frayed at the edge

I promised you chocolate ......

...... and here it is!  First chocolate for children ..... I used templates from a magazine to cut out stockings and mittens

 

 

which will be filled with chocolate coins

 

For the grown-ups (well, probably for Mums!) there are candle glasses filled with chocolates, and with a scented candle to put in the glass once the chocolates have been eaten

 

Next ..... the gingerbread biscuits.  Oh dear - I turned my back for two minutes on the first batch ..... and they got just a little bit overcooked!  Not quite burned, and just about edible

 

The second batch turned out better

 

Two simple ingredients to make some delicious icing ....

 

...... they may not win any prizes, but they are tasty and were easy to make

 

I had a bit more success with my latest attempt at free motion quilting.  This effort was based on Leah's pattern cracked paisley  .... it may not be the right shape, but I am pleased with it (I thought it looked a bit like figs, Malcolm thought it looked like onions!

 

I finished the Christmas card which I had started at Abbey Quilters on Tuesday night ..... it is folded Somerset patchwork, and was quick and simple to make

 

I can combine yesterday's day out at the Woolgathering with this week's knitting update!  I have started another pair of afterthought heel socks.....

 

...... although I still have to sew in the ends on the first pair (it's the bit of knitting that I don't like!!)

 

I was also working on another pair of fingerless mitts in cotton sock yarn, which I finished last night (apart from sewing in the dreaded ends!!)  This pair is for a friend who is allergic to wool - and I have given the first pair like this , that I did some weeks ago, to a friend who has painful hands due to arthritis.  The warmth from wearing them helps her joints, while leaving her fingers free to do things.

 

To finish, a photo of some sparrows on the birdbath ...... as you can see, there is a rather large stone in it at the moment.  That is because during some recent very windy weather, the top blew off!  I think Malcolm is going to get some sort of sealant/adhesive to fix it to the base

I might get married again ......

.....if I can go to the wedding in this!

 

If you too would like to get married in style, then the websites are helpfully displayed on the horsebox!

 

There was another reason for thinking about weddings - we were in the historic town of Gretna, which has a long and colourful history of slightly unusual wedding ceremonies.  Do click on the link - it is fascinating reading!

However we were there for a very different reason - we had gone to do some Christmas shopping at Gretna Gateway shopping centre.  However, before we could start shopping, we had to make the most of several excellent photo opportunities.  As we drove in to the car park, we saw some wonderful cattle in the adjoining field

 

Then there was all this wonderful old farm machinery

 

When we left Gretna, we crossed into England for a few miles ....... but soon we were back on the right road!

 

We stopped in Langholm for a cuppa, where Malcolm spotted this old sign painted on the wall of a hotel

 

Of course I can't show you the presents that we bought, but I can show you what I succumbed to ........ when we do the housework on Friday mornings, we have a mid-morning cuppa.  I make a cappuchino (I'm not sure that's the correct spelling!) for Malcolm, amd I have a proper hot chocolate made with milk.  There were all sorts of flavours, so it took me some time to decide which ones to buy (although the white chocolate ones were ruled out immediately, as I really don't like white chocolate!)

 

I also bought the lovely shopping bag.  I now have so many re-usable shopping bags in the boot of my car, I hardly have enough  room to put the shopping in!

Friday round-up

When I was doing the housework this morning, I moved the orchids off the kitchen windowsill so that I could clean it, which reminded me that I haven't yet shown you the latest ones to flower!  We have one wall painted a dark red in the kitchen, which provided the perfect backdrop  for the photos .......

 

 

 

 

 

 

When I filled the bird feeders this morning, it wasn't long before the tits were tucking in

 

 

 

Then the bully boy sparrows turned up!

 

 

The Friday cake at patch'n'chat was a delicious spiced tealoaf - most of us spread some butter on it, for an extra treat!

 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend - I will be busy sewing!!  Love, Anne

 

 

An excellent weekend!

The fun got under way on Friday night, when I went to Sheena Norquay's talk.  I already knew quite a bit about Sheena being inspired by Orkney, where she grew up, as there was a large feature about her some years ago in this magazine

 

The wonderful colours of the scenery round her childhood home have heavily influenced her colour palette .....

