frayed at the edge

Many, many thanks ....

...... to everyone for all the kind words for Malcolm - it means a lot to him to know that so many people are thinking of him.  He went down to Ashington first thing this morning and is staying overnight in the hospital with his Dad, who unfortunately is still very, very ill.  Malcolm and I had a chat last night about writing about his Dad, and we came to the conclusion that I would tell you what was happening, but I won't say much more for the moment - we just didn't want you to think that I was posting my usual nonsense regardless of the turmoil in our lives.

So ..... I didn't go with Malcolm today as I had a major appointment at the dentist!  I know, it's all been going on for months, but another two appointments and it should all be over - but then comes the real pain - the BILL.  I took the opportunity of a day in the house to get on with domestic things - doing the ironing (my least favourite job) and cooking for the freezer - I still have a big pot of bolognese simmering!! 

During the day, I had an awful thought - when I did the post about the sticky toffee cake, I had a whole packet of butter in the photo - but I didn't say how much to use!  Please don't put in the whole packet - I used about 60g.  I have now amended the post - I just had the most awful vision of people melting a whole packet of butter.....

Of course, I have still been knitting, and the first little Christmas gnome is taking shape

 

I'll finish his beard tonight, and get started on number two - I think I will do him in green!

Stuart was planning to visit baby Mia tonight, so hopefully he will phone later with a full report!!
 

A tale of three cakes!

Did you think I had forgotten the photos for the Friday Cake Fan Club?  Of course I didn't, I just thought I would keep them until today!!

lemon drizzle cake and date and walnut loaf

 

And the third cake?  Following the success of last week's no-cook chocolate brownies, I thought I would have a go at no-cook sticky toffee cake .......

I crumbled the cake into a bowl and added twelve dates, cut into quarters.  I melted the two Mars bars in a small bowl over a saucepan of hot water, then added approx 60g butter to melt and mixed it well. I added this mixture to the cake and dates and stirred it together - that took a bit of effort as it's decidedly sticky!  Next, I put it into a loaf tin lined with clingfilm, then into the fridge to chill.  Last, I cut it into squares

So .... how does it taste?  Absolutely delicious!!  As you can see, I cut it into small squares, as it is very rich.  I think it would be even more delicious with a little cream or ice cream!!

 

I should have done the ironing this afternoon ..... but instead I got organised for my next knitting project (I finished my shawl yesterday)

These little fellows are so cute - I had intended to knit them last year (possibly even the year before) so I thought I had better get a move on to make sure they are ready for this Christmas!

 

Their little hats are so cute!  I've been saving up yarn - odd balls from the bargain basket!

I'm spoiled for choice for their beards - maybe I'll just have to knit lots of them to use all the different colours ......
 
 

 

 

 

 

Colour in the sky

Yesterday morning there was a wonderful rainbow in front of the house.  Unfortunately, I couldn't get far enough back to get all of it in one photo!  (I suppose I could have climbed the fence into the field behind the house and run up the hill .....)

the left hand side

the right hand side

the centre!

 

This afternoon, there was a dramatic sunset .....

...... but this isn't it, this is the reflection of the sunset on the clouds in the east .....

....... this is the sunset!!

 
 
 
 
 

A domestic day

As always, today was taken up with all things domestic (except for the laundry, which I did yesterday!!)  I am going to visit Stuart on Wednesday, so I offered to make chilli con carne for dinner.  I thought I would cook it today, as I think it tastes better if it matures for a day or two!

 

I know that looks like a very big pot - but there is some for Malcolm as well!!  Of course you can't have chilli without all the extras

I also did some 'baking' - this is loosely based on a recipe I saw recently in a magazine - no-cook chocolate brownies

Very simple - a bought cake, butter, chocolate and sultanas (there should have been golden syrup as well, but I don't have any!)  This is so easy - melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pot of hot water

crumble the cake into a bowl and add the sultanas. then once the chocolate/butter mix has cooled, stir it in

Line a baking tin with clingfilm (I used only half the amounts of the original recipe, so instead of a square tine, I used a loaf tin) and press the mixture in.  Pop it in the fridge for several hours.  Once it is firm, cut it into squares (quite small ones, as it is very rich!) and dust with icing sugar - yum, yum, yum

Once all the cooking was done, I sat down to finish off a shawl I have been knitting for Malcolm's sister, Jennifer.  It's just a little shawl - more a shaped scarf.  The edging is knitted first, then stitches picked up all along the edge.  The shaping is achieved by knitting short rows.  It's knitted in aran, so was very quick to do.  By the time I finished, it was starting to get dark, so I had to use the flash to take the photo, so the colour isn't true - it's a lovely soft slate grey, with little hints of heather colours through it

I am so pleased with the shawl, I am going to knit one for myself!!
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

Up from the depths ......

