frayed at the edge

A strange name

So, continuing our walk round Berwick (thank you for all your good wishes for our holiday home!).  Some names are straightforward

 

but this one suggests unsavoury happenings

 

I think this duck is a goosander

 

I don't know who this chap is - he was on a house some way down a side street

 

you know that I love to get things in the post - especially if they have come from abroad

 

so I was delighted to receive my "Daphne's Diary" magazine - I recently took out a subscription

 

the magazine is quite unlike any other magazine that I have read - and I have read a lot of magazines!  It has a quirky style, with lots of "handwritten" sections.  There are always interesting travel items - this month's destination is Dingle, on the southwest coast of Ireland

 

and there are delicious recipes

 

we had a heavy rain shower this morning, then the sun came out, so again we had a rainbow in front of the house .........

 

......... with a sheepie at the end of it!!

 

I finished the cross-hatching on the raffle quilt last night - would you like a sneaky peek?

 

doesn't it look great in my guest bedroom - I will have to buy all the tickets so that I win it!!  As always I shall be busy sewing at the weekend.  If you have wondered what Malcolm does when I am out in the studio ....... he has peace and quiet to watch football (and sometimes cricket) on tv, while reading the papers and tackling the crosswords.  I hope you have a good weekend, love Anne

 

ps - I have already bought some seaside themed fabrics to make something for the holiday home!

Mud, mud .......

........ not so glorious mud!  I suggested that we put on our serious boots yesterday morning, so that we could go for a woodland walk.  And we certainly needed them

 

but it was worth squelching through the mud to see snowdrops

 

daffodils

 

and the first shoots of wild garlic

 

after the soggy winter, there was a lot of bright green moss

 

and some interesting fungi

 

we reached the end  of the wood .......

 

........... normally we would turn round and walk back, but because of the mud, we deciced to walk down the road, although we weren't quite sure where it went

 

these sheep were enjoying the lush grass

 

the sun was shining on Ruberslaw

 

usually I show you the Waterloo monument way in the distance

 

the road eventually took us to the main road ........

 

........ quite a long way from where we had left the car, in the garden centre carpark

 

we were ready for our cuppa ....... but, oh no, they had run out of scones!!  So instead of scoffing sconnage, we had to make do with border tart

 

and orange sponge

 

when we got back home, I noticed a little white bundle in the field across the road.  A tiny lamb - the wrinkles show that it is very young

 

the weather was good again today, so after lunch I went for a walk, braving the muddy path again.  The ewes in the first field still haven't had any lambs, but I could see some in the field beyond them

 

I walked on round to the other field, where the old donkey was enjoying the sunshine

 

however he was obviously unhappy at having his photo taken, as he raised his head and let  out a volley of hee-haws!

 

as I walked back home, I was startled when a voice behind me said "ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling" - it was a rather elderly gentleman on a bike

 

I'll be back tomorrow with the usual Tuesday sewing update, and to finish ........ two of my favourite arty seedheads

 

Still waiting!

When the sun came out for about three minutes yesterday morning, I decided to go for a walk.  The muddy path was as muddy as ever .........

 

but I carefully traversed it to see if any more lambs had arrived - but, alas, the ewes are still waiting

 

I walked on round to the other field, but the ewes and lambs must have been on the other side of the slope, and all I could see was the top of the old donkey

 

although I was disappointed at not seeing any cute little lambs, I did have lots of wonderful scenery to enjoy.  I walked on down the hill, to where the funny little house was demolished last year.  The garden gate is still there - if I wasn't such a good law-abiding person, I would steal it!!

 

just beyond the gate, I took a few steps along a farm entrance.  Looking to my left, I saw (two of the three) Eildons

 

in front, (one of the two) Mintos

 

to my right, Fatlips Castle on top of the bluff

 

and further to my right, way in the distance, the Waterloo Monument

 

on the way home I had fun seeing monsters/animals in gnarly bits of old hedges

 

the sun was still shining, lighting up the church

 

of course sunshine and blue skies mean a photo (or two) of electrical gubbins!

 

what's that you're shouting, you want to see my favourite view?

 

this morning we went to Kelso, and had a potter round the shops.  We then went to the Hoot'n' Cat for lunch

 

Malcolm had a jacket potato with cheese and pickle, and a nice healthy salad

 

when I asked for a coronation chicken sandwich, the waitress asked if I wanted salad or crisps with it.  Immediately my inner crisp demon made me ask for crisps!!

