frayed at the edge

Ah - so that's what it's for!

We're sitting relaxing after dinner at Stuart's.  It was a special dinner, to celebrate Malcolm's and Alison's birthdays (hers is this Friday).  But first, what was the felt coaster for?

 

 

It was to sit on the cracket under his candlestick

 

 

Now that I have seen what it is for, I will make another one, slightly wider, with the pattern round the edge.

 

I also had his new curtains to hang - after making them several weeks ago, this was the first chance I had to put them up

 

 

For dinner, Malcolm had made lasagne (it's his signature dish!)

 

 

and pudding came from Marks and Spencers

 

 

would you like a better look (of course you would!!)

 

 

Must go, I'm missing out on the conversation (and perhaps a glass of wine!!)

  

 

Now it's official ......

........ it's my room!  This parcel arrived in the post this morning - a present from Sue

 

 

We had decided to do a little swap (oops, I forgot to take a photo of the things I sent to Sue) ....... I was thrilled to open my parcel and find this super cross stitch - so there is no arguing, the studio is mine!

 

 

 

I found the perfect spot for it this afternoon

 

 

 

I had gone out to the studio to use the embellisher, as Stuart had asked me to make something for him, and as we are going to visit him tomorrow, I thought perhaps I should get on with it!  He had asked for a coaster, six inches in diameter, with a two inch hole in the centre.  He wouldn't say what is it for, so like me, you will have to wait until tomorrow to find out!  The only other requirement is that it matches the colour scheme of his hall.  I pulled this unpromising lump out of the storage box ......

 

 

 

I carded some of the off-white stuff, and soon had made a start to the needlefelting

 

 

 

A quick look in the kitchen produced a plate and an egg cup to use as templates for the circles

 

 

 

so that I would know where to add my design

 

 

 

and then ..... oops - I got so engrossed in what I was doing (as I was working the design freehand) I forgot to take more photos - so we go straight to the finished article!!

 

 

 

Yesterday I mentioned jam - I've made more plum and bramble jam (although as this batch has fewer brambles it is paler)

 

 

 

I also started a batch of apple and rosehip jelly

 

 

 

Which I left overnight in the jellybag to drip through

 

 

 

Then boiled up with the sugar this morning, to give two big jars, which will be delicious with our porridge over the winter

 

 

 

And of course you have still to see the rosemary jelly.  It turned out really well, producing a full jar and some left over which we had with roast lamb for Sunday dinner - it was very good!

 

 

 

ps - there may be more jam/jelly/chutney posts to come ..... while I was writing this, our neighbour 'Jim the Farmer' came to the door with a big bag of plums, with offers of more plums AND cooking apples!!
 
  

   
  

 

 

 

Up with the larks!

I was up early on Saturday morning, as I had to get to Kelso for 7.45, so I could join the ladies of Abbey Row Quilters on a trip to Harrogate for a quilt show!  We had a brief comfort stop along the way, then three and a half hours later ...... lots of quilts

 

 

....... and lots of shopping

 

 

Normally I don't show you the quilts because of copyright issues, but as this entry included a website to order the pattern, I think I can show you these fabulous angels (you know how much I like angels!)

 

 

I recently bought 'Stitch' magazine, and promptly fell in love with the pincushion on the cover .....

 

 

...... so I was delighted to find that Sue Hawkins, the designer of the pincushion, not only had a stand, but was selling kits

 

 

And ..... since the magazine was published, she has designed another  colourway, which is the one that I bought

 

 

I also bought ribbons for some things I am planning to make for the Christmas fair

 

 

These felt squares were very reasonably priced - they will be great for embellishing ..... then I can use them for cards or bookcovers

 

 

Now, you may think I was very sad to buy this little kit, but I wasn't the only one to get back on the bus clutching one!!

 

 

As I crossed the garden this afternoon, I paused to take these photos of Malcolm's grapes - they may be small, but given that the vines are just left to get on with it all summer, we are really quite pleased with them

 

 

Did you notice that my forefinger is a bit brown - it is stained from cutting up plums for jam ...... more about that tomorrow!

Don't forget to leave a comment this week, so that you can be included in the draw for my giveaway for my 500th post!! 

  

Birthday Boy!

I didn't go out for a walk this morning, as I had something far more important to do ... I had to bring Malcolm a cup of tea in bed while he opened his presents - yes, it's his birthday today!!  (I didn't want to shock you by taking a photo of him in bed, so I took this later!!)

 

 

Here is the birthday boy checking his emails

 

 

He may have graduated in 1974, but his university haven't forgotten him!!

 

 

On your birthday, you are allowed to forget about healthy eating, and have this for breakfast!

 

 

And of course you have to celebrate in style

 

 

The sun shone on the birthday boy, and we were able to dine al fresco ..... steak cooked on the BBQ, my coleslaw and loaded potato skins!