........ of the knitting basket!  Now that the shawl is finished, I thought I should see what UFOs were lurking at the bottom of my knitting basket.  Fortunately there were only two - and I have now finished one of them

 

Fingerless mits, knitted in beautiful sock wool which I bought from my lovely friend  Helen .  I can wear them covering most of my fingers for warmth, but if I need to do something, then I can roll the edge back

 

I should have put them on at eight o'clock this morning, as it was rather chilly when I went out to take this photo of the moon

 

We went up to Selkirk this morning, where this turret caught my eye - but Rapunzel was nowhere in sight!

 

We had lunch at the Lochcarron Visitor Centre - the last time we were there it was raining too heavily to take a photo of this quirky piece of topiary - today it was lovely when we went in for lunch - but I thought I would wait until after lunch to take a photo - and, yes, it started to rain as we came out!!

 

On the way home, we stopped in the carpark at Homebase to take a photo of Ruberslaw, the hill behind our house - fortunately the sun had come out again!

 

When we were on holiday, my friend Lorraine looked after the house and watered the plants for me - but I forgot to bring this one in from the studio - oops!  But I think it still has a certain appeal .....

 

There are very few flowers left now in the garden, but this little rose managed to survive the heavy rain

And finally ..... the mystery has been solved as to why an Argentinian blog kept showing up in my stats.  The writer got in touch to say that she surfs the Web to find tutorials to include  - and she did say she would remove mine of I didn't want it included.  However, as it is a link to me, I don't mind at all - unlike the time when someone had photos of one of my quilts on her website, without saying it was mine!!  Do pop over and have a look at the Argentinian blog - there are some good links (it's not all in Spanish!)

And finally, finally, I started the baby quilt this afternoon - but which fabric did I use - you'll have to wait to find out!!
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

Where was I?

Oh yes, I was in the middle of my post yesterday when the naughty little gremlins crept in!!  Malcolm had been trying to sort things out for me, but things still aren't quite right - it's just so annoying!!  Never mind, let's get on.

Before we went to Carlisle last week, I washed the baby shawl and blocked it using the wires I bought recently - they make things so much easier!  On Saturday I threaded pink ribbon through the eyelets ....

 

I took the photo on my favourite chair!

 

detail of the ribbon

 

I bought this book on Sunday - not just for the recipes, but because I couldn't resist a book with such a daft title!!

 

and if you think that's daft ....

 

dafter ......

 

and the daftest footnote!!

 

Yesterday (Monday) we went out for a walk after lunch.  Usually we head up the  hill from the house, but we went downhill for a change!!  I'm glad we did, because we saw these beauties!

 

 

Today we went to visit Malcolm's Dad.  We took him to Newbiggin for lunch.  He wisely stayed in the car when we went for a walk ......  it was just a bit windy, and the sea was a bit rough

 

We saw a bird that we didn't recognise - it was quite far out, so even with maximum zoom, we still can't tell what it is - if you know, please leave a comment!

On the way home, it started to rain and the sky looked quite dramatic.  The next two photos were taken from inside the car (what, you expected me to get out in the rain ... don't be silly!!)

It's funny when it's raining, but you can see blue sky!  Well, I'm exhausted after all that catching up - I'm off for a browse round all your blogs!!  Blogspot/blogger is refusing altogether to let me comment just now, so please don't think I've deserted you - of course I think everything you write is wonderful and your photos super!!
 

 

 
 

 
 

More livestock!

After falling in love with the gorgeous bull, today (fickle thing that I am!), I transferred my affections to a cute ram.  However, this isn't a real live one, but a toy one that we saw this morning in a shop that has just opened in Hawick, called 'Quaint or Ancient'.  The shop is a wonderful mix of quirky gifts (quaint) and antiques (ancient!).  I have named the ram Tuppence (another name for a ram is a tup) and he has joined Jacob - I think next time I will have to buy some ewes!!)

 

It wasn't just me who bought something in the shop - Malcolm couldn't resist some of their lovely blue and white china

It looks lovely on our blue and white place mats and table runner, as does our bowl of pot pourri and autumn squash

Also new in the kitchen is the tea cosy, which I finished yesterday - I turned in the edges of the openings and needle-felted them in place, to make it fit better.  When I took the photo, the light wasn't very good in the kitchen, so I took the teapot, resplendent in its cosy, out into the front garden

I paused on the way back in the door to take this photo of a pot of winter plants that I bought in the supermarket on Monday when I was doing my weekly shop!

I took this next photo late this afternoon when the sparrows arrived for their teatime
feed from the bird table.  They are very fussy and eat all the choice bits from the bird food, leaving behind one kind of seed - but I refuse to put out more food until they eat it all up!

On Friday, my lovely blog friend Lee celebrates her birthday.  We are in the middle of a postal dispute, so I didn't want to post her card (and there may be a little pressie too!), so I'm 'posting' her card on the blog (clever!!)  Again, because of the poor light indoors, I took the card outside - there was a slight problem though, as it was a little bit breezy, and every time I went to take the photo, the card would blow over!!  Finally, I managed to get a photo .....

..... but I then went indoors to take a photo of the inside of the card (you'll probably recognise the location - it's a chair in front of the French doors that I use quite a lot!!)

