frayed at the edge

A little bit of stitching

I have been working on the buttonhole stitching on the Autumn Breeze wallhanging

 

did you notice the end of thread hanging down?

 

I had run out of blue thread with just this bit left to stitch

 

I have been using up odds and ends of thread left over from other projects, but there wasn't a similar blue amongst all these threads

 

so I got out my folder of DMC threads, which dates back to when I did counted cross stitch, before going over to the dark side of quilting

 

I was delighted to find that I had the next shade, which is slightly lighter - as Malcolm said, a man galloping past on a horse wouldn't notice the different thread!

 

I have had this folder since Stuart was little - it was a Christmas present the year that he got a tape labeller in his stocking!

 

I also found these gorgeous metallic threads tucked into the folder - I think I will use them for a spot of embellishment on the wallhanging.  However, I think I will do the machine quilting before I add the embroidered details

 

at our last Abbey Quilters' sewing day, I got this piece of ready-quilted fabric from Sandra, our lovely Linus lady

 

my first thought was to get some wide satin ribbon to bind it, but then I remembered that I had this remnant of satin in my stash

 

I started by trimming the edges of the fabric

 

but instead of making binding in the usual way, I stitched narrow binding on the sides

 

then cut much wider strips for the ends

 

the binding turned under and pinned, to give you an idea of how it will look when I handstitch it on the back

 

I looked out this little packet of buttons, and I have used the star-shaped ones as eyes for the Sandmen ........ but I forgot to take a photo before we came over to the flat, so you will have to wait to see the finished wallhanging!

 

I regret that there is a short delay .......

....... in bringing you the sewing post, which will now appear tomorrow.  Instead, we have a Berwick post, as we came over this morning.  It was bright and sunny when we left Hawick, but it has been very misty here, as you can see from these photos

 

is Miss Havisham looking out of the window, in her wedding dress?

trees in the mist

 

the lighthouse is out there somewhere!

 

these cranes make me think of "War of the Worlds"

 

the railway bridge, seen through the arch of the new bridge

 

this makes me think of the "Marie Celeste"

 

but not everywhere was misty as you can see from these photos of old doors and gates

 

the old school is still rotting away, home to dozens of pigeons

 

alas, Malcolm hadn't secretly bought the "money pit" house, for me to turn into a quilting retreat!  But it is good to see that the new owners are hard at work rescuing it from years of neglect

 

walking on, we found a smart, well maintained boat

 

in contrast, an extremely dilapidated one, with weeds growing on it (I have offered in the past to buy it for Malcolm, but it's not quite the same as the beautiful boats we see in the marina in Puerto Pollensa!)

 

the new path on the quayside is finished, so you can now walk all the way up on to the old bridge .......

 

....... without tripping over an old mooring ring

 

back at the flat, there were swans in the mist in the dock

 

you can just make out that there are dozens of them

 

on our way home from our walk, we went past Lowry's coffee shop (ok, we made a detour down a steep flight of stairs to get there!)

 

we popped in for a cuppa ....... and yes, a little bit of sconnage!

 

there will be sewing tomorrow!!

Going out in style!

I didn't take any photos at the party on Friday, but I can tell you that we had an excellent time, there was a lot of "do you remember", a lot of laughter ........ and of course there was food, food and even more food!  I gave into temptation, and bought one or two last little bits and bobs ........ on the left is just some basic calico, then in the middle there is a useful white, then a versatile red

 

you can just see that the white has a tiny print on it - it makes a very good background for applique. The red has tiny gold spots - it will be good for all sorts of Christmas projects.

 

some luscious variegated embroidery threads

 

the cutest of cute buttons

 

and even more cute buttons!

 

when I was taking the photos, I noticed this tiny spider on the wall - I put a pin beside it for scale

 

so what do you think this is a photo of?  It is a length of green garden cane, with two raindrops hanging from it

 

the first poppy has flowered - and in the background you can see the bird bath which the fussy birds refused to use - it now has plants in it

 

the inside of the poppy would make a good textured applique block

 

to finish - some sconnage!  When we were out and about yesterday morning, we went for a cuppa, and shared a very tasty (and still warm from the oven) scone

 

back tomorrow with lots of sewing!

 

Today we start ........

........ with a finish!  I have finished the pastel version of the baby quilt.  Here are the two of them, folded in half and pinned on the design wall

 

so the next project to be worked on is the wonderful applique that the lovely Margaret gave me for my birthday last year.  I had added two borders some time ago, so thought it was time I got on with the quilting.  I found a floral fabric in my stash for the backing, and an offcut of cotton wadding

 

I got out this set of continuous-line quilting patterns

 

and chose this one, the Sandman, for the outer border

 

using my lightpad .......

