017 report, but also for news of another big celebration on Sunday!

Brownie points!

 When we were driving up the A1 recently, we saw a sign for a new coffee/gift shop in Brownieside (the sign for the turn-off always makes me smile, thinking of my delightful bloggy friends Jenny and Lucy, the Crafty Brownies ).  So on Friday, when we were on our way to the flat, we popped in to check out Carnaby's

 

as we were early, we were the only customers, and I was delighted to be given permission to take photos to share with you

 

I think in the winter you will find us beside the log-burning stove (Malcolm may have plans for similar log storage next to our stove!)

 

this was the view from our table, looking out to the courtyard

 

I love quirky things, so the menus written on rolls of brown paper met with my approval!!

 

a pretty mug, unusual teapot, and milk in a tiny bottle - simple but stylish

 

the important stuff ...... the scone!  A delicious cheese scone, with butter and a little dish of chutney.  You know how much we love our scones, and we will definitely be going back for more!

 

I also checked out the facilities ....... a smart rustic theme, spotlessly clean, and with very posh hand wash and lotion

 

if you are travelling with little ones, they will love the outdoor play area

 

it is a lovely place to stop, quite and peaceful, despite being just yards from the A1 (and I should say at this point, I haven't been paid for this review, I have written it simply because we enjoyed our stop there)

 

and now, in other news!  This morning found me at The Quilt Shop, getting ready to teach the snowman with "wonky borders".  Normally, the appliqué would be worked first, and the borders added afterwards, but in this case, the wonky borders are done first, so that the snowman can then be centred in the irregularly shaped centre

 

one of the ladies who had signed up for the class was unfortunately unable to attend, so I just had three students, who are all regulars at the Wednesday sessions.  I liked Christine's three border fabrics - and I liked her sewing bag even more!

 

Sonia had been undecided about her fabrics, so brought in several to make her final choice from

 

this is Ros's machine and fabrics -  you will notice that first order of the day was to have a cuppa.  Sue wasn't in the shop today, but we were well looked after by the lovely Gill, who, when she wasn't serving customers, kept us supplied with teas and coffees

 

Ros, unfortunately was double-booked and had to leave early, but had made a start to her borders

 

by the end of the day, Sonia was adding the fourth side of her middle border

 

and Christine had finished her middle border.  They will finish their borders at home, then we will get together next month to add the snowman appliqué

 

while writing this, I am sitting with my feet up on my footstool, sipping on a well-chilled glass of white wine ....... bliss!  I have lots more photos to share with you, some from the weekend in Berwick, and some from the garden ....... so pop back in on Thursday for an extra post!!

Too hot!!

I have busy all afternoon in the garden, sweltering in the sun!  It is still very hot, much too hot to sit and blog!!  So I will just wish you all a wonderful weekend ........ it is a holiday weekend here in the UK, so I will be back on Wednesday with the end of the month update on  my progress with 17 UFOs in 20127.  And if you too are enjoying hot weather, why not join us with a glass of cider (mine) or a beer (Malcolm's)

Love, Anne

Margaret's exhibition - part two

Some more of Margaret's lovely quilts for you to enjoy!  You saw a detail of this fairy quilt in Monday's post

 

a nursery rhyme quilt

 

her latest project - Sunbonnet Sue and Overall Sam

 

a detail from another Christmas quilt

 

Hamish, the handsome Highland cow

 

Margaret had these badges made for the helpers to wear, and we got to keep them as a souvenir

 

one of her friends made this rabbit, and very generously donated it for the sales table.  When she hadn't sold by Sunday afternoon, I just had to buy her!  She soon made herself at home in the attic .......

 

........ but I don't think she will do much sewing on this little model machine!

 

this had been Harry's favourite .........

 

but then he saw this one at the exhibition and decided that this is now his favourite, so I brought it home to quilt it

 

the original pattern showed the penguins on snow, but Margaret decided to send them on holiday to the beach!  I shall enjoy quilting the penguins - although at the moment I don't quite know what I will do.  I will probably start by quilting in the ditch to hold the quilt together, then perhaps do some outline quilting round each penguin.  It's quite a bit bigger than the quilts I have quilted recently, so will be a challenge!

Margaret's exhibition - part one

When I walked into Eckford Village Hall on Saturday morning, I was amazed by the wonderful display of quilts!  I stood on the stage to take this overview

 

then I went back down to the body of the hall to take this photo of the stage

 

and here is proud Granny Margaret,  with her amazing grandson Harry.  The exhibition was to raise money to fund Harry's travelling in pursuit of more gold medals playing boccia.  I don't know the final total, but I know that over £1,000 was raised on Saturday from the entrance money, sales of raffle tickets, books magazines and other sewing stuff, and some very generous donations

 

before we look at some of the quilts, lets look at the other important part of the day!

 

Margaret's friends had excelled themselves baking and donating a great array of cakes

 

and some excellent scones

 

I'll start with this quilt, as yesterday the lovely Ivy asked me if I has taken a photo of this one, as it is her favourite

 

this is my favourite

 

and I love this little cutie

 

and this is my second favourite

 

while all the dogs round the outside are digging, looking for the bone

 

this cheeky little chappie has pinched it!