I know it's only Wednesday, but we're going away for two days, and although Malcolm has booked us into a hotel with wi-fi, just in case I can't do a post tomorrow, I wanted to make sure that Lee got her birthday card on time - Happy Birthday Lee - I hope you have a super day with your family - and enjoy the wine after your detox!!!!
 
 
  
 
 
 
 

I've fallen in love ......

....... with our new neighbour!  He's gorgeous - young and handsome, with beautiful big eyes ....... and oh, you should see his muscles!!  Would you like to see a photo of him?

 

 

isn't he lovely!!

I was slightly worried when he came over to the fence - he is very big!!

 

Now I have some lovely news to share with you.  Stuart's colleague Emma gave birth to a daughter yesterday.  She is called Mia, and Mum and baby are both fine.  I took another photo of the hat and socks ......

and now I can tell you what I have been knitting over the summer, which has been a closely guarded secret, as Emma reads the blog .........

........ a shawl.  It's not quite finished, I am just sewing on the last of the edging, and then it will be washed and blocked (stretched).   It's knitted in two-ply, so it's quite fine ...... and it's a well travelled shawl, as I knitted quite a lot of it on holiday!

When Emma told Stuart she was pregnant, he promptly said that I would make a quilt for the baby!!  So today I had a browse through my stash, and came up with four very different ideas

very, very bright

tasteful pastels

fun cows

very cute sheep

I can't decide which one to choose - perhaps you could leave a comment and tell me which one you prefer!

 

This week's word for 'weekword' has been chosen by Leenie - do pop over to her blog to find out what word she has chosen - and maybe you could join in this week!
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 

The wonder of the internet

Some time ago, I had a post called easy peasy tutorial - it didn't attract a lot of interest at the time, so you can imagine my surprise, when in the last few weeks it kept showing up in my stats.  A little bit of investigation has revealed that the tutorial is listed on this blog, which comes from Buenos Aires, Argentina!!  I have no idea how I ended up on the blog (I don't mind!!) - so I have e-mailed the writer of the blog to ask how she found out about me - I'll let you know if I get a reply!

 

Today had been another miserable day, grey, wet and increasingly windy, so this afternoon I was quite glad to retreat to the studio, especially as the Malcolm had lit the log burner for me!  Last night I finished the tea cosy - here it is sitting on the teapot

 

As you can see, it is a little bit big, so I decided to felt it - I put it in a bowl of hot soapy water, then gave it a good pummelling (for once ignoring the rule about only squeezing handknits!)  I also washed (but not in hot water!) the baby hat and socks that I knitted recently (the baby is due next week).  I took them all out to the studio to dry in the heat of the stove

Oh dear,  Typepad had thrown one of its periodic hissy fits and won't put in the photo - but I think (I hope) if you click on the red cross you will see the photo!  If you can't see it, it shows the tea cosy, the socks and the hat warming themselves in front of the stove - the best place to be on a miserable afternoon!  The tea cosy still isn't quite the right shape/size, so once it's dry, I will use a bit of needle felting to tweak it into shape!!

Malcolm made the dinner tonight and I wondered why he was shouting at me to bring the camera, when he was dishing up .... well this is why - he was so delighted with how his fish pie had turned out!!

mmmmm - it was delicious, and the sliced potato was a nice change from mashed potato on the top!!  And on the subject of food - of course there is a photo of yesterday's cake - the patch and chatters think it's hilarious that Annette's cakes have a fan club!!  So here it is - a yummy peach flan with cream .....

 
  
 
 

Bits and pieces!

I was so excited when I opened the post this morning - my lovely friend Sarah had sent me a belated birthday present - just look at what she sent 

 

a wonderful set of stamps - with pictures of post boxes!!  And .... the folder has lots of interesting photos and info

thank you Sarah - it is a super present!!

 

I was in a charity shop in Jedburgh this morning, when I saw this little cross-stitch kit - priced at only £2.50 - needless to say I had to buy it!

 

This afternoon, I met my friend Lorraine to go to knit'n'natter.  I hadn't seen her for ages, as she went on holiday just when we came back!  We had rather a lot of news to catch up on - including hearing about what she got for her birthday last month - a new sewing machine!  However I did manage to do some knitting in between chatting, drinking tea (and eating a toasted teacake!).  Malcolm recently bought me this tea cosy book (sorry about the marks on it - I accidently splashed it with wax when I was blowing out a candle)

I foolishly said to Malcolm that I would knit him whichever cosy he wanted - and some of them are very elaborate!  But being a man of tast and refinement, he picked a very simple one.  It should actually be knitted in a paler blue, but this denim blue aran wool was left over from a jumper I knitted for him last year

not bad for an afternoon's knitting (and I've started the other side!)

 

If you've ever bought a book from Amazon, then you'll know that you get e-mails for ever more suggesting other books you might like to buy.  Usually I delete them before I'm tempted - but last week I got an e-mail saying that people who had previously bought a book by Jan Brocket might also like to buy Cath Kidston's new book.  I made the mistake of looking at the new book .... yes, I bought it!

As well as all sorts of lovely projects, there is also a kit to make the bag on the cover - I think that might go to quite near the top of the to-do list!