 

I can hear you shouting at me again, asking if I bought anything when we were browsing round the shops.  You know I love magazines, and especially first issues of magazines, so of course I had to buy this one

 

these super cute pincushions may have to go on the to-do list

 

my other purchase is a brilliant bargain!  I was raking through a basket of fabric remnants when I found this piece of very heavy furnishing fabric with elephants - I think there are six repeats of the elephant.  When I showed it to Malcolm, he agreed it would make smart cushions for the front lounge.  I took it to the counter and asked how much it cost ......... when the shop owner said £1, I paid up quick and we made a sharp exit before she changed her mind and charged me more!  The elephant is actually a much richer colour than it looks in the photo, but the camera refused to show the true colour!

 

a bit of fun to finish - this brings a whole new meaning to walking the dog!!

 

Was there a pot of gold ......

........ at the end of this rainbow on Saturday morning?

 

no ........ just some sheepies!!

 

so what did I buy on Friday?

three bargain metre lengths, to use for Linus quilts

 

ricrac for the kits for the patchwork class

 

I love a bargain!!

 

a small hoop for machine quilting, to use with my smaller sewing machine

 

sashiko thread

 

lots of luscious beads

 

I'm blaming Maureen for this last purchase .......... she dragged me to the stall and twisted my arm up my back until I bought it....... she pointed out this delightful kit, knowing that I am an owl fan

 

when I got home, there were two little parcels for me.  The first contained these sewing-related charms.  I had been looking for scissor charms when I found this pack of mixed charms

 

but as I needed eight scissor charms, I searched further, and found these ones

 

when I was busy sewing on Saturday, this film was on tv

 

the film starts with Charlton Heston getting in a pod, to sleep for a year.  He is clean-shaven when he gets in, but as you can see, he has a full beard when he wakes up.  I don't want to nit-picky ......... but why does he have short fingernails - surely they would have grown as much as his beard?

 

the nuthatch paid a brief visit to the peanut feeder this morning

 

when I was out in the garden this afternoon, a little flash of yellow caught my eye.  These are miniature narcissi, just six inches high

 

I'll be back tomorrow with a sewing update, although I can't show you one of the the things I am working on at the moment ........ I am hand quilting the Abbey Quilters' raffle quilt.  I am spending two hours every evening stitching away, crosshatching twenty five Baltimore blocks.  I have done the lines in one direction on all the blocks, and am on the tenth block working the lines going the other way.  Once I have finished, I'll pass the quilt on for quilting to be done on the applique centres of the blocks, then someone else will put the binding on.  I hope to be able to show you the quilt soon.

 

 

Strolling along ......

........ through the streets of Alnwick, there was still plenty to see.  It's a while since I included a photo of a postbox - this one is Victorian, so it is well over a hundred years old!

 

I haven't been able to find out anything about this imposing structure

 

this is part of the parish church

 

a very stylish headstone

 

this sad little stone doesn't have a name on it

 

this one is heartbreaking

 

if only Edward Stamp could have seen this testimonial!

 

this used to be the route of the A1 - the main road down the east side of the country from Scotland to England (or up from England to Scotland)

 

this is the entrance to the castle

 

with these quirky figures on the top

 

I usually take photos of the scenery through the windscreen, but this section of road was like a rollercoaster, and as the car swooped up and down, I just couldn't take a decent photo.  Fortunately Malcolm spotted a layby and pulled over, so that I could take photos of the wonderful  (if a bit hazy) scenery

 

Malcolm gets very impatient if he is held up at a junction, but I didn't mind when we had to wait for several cars to go past before we could turn, as it meant I could snap these chickens, wandering about just inches from the traffic

 

we had a stop on the way home for a cuppa, at the Cafe Maelmin.  Years ago we used to call in here regularly for breakfast when we were on our way to visit Malcolm's parents.  Over the years the decor has changed several times, but there is always a friendly welcome, and the food is good.  We couldn't resist the lemon drizzle cake!

 

tomorrow Maureen and I will be heading up the road to Edinburgh for the spring quilt show  I have some pocket money to spend, and I'm hoping that macaroni cheese will be on the menu for lunch!

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A long way for a short cut ......