 

a lot of people commented on this little bear's necklace.  We all agreed that we would simply have put a circle round her neck, but the way Margaret has done it gives a marvellous impression of movement

 

this little fairy is from when she was going through a bling phase - click on the photo to enlarge it to see all the little crystals she has embellished the fairy with

 

unusual colours for a Christmas quilt

 

this lovely quilt has little bits of lace and delicate embroidery

 

Margaret uses a lot of buttons for her embellishments, buying any that she sees that she thinks she will use in future quilts 

 

a fun Christmas quilt

 

I still have a lot of photos left, so I shall share more with you on Wednesday!

 

 

 

 

Sweet treats!

The weather on Saturday was glorious, so when Stuart and Alison arrived mid-afternoon, we had a cuppa sitting out on the deck.  And with the cuppa, we had these sweet treats, which the visitors brought.  Now this sounds a weird combination - a caramel and chocolate scone, topped with slices of caramel wafer.  It was as sweet as it sounds - but sensibly, they only brought one, and a quarter each was enough!

 

they also brought two extra large Empire biscuits - I put my hand in the photo to show just how big they were!  So, we each had a half

 

this is the kitchen table, laid ready for breakfast on Sunday morning, with a pretty parcel for me for Mothers' Day

 

Stuart's card was up to (or should I say down to) his usual standard ....... he doesn't do soppy hearts and flowers!  And look at the beautiful scarf they gave my - I am a very lucky Mum!

 

after a hearty breakfast, they had to shoot off home, so that Alison could visit her Mum, and we headed off to Amble to enjoy another glorious sunny day.  We had a stroll round the town and popped in for a cuppa

 

no cake or scone, but you will see why in a minute

 

we had a potter round the varied little shops

 

and having tasted some cheeses, came home with these two

 

we continued our walk, under the watchful eye of some gulls

 

I always find piles of lobster pots appealing

 

we had a walk along the pier

 

I'm not sure if this qualifies as a lighthouse, and as you can see from the gate and the spiked railings, we couldn't walk along to it for a better look

 

on the way home we went through Warkworth - the castle isn't as big as Bamburgh, but still dominates the skyline

 

now, this is why we didn't have cake in the morning.  When Stuart and Alison were buying the scone and Empire biscuits, they saw this amazing cake

 

and knowing that I like Parma Violets, they bought a slice for me for an extra Mothers' Day treat.  I very generously shared it with Malcolm ......... it was so rich and sweet, there was no way I could have eaten the whole slice, even with my sweet tooth! 

 

and to finish, two wonderful skies.  First, last night's sunset

 

and the this one from this morning ....... I got up as usual at 6.20 to endure the implements of torture, and was greeted by a wonderful sunrise out over the sea

 

Another fun day!

We headed off down the A1 this morning, Malcolm to visit his sister Jennifer, and I to have fun day with the Wednesday Ladies at The Quilt Shop.  Ros has finished the bag that she was been working on when I was there two weeks ago.  She prefers this side ......

 

but I like this one!

 

Ros's next project is quilting this beautiful fabric, to make a quilt for a friend.  As she has her right arm in a stookie at the moment, having fallen while walking her dogs, I gave her a hand to pin it, ready for quilting

 

as always I had a browse round the new fabrics ...... lovely muted tones

 

....... vibrant colours

 

I was soon planning what I could do with this group of fabrics

 

I think these fabrics would make a lovely baby quilt

 

several of the Wednesday Ladies have bought this book ....... I am very tempted!

 

Avril was working on these blocks, which are a combination of applique and embroidery

 

I love Jill's delicate stitchery

 

Annie doesn't do subtle colours!!

 

Karen was working on an EPP project, with lots of Liberty fabrics (I WILL use mine one day!)

 

I liked the clever fussy cutting of the centre

 

drat - Malcolm came back for me just as I was paying for my purchases, so I didn't get the chance to hide them at the bottom of my sewing basket!!

 

and there may have been a little packet of buttons as well

 

do you remember when I was there two weeks ago, I suffered severe tin envy for Jill's tin?  So I was absolutely delighted when Ros gave me this diary today, as she didn't need it!!

 

I opened it at random for this photo - how cute is the duck!!

 

as I write this, I am watching the weather forecast, with the bad news that Storm Doris is on its way - I don't think we will be going far tomorrow!

Sunny Dunny

Dunbar lived up to its nickname of Sunny Dunny on Wednesday, with lots of sun and blue skies.  But before we went for a walk round the town, of course we had to fortify ourselves with a cuppa.  I like the tray on the table with the menu etc 

 

we shared a most delicious toffee tart - and I do like places that give you an extra plate and cutlery when you say are you sharing!  The waitress had to explain to Malcolm how to use the new cafetiere .....

 

...... when he put it on top of the cup, the coffee came out the bottom!

 

another post box photo to add to my collection.  This one is Edward VII  - the son of Queen Victoria

 

when you were admiring the lovely blue sky and the beautiful old building .......

 

........ did you notice the man sitting astride the roof?