 

...... and she stitches symbols from Norse legends into her quilts

 

So after an enjoyable evening on Friday, I was looking forward to the workshop on Saturday ........ and it turned out to be fabulous!!  First, we drew a fantasy bird on paper - I based mine on a heron

 

After transferring the drawing to fabric ......  the fun really began, as we used fabric paints to print all sorts of circles on the birds

 

I cheated a little bit and used a brush to fill in some of the body!  I decided to stick to the two colours of paint that I had, pearlescent red (which looks pink!) and silver

 

We finished the printing in time for lunch, which was supplied by a local pub ....... delicious lentil soup (sorry, I had eaten half of it before I remembered to take a photo!) .......

 

...... and trays of very tasty sandwiches

 

Then it was back to work! 

 

 I trimmed the fabric round my bird, added borders, then tacked it to a piece of wadding, ready to stitch.  This was the first time I had stitched using an embroidery ring - and I loved it - it just made it so much easier!!

 

This is a detail of the tail

 

All too soon, it was time to go home, but not before everyone posed with their birds, with Sheena sitting on the bottom right hand side of the photo ..... and I should say at this point a very big thank you to Sandra and Lorraine, who spent the day keeping us supplied with drinks and served the lunch, and then Sandra took the photo for me

 

Sheena had given us excellent instructions on how to finish our wallhangings, so yesterday afternoon, I started on the next stage, which was just a little bit scary - trimming away the excess wadding from around the bird - I was worried that I would accidently cut through the fabric as well

 

The next stage was to layer and baste the wallhanging, then to stitch in the ditch between the centre fabric and the border (I actually find sewing in a straight line difficult, and took three attempts before I was happy with it!)

 

Having successfully used the embroidery ring on Saturday, yesterday I got out a bigger quilting hoop and set it up. 

 

I stitched round the bird, then checked the back ...... disaster!!  The tension had obviously gone haywire, and a lot of the stitches on the back were big loose loops! 

 

After unpicking all the wonky stitching, I decided to leave it there for the day ...... and that's where I'm going to stop today ...... I will tell you more tomorrow, but now it's time for the knitting update.  I didn't do any knitting on Saturday evening, as I was somewhat tired after the workshop, but last night I finished the second sock, except for the Kitchener stitch

 

I have one more ball of sock yarn to use ........ someone recently told me about a method of knitting a sock with an 'afterthought' heel.  I'm sorry, I haven't got a link for it, but I just did a search on Ravelry and found it (if you're looking for me on Ravelry I'm Carenza!)  I forgot to print out the pattern earlier, so I'll just read the first stage from the laptop when I start knitting later!

 

ps - why do I still have that magazine?  Because of this page, which shows the Callender House wallhanging which I helped to make, and the church banners, a wonderful project which was organised by my friend Grace Graham

 

Gorgeous gifts!

I was sitting having a well-deserved cuppa in the middle of doing the housework this morning and reading a 'book', when the postman arrived

 

I got quite excited, as I knew it was the parcel from my swap partner Alyson.  I opened the envelope to find all these wonderful goodies

 

But you will have to wait until Monday to see everything ..... because a) the light was very bad for taking photos, and b) I just didn't have time before I went to patch'n'chat.  But I can tell you that they are wonderful thoughtful gifts - including a fabulous bookmark which Alyson's little boy drew pictures on for me!

Of course Friday afternoons mean cakes - today we had Annette's superb cupcakes, topped with cream and strawberries

 

Could you have resisted this delicious little cake?  And could you have further resisted when a second one was offered?

 

Earlier in the week, I was going to show you photos of the back garden, now that Malcolm has tidied it for the winter.  But Typepad had different ideas and refused to insert the photos ....... hopefully this time there won't be any problems!

 

Yesterday I showed you photos of the heron on the River Slitrig - but also falling victim to the non-appearance of photos on Monday was this heron on the River Teviot.  It was very windy ..... I had trouble keeping the camera steady, and he had trouble keeping a grip on his rock!

 

We have a busy day tomorrow, starting off the sloe gin and making the rosehip syrup - I'll report on Monday how we get on!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend, love Anne

All can be revealed!!