..... a short haircut, that is.  Malcolm is very fussy about how his hair is cut, and recently has been going to a barbers in Alnwick - he goes after he has dropped me off at Anne's shop.  As usual, for at least the last two weeks I have been saying "You need a haircut dear", so on Monday he suggested that, as the weather forecast was reasonable, we could have a day out in Anwick on Wednesday.  As I hadn't been to the town for years, I happily agreed.  It was a bit grey when we left home, but as we drove south the weather improved

 

while Malcolm was getting his hair cut, I pottered round the town looking for things to take photos of, first looking up

 

then looking round

 

 

a shop devoted to chocolate!!

 

when Malcolm eventually emerged from the barbers (who knew it took so long to have short hair cut a bit shorter!) we went to this delightful coffee shop for lunch

 

Malcolm had chorizo quesadilla, with salad, mayo and hummus

 

and I had a delicious seeded roll with cheese savoury, also with salad, and mayo in the cute little pot

 

after lunch, we walked round to Barter Books

 

there were so many books, it was a bit overwhelming, and in the end we didn't buy anything.  I think we would need to go back when we had much more time to spend browsing

 

as we continued on our walk, we spotted this flowering currant, which is much further on than the one in our front garden

 

our next stop was at Alnwick Castle, but as the castle is closed for the winter, we just had to view it from afar

 

we could have visited Alnwick Garden, but we decided to save that for a brighter day.  We just had a sneaky peak through the entrance at the water cascade when the attendant wasn't looking!

 

as we left, I noticed this tiny rusty door - it is about the size of an A4 sheet of paper.  I wonder what it is for?

 

continuing our walk, we came across this fine statue of Harry Hotspur

 

I still have quite a few photos left, so I shall save them for tomorrow.  To finish today's post ....... a litttle hint of spring, some bright aconites

 

The rest of the news ........

........ after the excitement of yesterday's lambs and donkeys, I hope you are not too bored by today's post of scenery and sewing (and some excellent sconnage)!!  I headed over to Kelso on Saturday morning for the Abbey Quilters' workshop.  It turned out to be a quiet day, with only seven of us there.  But it got off to a very good start when the lovely Val produced a tin of delicious scones, topped with a tasty, sharp cheddar

 

then at lunchtime she produced a wonderful chocolate tray bake - yum, yum!

 

I was working on my samples for my upcoming classes - more of that later.  On Sunday we got up to blue skies - hooray!  We decided to go for a walk to have another look at the Archimedes screws, as they were having problems with them when we were there just before Christmas with Stuart and Alison.  There was a lot of water going over the cauld

 

and a lot going through the screws

 

I paused to read the informative signs (click on the photos to enlarge them)

 

now that the building work is finished, we were able to walk on along the riverbank

 

I wonder why someone had spray painted this pine cone

 

we walked back to the Waterwheel cafe for a cuppa - but had a diversion over to the neighbouring field to take photos of the sheep

 

the scones were delicious ...... one cheese and one fruit

 

I took some photos of the scenery as we drove back down to Hawick - you can see a little bit of snow on the hills in the distance

 

today I finished off the prep work hhat I was doing on Saturday for the needlecase, which is week one of the classes, and pinned all the stages to a polystyrene sheet

 

I finally decided which fabrics to use for the kits that the students will get

 

this is what they will get on the first morning - I have still to add the ricrac and a length of ribbon

 

the last thing to go in the pack will be the worksheets - I know they will be last as I haven't written them yet!

 

I was very spoiled this afternoon when Malcolm brought out my hot chocolate ...... he had bought some custard doughnuts when he was out this morning ........  I will have to work extra hard on the implements of torture for a few mornings to work off the calories!!

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Gallivanting again!

We were back in Berwick this morning ....... I can't tell you just yet why we have been there several times recently, but hopefully I will be able to tell you soon.  We got there just in time for a cuppa - this is my tea, Malcolm as usual had coffee

 

then we added to our sconnage scoffing, with this very tasty cheese and herb scone

 

this was the first time we had been in this coffee shop/restaurant, and we were very impressed with it

 

I loved this section of wall, made of padded squares of fabric ........I have so much fabric I could probably cover most of our walls like this!

 

after we had taken care of our bit of business, we braved the biting cold wind to have a walk round the town.  I remembered my own advice to look up, and spotted this on a house wall .......