 

an unusual street name

 

this gun points out to sea - I wonder if I could turn it round  lob a few stink bombs at the Numpties in the Scottish Parliament, then turn it back to lob some at the Westminster lot!!

 

you know by now that I have a warped mind - this sign made me think of a horde of Cliff Richard impersonators, running round singing "Congratulations" and throwing people off the cliff

 

very often walks with Malcolm involve long flights of steps, but I was spared going up these ones .......

 

........ although it would have meant getting closer to the bank of snowdrops

 

we passed a big house undergoing serious renovations.  Of course I said "I want one of these"!!

 

the remains of the castle

 

Malcolm pointed this out - but did you see the two seagulls or the remains of the window first

 

there was only one small boat in this part of the harbour

 

but there were several marooned on the mud in the other part of the harbour

 

there was no information plaque on this sculpture

 

and despite my best efforts, I can't find anything online about it

 

after a very enjoyable walk, it was on to the Garden Centre for lunch

 

in the very stylish coffee shop

 

stilton and broccoli soup with brown bread - delicious!

 

on the way home, there were several tractors out and about, each with an impatient queue of traffic behind it

 

even the enormous power station looked quite stylish against the blue sky

 

now, we may have started with a little Wednesday cake, but that doesn't mean we can't finish with the usual Friday cake!  We walked over to town this afternoon, and after we had run several errands, we popped into Café Crema.  Oh my - they have been experimenting with some new chocolate brownies.  Just feast your eyes on these beauties - mint Aero for Malcolm

 

and salted caramel for me - I got a fork as well as a knife, as mine was a bit squidgy!!

 

we were delighted this morning, after a flurry of communications from our solicitor, to finally have an entry date for our new house - so if it all goes to plan, we will get the keys on Thursday 9th March!!  No doubt we will spend the weekend making plans for the move.  I hope you have a good weekend, love Anne

 

In the past ......

...... when I headed to Sue's shop, it meant crossing the Border, but now we are living in England, it was a straight run down the A1 from Berwick to Morpeth.  As always, the shop was filled with luscious fabrics

 

indeed there was so much new stock, that Sue has had to add a new display unit!

 

did you notice the tins?  Here they are on another display unit.  I really, really wanted to buy a set, but there is just nowhere to put them in the flat (well, perhaps I could put them under my pillow?!)

 

and just look at these fabrics, but the "divorce" word may have been mentioned, if I bought any more fabric after boxes and boxes of my stash went into storage!

 

some of the ladies were getting set up to make a bag

 

one of the stages involved creating pieces using the decorative stitches that most sewing machines have these days .......

 

........ Barbara was a step ahead, as she had made these two pieces when playing with her machine

 

these two strips were stitched by Ros ......... she had asked me last year if I could take her a "proper" Scottish haggis, so every time I go to the Quilt Shop I take her one, and as I had to go back to Hawick yesterday to see the nurse (for the last time - hooray), I remembered to get one for her .... it's not just any old haggis, but a multiple award winning one!

 

I had a severe attack of "tin envy" when I saw Gill's tin

 

not only does it have an extra picture on the bottom ......

 

........ but this is the inside of the lid!!

 

if you are wondering why I haven't been showing you any updates of my sewing, it's because I am limited to working on my BFF hexies, and I am saving the photos for my "17UFOs in2017" report at the end of the month!

An excellent day!

On Saturday I headed over to Kelso, to spend the day with some of the ladies from Abbey Quilters.  As always, it was good to see what everyone was working on.  Elaine was layering up this very pretty scrappy quilt (I might have to add one to my to-do list)

 

Sheila was working on some applique blocks - I love her choice of batik fabrics

 

Ivy's quilt is made with a selection of beautiful Japanese fabrics, and the plain stars really pop

 

Lorraine's little quilt is made with Liberty fabrics (one day I WILL cut up my Liberty fabrics!)  You might not see from the photo, but the white background is also made of lots of little hexies

 

Rineke was very patient as I took photos of the progress on her stack-and-whack (if you google stack and whack you will find lots of info on it).  First, the centre of the quilt

 

then with two plain borders added

 

and a final border of a lovely soft floral fabric, which she said she had bought years ago to make a dress with!

 

this is Liz's scrappy quilt.  It looks very complicated, but using templates to cut the blocks means that only the seams of the squares have to be matched, none of the other seams meet

 

Margaret was working on her latest whimsical block - Little Boy Blue

 

hopefully Margaret will be holding an exhibition of her work in April - planning is in the very early stages.  As soon as I have the details I will let you know ....... I hope lots of you will come along, as it is to raise money for her disabled grandson Harry, to fund his very successful playing of boccia (this is an old newspaper report about Harry)

 

when Stuart mentioned he was going to a formal dinner on Friday night, I of course demanded a photo of him in his kilt, as I know lots of you like to see a handsome young man in a kilt.  Now, you may think this is a photo of him with his girlfriend Alison, but it isn't ..........

 

......... it is a photo of him with his brand-new fiancée Alison (cue much jumping up and down and squealing from his thrilled Mum ....... Malcolm was slightly more sedate in his congratulations!!)