I've mentioned a couple of times that  I had signed up for Mousy Brown's swap, which she was holding to celebrate the second anniversary of her blog.  The theme of the swap was simple - celebration, two, mice and friendship ....... and you had to fit whatever you were sending your swap partner into an A4 envelope!  My swap partner is Alyson, who lives in Corwall, is crafty and has a two year old son - but she doesn't have a blog so I couldn't read up more about her.  I posted my parcel off to her on Saturday, and now that she has received it, I can show you what I sent ...... some things I made, and some from my stash.

a set of cards with photos of beautiful orchids, taken in Singapore

 

lavender coasters - the lavender if from our garden

 

teeny tiny gift tags and parcel decorations

 

fun socks

 

a fun musical candle

 

a fabric brooch

 

a set of wooden crochet hooks - Alyson has been learning to crochet

 

scrapbooking stickers

 

The last thing to be squeezed into the envelope was very special ....... a very cute little knitted mouse for Alyson's little boy!

 

Now, of course, I am going to be camped out on the drive watching for the postman bringing my parcel from Alyson ....... you know that I love getting things in the post - especially with foreign stamps like this one ......

 

....... which was on my (slightly belated) birthday card from Lee - she makes such wonderful cards that I have been known to steal borrow some of her ideas!!

 

Persuasion

Berwick Quilters held their exhibition at the weekend ....... and Malcolm didn't need too much persuasion to go, when I reminded him that there is always wonderful home baking at quilt shows!  I don't think he was disappointed by yesterday's selction (I should point out that we shared the cakes!)

 

 

There was a wonderful display of quilts ......

 

 

....... and Malcolm promptly spotted this owl

 

 

This is the quilt that my friend Katy made for her husband, featuring his wonderful Highland cattle

 

 

She also made this very cute teddy bear quilt

 

 

Another very, very cute quilt ...... I love the elephants!

 

 

I forgot to find out who made this amazing miniature quilt show - the detail is fantastic, given how small it is

 

 

Also on a very small scale is this bed - it is about six inches long

 

 

The quilt show was held in the village hall in Horncliffe, which we hadn't been to before, so we went for a walk before we headed for home.

The first thing to catch my eye was this tablet in memory of a former minister in the village

 

 

I was also able to add to my collection of post boxes - you can tell from this one that we were over the Border in England, as Scottish post boxes don't have ERII on them (she is the first Queen Elizabeth of Scotland)

 

 

Malcolm spotted this doorway - we thought perhaps the door hadn't been used for some time!!

 

 

The knitting update - I have finished my socks ........ but when trying them on - oh dear, they make me itch!  Hopefully they will be ok once they have been washed

 

 

I couldn't decide what to knit next, so had a potter round my stash and found a kit with this pattern, which can be knitted as a wrap or a triangular shawl (sorry, it wasn't the best of photos on the pattern)

 

 

I haven't decided yet whether to knit the wrap or the shawl, but as I have still to wind the yarn into a ball, I won't be starting it until Wednesday (I'm out at Abbey Quilters tomorrow evening)

 

 

To finish ...... I have great admiration for wildlife photographers who spend days, weeks, months, even years waiting for their subject to appear - I get bored after five minutes waiting for the birds  

 

 

Thoroughly spoiled!

I had a wonderful day yesterday, starting with a delicious breakfast-in-bed made by Malcolm (sorry, no photo, much too early!)  ........ smoked salmon and scrambled egg, served with sundried tomato and parmesan bread which I had made on Saturday (ok - I put a packet mix in the bread machine!!)  Later, we popped down to Sainsbury's to get the Sunday papers, and while there we had a cuppa and shared a Belgian bun - a special treat for my birthday!  Stuart arrived at lunchtime and we headed over to the cheesery, where we bought several tasty cheeses.  We then set off for a spot of lunch - only to find that the place we had chosen was closed!  However, we went instead to the Jammy Coo, where we had very tasty paninis (Malcolm and I shared one, having had the bun!)