 

........ then a few houses further on, the same decoration, but painted this time

 

I liked this detail above a window

 

the three bridges - from front to back, the old, narrow bridge into town, just wide enough for one lane for cars and two narrow pavements for pedestrians, then the "new" bridge, which takes most of the traffic, and at the back the railway viaduct, which carries the East Coast Main Line

 

these pigeons were wise to shelter from the wind on this ledge on the new bridge

 

I was trying to be arty, looking through the new bridge, to the viaduct beyond

 

we discovered this wonderful shop, full of beautifully painted furniture, and spent some time chatting to the delightful owner

 

as our extremities were going numb with the cold, we headed off to the garden centre for lunch.  As we fancied both soups, we got a bowl of each, then shared them!

broccoli, cauliflower and cheddar - delicious

 

lentil - almost as delicious

 

we also shared a cheese and pickle toastie - it might not win a prize for presentation, but it made up for that by being very tasty!

 

after lunch we headed over to Coldstream, as Malcolm had to take his car in to the dealers, as he had had a recall notice to have his battery replaced.  While the work was being done, we went for a stroll round the town, and came across these two young swans (I was struggling to hold the camera, with the long lens, steady in the wind, so the swans are off to the side)

 

I have taken lots of photos of this bridge - Scotland is on the left and England on the right

 

a flash of colour caught my eye - I don't know what this plant is

 

a hazy view, with the snow-topped Cheviots in the distance

 

at the end of the path above the river we found this new, very stylish, wooden shelter

 

by this time we were decidely cold againn, and glad to head back to pick up the car.  After all the food we consumed while we were out, we had a very light dinner!  But we will be having a special, romantic dinner tomorrow for Valentine's Day ....... and there may be a bottle of something bubbly to go with it!

Yesterday's post today!

After all the excitement of lambs and donkeys yesterday, it's back on track today.  On Sunday morning, we headed up to Newtown St Boswells to go for a walk.  We haven't been on some of our favourite woodland walks this winter as it has been so wet, instead we have been sticking to walks on pavements and roads.  When we got out of the car, this goose had a loud honk at us!

 

although it was chilly, the sun was shining, and the newy ploughed fields added rich colours to the scenery

 

the last time we walked this route was in the autumn, when the leaves were still on the trees.  The views were somewhat different, seen through the bare trees

 

I do love a good old higgledy piggledy gate (or two)

 

of course  there has to be an arty seedhead photo

 

we were going to walk as far as the tree ........

 

........ but the stone path ended, and we didn't fancy squelching through the mud

 

the sky ahead was blue

 

but when we turned to head back to the car, there was an ominous dark cloud

 

we hadn't gone far when it started to rain, and by  the time we got back to the car we were wet and cold!  However we headed to the Old Melrose Tearooms, where we had a very welcome cuppa, and shared a delicious toasted teacake

 

we got up this morning to find that it was snowing

 

of course I didn't go out into the cold to take the photos - oh the joy of a large window!

I'll be back tomorrow with a sewing update, and hopefully some photos from Abbey Quilters' meeting.

 

ps - did you spot little JD the tractor sitting on the books on the left of the coffee table, gazing out at the snow?!

LAMBS!!!!!!

I went for a walk after lunch today, to check if any Jacob's lambs had arrived.  I negotiated the muddy track to the field gate, and found only very pregnant ewes

 

I could see some ewes in the next field, but knew there should be more of them, so I walked on round to where the field borders the road to see if the others were there.  As I approached the field gate, I could hear lambs bleating!!  There was one ewe with two lambs - but they were about to vanish over the hill to the other end of the field.  Although they are probably just a few days old, they have already learned to present their bottoms to the camera!

 

as well as the lambs, there was also the excitement of seeing the donkeys for the first time in quite a few weeks

 

there are lots of snowdrops in the verges

 

I wasn't going to take a photo of my favourite view on the way down the hill .......... but then I saw the sheep!  My favourite view with added sheep - wonderful!!

 

but the peace and quiet was shattered by this jet, flying very low

 

today's post should have been about our walk yesterday morning, but of course the lambs and donkeys took priority!  But don't worry, I'll do today's intended post tomorrow.  So, to finish, I wasn't tempted to ask for a shot driving this tractor, when I saw what was in the trailer!