frayed at the edge

The three bridges

The tide was up yesterday morning, so instead of going for a walk on the beach, we decided to walk along the river.  This meant we had excellent views of all three bridges over the Tweed.  First is the oldest bridge, Berwick Bridge, which was built between 1611 and 1624

 

the second bridge is the Royal Tweed Bridge, which was built in the 1920s

 

then the third bridge is the biggest, the Royal Border Bridge, a magnificent Victorian construction.  It is so long that I couldn't quite get it all in one photo

 

on beyond the railway bridge, I stopped to take a photo of this unusual railing ......

 

....... when Malcolm pointed out this gate, which was just a few steps further on.  It is a musical gate - the wind blowing through it plays tunes

 

we meandered on along the riverside path to Berwick Castle - or rather its remains

 

we stepped from the path down on to the riverbank, where I found the shell of a tiny green crab

 

usually I would call these brambles, but as they are English ones, they are blackberries!

 

we turned off the path to head back to town, passing first a wonderful old fence post complete with moss and rusty wire

 

then in contrast, a smart new fence

 

there is always time for an arty seedhead photo!

 

this padlock is so rusted, its insides have fallen out

 

all together now ....... aaaaaahh

 

we decided to try somewhere new for our lunchtime sconnage, and popped in here

 

we were very glad that we did.  The cheese scone was delicious, with lots of sharp cheese

 

and as for the fruit scone - it was very, very, yummy, rich with the taste of vanilla

 

I'll be back tomorrow with a sewing update, including the dreaded satin stitch polka dots!

 

A very busy weekend - part 2

As there was no sign of the remnants of Hurricane Bertha on Sunday morning, we set off up the coast to St Abbs.  As it started to rain just as we got there, we decided to go for a cuppa first.  The last time we were in St Abbs, this place was rather run down, but it has all been renovated and redecorated

 

and now houses a smart cafe

 

where we shared a tasty toasted teacake

 

when we came out of the cafe, the rain had gone, and we were able to go for a walk round the village.  We stopped to look at this sad memorial to the East Cast fishing disaster of 1881

 

 

from the top of the village, there is a good view down to the harbour

 

but I decided I would rather walk round the road than go down these steep wooden steps

 

on the way I stopped to admire these plump rosehips

 

down at the harbour there were ramshackle buildings

 

old lobster pots

 

a collection of ropes and floats

 

the tide was out, and it was a long way down into the harbour, so I was not the happiest of bunnies walking round 

 

perhaps I should buy this boat for Stuart ........ 

 

........ but then again maybe not - I think he would want something a bit more stylish!

 

there were lots of people about, doing all sorts of things - taking photos, diving (yes to the first, a decided no to the second!)

 

the sea was much rougher outside the harbour

 

this house up on the cliffs reminded us of Bates Motel (from the film Psycho)

 

and of course there is a silly photo to finish - I love this prow, which was on a  little boat!

 

A VERY busy weekend!

On Saturday, after a bite of lunch, we walked along to Spittal beach, as there was a seaside fair on.  It was much too busy to take photos, although I would love to have taken some shots of little tots riding on beautiful donkeys.  After a potter round the stalls, and having walked the length of the promenade, we decided to walk back along the beach.  Malcolm immediately started picking up driftwood, as he is busy making more trees, and has some other projects in the design stage.  I wandered along behind him, picking up the occasional piece of seaglass, but mostly just enjoying the scenery (and keeping an eye on the waves as the tide was coming in, and I didn't want wet feet!)

 

there was a large ship sitting offshore - we guessed it was waiting for high tide

 

we were immediately proved right when the pilot boat appeared!

 

as we walked back home, we kept pace with the ship.  It passed the lighthouse .......

 

........ and headed towards the pilot boat, which was indicating where to make the first turn

 

the pilot boat sailed on, showing the ship its route towards the next turn

 

but what was this coming round behind the ship?

 

it was the Lifeboat, coming back to the Lifeboat station

 

we quickened our pace to get to the dock before the ship.  There are all sorts of warning signs at the dock about keeping out - but no-one pays any attention to them at the weekend, so we went in to have prime position to watch the ship squeeze into the dock

 

the first approach was misjudged and they had to back up and try again, aided by the pilot boat nudging them into line

 

but, I hear you cry, what about the swans, with a hulking great ship rapidly filling the dock?  At first, they just moved into the corner

 

but eventually it occured to them that perhaps they ought to move

 

at that point we left the dock and headed into the flat, where we watched the rest of the proceedings from the window

 

the swans decided they wanted nothing to do with this huge interloper, and left the dock in a great huff!