Now we finally get to some photos ....... the wonderful dinner which Malcolm made for us.  The dining room was just dark enough to light the candles and turn on the lamps

 

 

We didn't have a starter - just straight to the main course ...... and what a main course!  Wonderful, tender venison, with a raspberry and bramble jus, and delicious vegetables

 

 

Then ........ the lemon meringue pie!  It was sooooo good (and I won't tell tales about Malcolm and Stuart having second helpings!)

 

 

We had our wine in our beautiful engraved wineglasses - and I couldn't resist taking this 'arty'  photo of the candle shining through the glass!

 

 

I finally finished the scarf ...... I was glad to find that I hadn't missed another bobble - it had somehow gone through to the wrong side.

 

 

I have finished knitting the item for the swap I am doing over at Emily's blog, and have started on a pair of socks for me.  As there are so many colours in the yarn, I am just doing a plain sock

 

 

To finish ....... if you have a comment form like this one on your blog

 

...... you may have noticed that I haven't left a comment for a few days.  Every time I try, either the comment vanishes, or I get an error message.  I am still reading all of my favourite blogs, and if I could comment, I would say that it's the most wonderful/interesting/profound/moving/funny post, illustrated with the most amazing photos!!

A special day

I set off earlier than usual this morning for Borderland Fabrics, as we were having a very special day.  People all over Britain were today hosting coffee mornings for The Macmillan Fund - but instead of just a coffee morning, we had a soup, sandwich and home baking extravaganza!

Things got under way not long after we arrived, when we were presented with a plate of goodies to have with our morning cuppa

 

 

For lunch. there was a choice of sweet potato and parsnip soup, which I had (absolutely delicious) .....

 

 

...... and leek and potato - also declared delicious by those who chose it

 

 

Then a selection of sandwiches - I had mentioned to Malcolm that there would of course be  cheese savoury sandwiches.  He asked why I was so sure.  I replied that there would be a riot if there weren't any, as we all like them (they are the ones at the top of the photo)

 

 

Then more cakes appeared - but I have to admit I had an extra sandwich rather than a cake, as I prefer savoury things

 

 

We had just recovered from lunch, when afternoon tea was announced!!

 

 

Of course we all made a donation to the Macmillan Fund for such a wonderful day  ........ then Annette, the owner of Borderland Fabrics, said that she wasn't taking the usual payment for our Friday session, but perhaps we would like to donate that as well - which of course we did.   Many thanks to Annette and her helpers for providing us with such a wonderful day, in aid of a very good cause.

Back home, the robin was ousted from the bird bath by a sparrow!

 

 

 

 

While the sparrow was having his bath, a great tit was tucking into the peanuts (you can see that all the fat balls were eaten while I was out)

 

 

 

This is a special weekend ..... it's my birthday on Sunday!  Stuart is coming down on Sunday and staying until Monday, but unfortunately Alison can't come as she has to work on Monday.  For my birthday dinner, Malcolm is cooking venison (because Stuart likes it) and for pudding he popped up to M&S in Galashiels this morning for their wonderful lemon meringue pie (yes, you've guessed - it's Stuart's favourite!!)   I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, love Anne

 

Tough love!

You may remember that some time ago, I had to give the orchids a good talking to, as they simply weren't earning their keep.  I had moved them off the kitchen windowsill this morning when I was doing the housework, and as I went to put them back, I thought you might like to see the effect that stern talking to had!

 

this is just a litttle one

 

 

this one still has more buds to open

 

 

this one has been flowering for weeks, and now a second shoot is about to flower

 

 

these three will flower soon

 

Inspired by this post by Rattling On, I took this photo this afternoon of the ivy in the front lounge.  As you can see, it has started twining round the candlestick!

 

 

I collected the little hare lino cut from Denise today - she has made a wonderful job of framing it, and if you have a look at her website, you will see that she also does wonderful pet portraits

 

 

The robin has been back in the bird bath - he is definitely the cleanest bird in the garden!

 

 

 

 

 

As well as being inspired by Rattling On's ivy, I had a moment of deja vu with her post today, as it shows butterflies on a sedum ....... I had taken similar photos yesterday - and I took some more today, as the butterflies enjoyed the sunshine

 

 

 

 

 

To finish - after taking the photos of the orchids, I replaced what usually sits on that spot on the shelf - my very cute holder for my mobile phone!