 

 

Don't forget to leave a comment if you want to be included in the draw for my giveaway to celebrate my 500th post!  I'm off tomorrow on yet another adventure - I'll be having lots of fun and I hope you have a fun weekend too!!  Love, Anne

Jam, jelly and coleslaw......

...... and some butterflies!  I had to stay at home this morning waiting for a parcel to be delivered, so I decided to make some jam and jelly.  I bought this book some time ago in a charity shops - it has plenty of good, basic recipes

 

 

For the jam, I first stoned and chopped up some plums, which I had been given by Annette, the owner of Borderland Fabrics.  As I was only making a small amount, I decided to make the jam in the  microwave.  I added a little water, then popped the bowl in the microwave for about three minutes

 

 

I added these wonderful brambles (I have to admit I bought them in the supermarket, as the hedgerow ones aren't ready) and cooked the fruit for another two minutes. 

 

 

The next stage was to add the sugar and further cook the jam until it reached setting point

 

 

To finish, I put the jam into jars, covered and labelled it

 

 

Next came the jelly - but this is a savoury jelly, made with apples and rosemary.  Over the last few mornings, I have been picking apples in the hedgerow, so the first job was to wash them

 

 

Our new rosemary plant in the garden isn't yet big enough to pick a large amount from, so this is from the supermarket (the smell was wonderful as I stripped the leaves from the stalks!)

 

 

The chopped-up apples and rosemary went in a saucepan with some water and were left to simmer until the apples were soft

 

 

The next stage was to put the apple/rosemary mixture into a jelly bag, to let all the liquid drip through

 

 

That process is still happening - tomorrow I'll heat the liquid, add sugar and some finely chopped rosemary, and boil it until it reaches setting point, when it will go into jars.  

 

I bought this food processor when we lived in Indonesia, so it must be twelve years old!

 

 

It's great for making coleslaw, with a grater attachment for doing the onion and carrot

 

 

Then a slicing attachment for the cabbage

 

 

I added some sultanas

 

 

And last - my secret ingredient

 

 

Delicious - and it will keep for two or three days in the fridge!

 

 

And finally, the butterflies .... don't worry, I didn't cook them!  The buddleiia was covered in butterflies this afternoon - I managed to capture these ones as they fluttered by

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oops - nearly forgot something very important!  If I have counted properly, Saturday the 11th should be my 500th post (no, I can't believe it either!!).  Of course that means a giveaway.  I think I will do the same as last time, and have a UK giveaway and a 'rest of the world' one, because of the cost of postage.  So all you have to do is leave a comment  (or comments, the more you leave, the more chances you will have in the draw) between now and the 11th (and I will have to have a rake in the studio to find things to give away!)

 

Will the tooth fairy come ......

....... if I don't have my tooth to put under my pillow?  I thought the dentist might think I was a bit strange if I asked for my tooth, so I guess I won't get sixpence from the tooth fairy!  It all went as planned - he gave me so many injections that I'm still a bit numb three hours later!  He did all the nasty cleaning stuff, then before I realised what was happening, he had taken the tooth out.  I feel as if someone has punched me, but I'm sure that will have worn off by the morning.

Of course, no crafty stuff was done today - I couldn't have concentrated on anything before the dentist, and I've just been taking it easy since I got back.  Fortunately, I have some photos which I took on Sunday to share with you!  We went for a walk round the village of Denholm, which is only a few miles from us.  We have had a stroll round the main part of the village before, but this time we started off walking along the river bank.

The first thing we came across was this stone structure, which we think was part of an old footbridge over the river .......

 

 

...... but now both foot and vehicle traffic use this magnificent structure

 

 

This may look like something out of a museum, but it is still a working petrol station........

 

 

....... and this telephone exchange seems still to be in use too   

 

 

Just as I took this photo, a cloud of sparrows rose out of the hedge beside me!

 

 

This house is on the main street - it has various sayings painted on the front

 

 

After all that walking, there was only one thing for it - we had to go for a cuppa and a scone!

   

I was nearly Hitchcock!

These mornings when I go out for my walk, I am greeted by lots of swallows ..... they are gathering before they set off south for the winter.  They are very noisy, and constantly swooping through the air, so this morning I thought I would try to film them.  I've never inserted a video clip into the blog before ....... and I won't be doing it this time, as it was taking forever to upload (next time I'll make the film much shorter!)  However, I can show you them sitting on the wire

 

 

There was a beautiful clear blue sky this morning, full of contrails .... this one made me smile - did the pilot change his mind about where he was going?

 

 

When I saw this tractor and trailer coming towards me, I made sure I stepped as far back on to the verge as possible!

 

 

This afternoon, I headed out to the studio to start making something on the new sewing machine.  It didn't take me long to decide to use this pattern ...... I saw it recently on Thimbleanna's blog and just had to have it!  I was delighted last week when the pattern arrived

 

 

I like to keep my patterns intact, so I photocopied the pattern sheet, stuck it to a piece of card and cut out the bits

 

 

Then of course, I had to choose some fabric ....... I decided to use the beautiful fabric that I bought at the NEC ....... a bit extravagant perhaps?