 

we had an excellent morning out yesterday, but I'll save that for tomorrow, and fast forward to this morning, when suddenly there was a great deal of activity on the dock, as they started unloading the ship.  First a large lorry arrived

 

followed by a smart little machine (I think I'll be putting one of them in my letter to Santa!)

 

the first hold was opened

 

and in no time at all the lorry was being loaded ....... no sooner had it been loaded and driven off, than another one arrived, but we couldn't stay to watch any longer, as we needed to get home 

 

a very unusual photo to finish - as we were walking back on Saturday keeping an eye on the ship, we nearly walked into this newly-married couple's photos!

<

The guest photographer ........

........ has come up trumps with his contribution to today's post!  When Malcolm arrived in Berwick yesterday, he saw another very large ship getting ready to come into the dock

 

it came round the deep water channel, and approached behind the Harbourmaster's office

 

slowly, slowly, it came in through the opening

 

almost there - as long as the stern doesn't get stuck

 

phew - they made it!

 

not content with his "industrial" photos, he finished the evening with an "arty" one of a rainbow.  Thank you Malcolm for the photos!

 

while he was capturing the rainbow, I was out in the garden capturing the sunset

 

the buddleia has finally flowered, and as always is attracting lots of butterflies

 

to finish - it was tricky taking the butterfly photos, as it was quite breezy.  Quite a few ended up like this, as the breeze wafted the butterfly out of shot!

 

It's usually town v country .........

........ but today we have country v seaside, as we are in Berwick (woo hoo, this is my first post from the flat!)

So lets start with some photos from yesterday's post-lunch walk

 donkeys

 

sheepies

 

the Mintos

 

the Eildons

 

my favourite view!

 

now for some photos taken on our post-lunch walk today

a misty grey sky behind the cliff

 

fishing from the breakwater

 

a small boat passing the lighthouse

 

do the golfers bite?

 

a seaside bee

 

the railway bridge in the background, with the road bridge in front

 

back at the flat, I had to check out the swans

 

and the seal obligingly popped his head out of the water

 

we saw this van and trailer before we went for our walk

 

then when we came back, a boom had been put round the pilot boat

 

but there didn't actually seem to be a problem, and eventually the boom was taken in again

 

I want one of these (please) ....... you can't tell from the photo, but it was going backwards!

 

the new cushions look good

 

and to finish - some things are the same whether they are in the country or at the seaside.  Can you tell which is the country seedhead arty photo, and which the seaside?

That's it all over .......

......... for another two years!  It may have taken a whole day to hang all the quilts, but it only took about an hour to take them all down again.  It had started to rain late in the afternoon, so our banner, which was hanging outside, got rather wet.  I brought it home and hung it out yesterday to dry

 

while I was waiting for Malcolm to get home from Berwick, I had some fun trying to take photos of the many bees in the garden  - just as you get them in focus they buzz off to the next flower

 

 

the olive tree is flowering

 

and the grapes are swelling

 

Malcolm came home with some photos of the dock.  Another large ship had come in, this time to be loaded

 

several large lorries came in and parked, spoiling his view somewhat!

 

once the ship was ready to leave, the pilot boat appeared

 

yet again the swans had to make a dash for safety!

 

on Saturday afternoon he was entertained by a great cloud of seagulls

I had to get an emergency appointment at the dentist this morning, as a filling had fallen out (it was soon sorted, and the bill was more painful than the treatment!)  When I parked in Hawick, I spotted this very large gull hopping from car to car 

 

I was a bit early for my appointment, so I walked along to the cauld

 

I was delighted to see a heron standing in the water - there have been few sightings of them this summer

 

 

I'll be back tomorrow with lots of sewing

School's out!!

When I got to the College this morning, Tracey wasn't there, so after dealing with the burglar alarm, the next job was to put the urn and the kettle on.  Why both?  Because I needed my cuppa there and then, not later when the urn had come up to the boil!!

 

after a general chat about quilting designs, I showed the students how to hand quilt, then they set about making a start to their practice pieces

Betty

Jo-an

 

Jane

 

Susan

 

on our last morning, the table stayed quite tidy!  

 

all to soon it was time to pack up and say goodbye.  We have had highs and lows along the way, but we have had lots of fun too.  Hopefully I will see them in November for the Father Christmas workshop.

I then headed to Kelso, to help with the setting up of the Abbey Quilters' exhibition ....... I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.  