 

I traced the pattern on to the border

 

all pinned, ready to quilt

 

I started by quilting in-the-ditch on either side of the pink border

 

then quilted the background of the centre panel

 

with a lazy meander

 

the final stage of the quilting was to do the border

 

I think I might add beads for eyes to the Sandmen

 

I had a hunt through my stash for a pink fabric for the binding.  Neither of these was big enough

 

so I made the binding with alternating strips

 

I trimmed the wallhanging

 

and pinned the hanging sleeve in place

 

the binding ready to handstitch in place on the back

 

I won't be here tomorrow, as I will be at a little party.  But it will be a somewhat sad party, as it is to mark the final closing of Borderland Fabrics, after the shop was flooded earlier in the year.  As this means there won't be any Friday cake, we again made a great sacrifice for the blog, and went out for a cuppa this afternoon, and forced ourselves to eat these two delicious cakes - a strawberry tart

 

and a banoffee pie

 

so, a day early, I will wish you a good weekend, love Anne 

And finally : part 3

After pottering round the Honey Farm, we went out the rear exit and down the road, passing the sign that told us we were in Northumberland .....

 

which of course is in England

 

we walked across the Chain Bridge

 

paying heed to this sign

 

and found ourselves in Scotland on the other side

 

staying on the Scottish side, we went down a path to the riverbank, then walked along the river.  I don't know what sort of buildings these are the remains of

 

I'm always tempted to see what is behind doors like this one

 

having recently watched the Jurassic Park films (yet again), I wouldn't sit here in case something crept out of the undergrowth and bit my head off

 

although I think I was safe from this little fellow

 

and if any vampires had appeared (even if it was broad daylight and they should all have been tucked up in their coffins), I could have waved this wild garlic flower at it

 

further along the river, we passed a field filled with a motley assortment of cattle

 

these two calves haven't yet learned about turning their rear ends to the camera!

 

and of course we have to have a couple of arty photos

 

I couldn't decide which photo to use as my last one ......... this one, of the car crossing the bridge which hardly looks strong enough for pedestrians

 

......... or this one of the steps to help you climb over the wall.  Why this one - because if you had jumped down on the other side without looking, you would have landed in a very large patch of stinging nettles!!

 

I'll be back tomorrow with some sewing

The weekend : part 2

I had thought that one post would do for what we did on Sunday - but having just looked through all my photos, we shall have to have a part 3 tomorrow!  We went to the Chain Bridge Honey Farm, which is just outside Berwick.  First stop was for a cuppa, in the converted double decker bus - there were too many people about to take a photo of it, but it is similar to this one

 

of course we headed upstairs - when we were little and travelled on buses like these, we always had to sit upstairs ......

 

........ hopefully in the much-coveted front seat!

 

as we had eaten so much cake on Friday, we shared a piece of delicious lemon drizzle cake, which came with a little pot of lemon curd

 

I wonder if the eggs for the curd came from this hen

 

since we last visited the Honey Farm, they have acquired a lot more old, mostly rusty, vehicles.  The Referendum campaign has reached fever pitch, with every news bulletin full of claim and counter-claim.  I had a quick fantasy of making all the politicians lie down in a row, them squashing them flat with this machine!!

 

although the back wheels on this one could dispose of a few of the more annoying ones for me

 

I haven't yet persuaded Malcolm to buy me a caravan like this one

 

if only I had somewhere to keep old vehicles like these, I would ask Father Christmas every year for one!

 

if I had known that they were installing a length of rail track, I could have offered them the benefit of my experience working for British Rail

 

a very old John Deere - it's probably a quarter of the size of a modern one

 

but we mustn't forget about the bees, working away to give us honey

 

to finish, a little taster of tomorrow's post

The king of the castle

 After lunch on Saturday, we went for a good long walk on the beach.  As always, I started by taking photos of the lighthouse - here are just two of them

 

the next two photos show the difference that the light makes.  The first was taken looking towards the sun, then the second is round the other side of the groyne, with the sun behind me

 

a lovely rusted old fitting

 

I might have to sneak on to the beach in the middle of the night and steal this, to put in the garden!

 

this reminded us of the Easter Island heads

 

I do like a good rusty bolt or two

 

Malcolm recently showed me a bit in a magazine, where someone had taken seaside photos and added little stones, shells and bits of seaglass, so I think I will get prints of the next three photos and have a play

 

we sat in the sun outside the cafe on the promenade to have a cuppa (no cake after Friday's gargantuan helpings!).  There was a little old lady sitting on the wall, with three dogs.  The one on the left was a feisty little thing, challenging every passing dog to a fight, even ones big enough to swallow him whole!  You may think the other one is gazing adoringly at his mistress ......... no, she was eating chips, and he wanted one.  As for the third dog ......

 

....... it was having nothing to do with the others

 

as we walked back along the path above the beach, a skein of geese flew past - if you click on the photo to enlarge it, you will see them more clearly

 

back home, there was a swan in the dock

 

and a lot more swans out in the river

 

this little boat has been put up the dock sometime in the last week, as it wasn't there when Malcolm was over last weekend

 

we always end up picking up bits and bobs on the beach.  This piece of seaglass will make a good sail for a little boat picture, perhaps with a stone hull

 

as will this piece of pottery

 

the small tyres have all been cleared from the beach since the winter floods, but this rather large one has been left behind.  Malcolm immediately went to stand on it, which reminded me of childhood, when someone would stand on something and sing "I'm the king of the castle, and you're the dirty wee rascal" ....... I doubt the pc brigade would let you sing that any more - much too judgemental, referring to someone as both dirty and a rascal!!