 

 

I drew the head, ears, paws and feet onto a folded piece of calico

 

 

I set the machine up ready to sew - after picking the stitch, the screen showed me the settings to use

 

 

Sewing round curves is not one of my strongpoints - I am better with straight seams, but eventually all the pieces were sewn and cut out with a small seam allowance

 

 

Now, I have a confession to make ......... I should have then turned all those pieces right side out and stuffed them, ready to use when I stitched together the body.  BUT ....... I sat down in the summerhouse to have a cuppa with Malcolm, and picked up the book I have been reading.  I was almost at the end ..... and couldn't put it down until I finished it!  So you can blame Stephen King and his latest book 'Under the Dome' for not seeing any more sewing!!

 

While I was having fun in the studio, Malcolm was hard at work in the garden.  The pergola has become completely overgrown by a clematis, honeysuckle and climbing rose, so he had decided to cut everything back.  Having made a start yesterday, he finished the job this afternoon

 

 

I'm off to the dentist tomorrow afternoon to have my troublesome tooth out ....... I will have to practise my deep breathing exercises to stay calm!!

   

 

   

 

 

Anything ewe can do .......

....... I can do too!  The other morning, I paused to watch these sheep in the field next to the church

 

There was a line of them walking across the bottom of the field from right to left - there were even some coming through the gate from the next field to join the end of the line.  Then this morning, there was a line of them walking the other way across the field, with a group in the next field heading down to the gate to join in - maybe they just wanted to keep me company?

 

 

On the other side of the church, the old manse has the remains of an apple orchard in the gardens.  This morning, there were two horses kicking up their heels and generally having fun - but when one of them spotted me, it ran and stood between two trees - did it think I couldn't see it, if it couldn't see me?

 

 

It is now much cooler in the mornings and autumn is definitely drawing closer.  It is just about time to pick some rosehips - they are like jewels in the hedgerow

 

 

Of course it's Friday, and that means cake!  Annette treated us to another of her strawberry and cream sponges - but these are probably the last of this season's strawberries!

 

 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend - I think you can guess what I will be doing!!  Love, Anne

   

My lovely adventure!

Before I set off on my latest adventure, of course I crawled out of bed and went for my walk ...... and I am so glad I did, or the foal wouldn't have popped his head over the gate to say hello

 

 

and this Jacobs' ewe wouldn't have sat and looked pretty while I snapped her

 

 

After breakfast, we set of for Morpeth .... but not just to see Jennifer!  After picking Jennifer up, Malcolm dropped us off to meet up with one of my blogging friends .... Rachel.   I told Rachel she would recognise us, as thanks to our hairdressers, I am very blond and Jennifer is very dark!!  First we went for a cuppa (of course!), then we had a leisurely stroll along the river in the sunshine, before heading to a lovely Italian restaurant for lunch.  It was pizzas all round - I had a Messicana, with lovely spicy chilli

 

 

Jennifer got appointed portrait photographer, as Rachel and I posed prettily for her

 

 

I took a fabric gift bag with a china mug in it for Rachel ....... I forget to take a photo of it.  But that wasn't quite as bad as Rachel, who left her present for me at home in her fridge!!  But she has sent me a photo - delicious chocolate mocha cupcakes!!

 

We will just have to meet again so she can make some more!!  And to round off our fun day, we finished with a spot of shopping in Marks and Spencers' sale!!

 

ps - Malcolm had a lovely lunch in a garden centre, then he had a walk on the beach and picked up lots of bits of driftwood - I think he already has plans for using it!!

 

 

My new toy!

As promised, I have more photos of the rhinos in Chester - I just wish I could go back and see more of them!

 

 

 

 

Then, there was the visit to the Needle Museum.  It was very interesting, not just for me to learn more about sewing needles, but also for Malcolm as there was lots of information about the engineering methods involved in their manufacture.  And it wasn't just sewing needles - I I had to avert my eyes from this display

 

 

Needle making was a major provider of employment, as you can see from this census

 

 

If you think all needles are the same, look at this display

 

 

But if you were thinking of applying for a job, you might want to read the conditions of employment first

Perhaps you would rather just use some needles to produce wonderful work like this

 

I won't tease you any longer ..... yes, it arrived!!  A very big, very heavy box

 

After a great deal of unpacking and organising, I eventually took the machine out to the studio

 

Then I lifted the lid ......

 

..... an amazing array of stitches and fonts

 

Of course I had to have a little play - I've used black thread on yellow fabric so that you can see the stitches 

my first stitches - a bit plain, can we have something fancy? 

 

a row of umbrellas

 

one of the three fonts

 

I think it is going to take me quite some time to get to grips with all the functions and features - so if you can't find me, I'll be in the studio!

ps - except for tomorrow, when I'm off on another adventure!!