After a rainy evening yesterday, we had a striking sunset

 

the horses grazed peacefully as the sun set

 

to finish ....... I was entertained this morning by the young robin having his bath

Keeping an eye on the time

We popped over to Berwick this morning, as we thought our dining furniture might be delivered - there was a bit of confusion, and finally we found out it won't arrive until next week.  Never mind, the sun was shining and we had a lovely day.  We took over some more bits and pieces, including this fun clock, which I got from here

 

once we had sorted out and put away the various bits and bobs, we headed out for lunch.  We went back to Cafe Crema, where we shared a bacon roll and a roll and sausage - delicious

 

we had a potter round the shops, popping into Serendipity, where we were delighted to see my lovely friend Caroline, who is one of the crafters involved in the shop.  She handed us a little parcel with a housewarming present

when we said how much we loved them, she introduced us to the woman who was standing behind the counter with her, saying that Catriona had made them, and had only just brought them into the shop this morning.  Malcolm had already given me some of Catriona's buttons and a brooch for Christmas, so it was good to meet her.  Thank you Caroline for the super gift - we have plans to frame them.

After we had finished our shopping, Malcolm suggested that we went for a little stroll along the old walls.  I guess the seagulls think these high buildings are better than cliffs

 

can you spot the three seagulls in this photo?

 

what a wonderful place to play golf (not that I ever would, I can't hit the ball)

 

as we walked on,  there was the lighthouse ....... I shall have to get Malcolm to do a drawing for me to turn into a quilt!

 

back at the flat, it was time to check on the swans ........ but where were they, there weren't any in sight.  Then two appeared at the entrance to the dock ........ and suddenly dozens of them appeared from the corner of the dock that we can't see

 

Malcolm pointed out these two unusual lorries on the other side of the dock

 

to finish, one last seagull ....... they love perching anywhere high - this one is on top of a floodlight

Creeping ever closer!

I thought that I should make the effort today to get everything ready for next week's Abbey Quilters' exhibition.  First task was to finish my name badge

 

I then had to make a patchwork sash to wear said badge on.  I pulled this bag from my scrap basket

 

and cut lots of strips

 

it didn't take long to chain piece them in pairs

 

then stitch the pairs in pairs, and then the pairs of pairs ....... well you get the idea!  Miss Mannequin was happy the model the trial run

 

a little bit short, so I added some more strips, then trimmed the edges

 

I folded the strip in half, and stitched across one end, then down the length of the strip

 

the next job was to turn the strip right side out.  For this I enlisted the help of a ruler

 

pushing the stitched end through, until it appeared out of the other end

 

I then unpicked the stitched end

 

so that I could press the sash with the seam in the centre

 

Miss Mannequin modelling the finished sash and badge

 

she was delighted with the trim on the ends of the sash

 

I finished putting labels and hanging sleeves on my quilts, then turned to the last job of the day ........ making a cushion for the raffle.  I looked out some curtain sample pieces - two pure silk ones, and two silk/linen mix ones.  The colour don't look quite right in the photo, despite several attempts - the fabric in the top left hand corner isn't grey!

 

the four squares stitched together

 

the back stitched on ....... now I just have to add the binding

 

I just laid the cover on top of the cushion pad to see how it looked - pretty good I think!

 

to finish, a few more photos from the weekend.  On Sunday, we went for a long walk on the beach, and of course did some beachcombing.  Malcolm collected lots of driftwood, and I picked up shells and sea glass.  Back at the flat, I washed my treasures, then added them to this little driftwood sculpture, which was the first one that Malcolm made

 

as well as watching the swans gliding in and out of the dock, there were also boats to be watched

how do you like this fine fellow - he is in a temporary frame, until we get a suitable one (I got the print here)

What kind of doughnuts?!

I spotted these when we were shopping on Saturday ........ they turned out to be quite tasty!!

 

we had a couple with a cuppa as we started to get organised in the flat.  Of course, with all the sport that it on at the moment, some things take priority!

 

another priority ........

 

it didn't take long to go from a jumble in the kitchen

 

to neat and tidy ........

 

.......... despite frequent looking out the window to monitor swan movements

 

yesterday morninng we went over to the Waterwheel Cafe.  We parked and went for a walk along to the cauld to see the archimedes screw

 

 

We were amazed to see that there are major earthworks in progress

 

which of course meant major machinery

 

however as we walked on along the river, peace and calm was restored

 

we saw several trees like this, infested with strange looking webs

 

it won't be long until the thistles turn purple

 

the insects were busy

 

the river was very low ......

 

which meant there was no overspill to turn the old waterwheel

 

then, of course, it was time for a spot of sconnage for lunch

tasty cheese

delicious treacle

 

I'll be back tomorrow with a sewing update, but to finish ........ I wonder if this duck knows he isn't a swan!