Bits and bobs

As always, I brought back some little bits and bobs from our holiday.  I think this little owl is supposed to be a child's purse, but it is just the right size to put my house keys in

 

I found this keyring in a very smart gift shop - perfect for my keys for the flat

 

I don't think  I will keep tea in this box.......

 

....... I shall probably fill it with some of my thread stash

 

over the last two or three years, several of the shops where I bought quilting magazines have closed, and the ones that are still open don't stock as many magazines ....... but I did manage to buy a few

 

who could resist this owl bag (and you can never have too many owls, and too many bags!)

 

my lovely friend Maureen has just given me two owly gifts.  She brought me this extremely cute ceramic tile owl from Italy, where she was recently on holiday

 

and this little thread holder was from her day out at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Edinburgh - for some reason Malcolm said I couldn't fly home from Majorca for the weekend to go to the show!

 

we came over to the flat this morning, bringing with us this little chair, which Malcolm has painted with chalk paint.  The fabric for the seat has been in my stash for years and years!

 

we had a potter round town this afternoon, then just for you, we ate large amounts of cake ....... this is Malcolm's fruit loaf

 

and my rocky road - we will have to do a lot of walking on the beach to work off the calories!

 

the forecast is reasonable for the weekend - despite the fact that it a Bank Holiday, which usually means it will pour with rain!  So hopefully we will be out and about, enjoying the sea air.  Have a good weekend, love Anne

 

Going back

Yesterday we went up to visit Stuart and Alison.  We stopped first at New Hopetoun Garden Centre, planning to have lunch ......... but it was mobbed, as it was a "10% off everything day"!  So we went to plan B, and went to Rouken Glen Garden centre, which is on the same road

 

as you can see, we didn't have any trouble getting a table!

 

Malcolm had a cheese and pickle toastie

 

and I had a coronation chicken sandwich

 

when we turned in off the road into the garden centre, we noticed this new building.  We went to investigate after lunch, and discovered that it is a new farm, gift and coffee shop.  We will pop in for lunch next time we are up that way

 

if you want to know what all these gubbinses are .......

 

....... ask Malcolm, because he used to work there!

 

this building in Grangemouth used to be a bank, but it has been lying empty for at least 30 years

 

we used to occasionally go to this pub for dinner ........ no matter what you ordered, it came with diced turnip!  Chicken curry, rice and diced turnip, steak, chips and diced turnip ...... yum!

 

when we parked to go for a stroll round Falkirk, of course I had to visit Hobbycraft

 

I asked this young man busking in the High Street if I could take his photo - I put a contribution in his bagpipe case in return

 

I didn't go into this new wool shop, as I didn't want to buy any wool

 

some major repair work on the Steeple in the town centre

 

a lot of people think that the Romans didn't come any further north than Hadrian's wall ........ but they did, building the Antonine Wall, which runs across Falkirk.  The house we lived in during the 90s is on the line of the wall, but we never dug up any Roman treasure in the garden!

 

Malcolm made this fence ........

 

......... which is somewhat neglected

 

he also made this bridge, which you can hardly see, as the garden is sadly overgrown (I will have to look out some photos of how it did look)

 

I wasn't trying to spy, taking a close up of the bedroom window ...... I was just amazed that my lace curtains are still hanging there!

 

after all that strolling down memory lane, we popped into the cafe in M&S for a quick cuppa.  We shared a cheese scone, which was tasty, but a bit small

 

somewhat larger were the meringues that we bought in the farm shop - we left one with Stuart and Alison, and we had this one after dinner tonight.  It was delicious!!

 

 

A stroll round the garden

We start in the front garden, with the beautiful blossom on the tree

 

but for all the blossom, there will be no fruit, as it is an ornamental tree

 

these yellow daisies will go on flowering for several weeks

 

this is the cherry tree ....... after only producing five cherries last year, it has been warned that it could be for the chop!

 

and this is an ornamental quince.  When we first moved here it produced fruit, but for the last few years there have only been a few stunted quince.  I wonder if it is because it has to be constantly cut back, as it is grows out over the path to the front door

 

now we are in the back garden, with another ornamental tree

 

Malcolm made two of these planters just before we went on holiday - again just using old wood from pallets

 

this clematis is the first to flower

 

it won't be long until this poppy flowers

 

I love the way ferns unfurl

 

the hostas are looking good

 

I bought this pot of lilies last year.  When they finished flowering, Malcolm cut them back and then just left the pot out in the garden over the winter ....... so we were  bit surprised to find all this new growth when we came home from our holiday

 

to finish ........ I haven't yet managed to take photos of them, but there are wagtails nesting in the ivy on the left of the wall, blackbirds nesting behind the honeysuckle on the right, and blue tits in the nesting box on the front left post of the pergola!