frayed at the edge

You scratch my back ........

......... and I'll scratch yours!  These two horses were using their teeth to groom each others manes this morning

 

 

I saw a flash of white in this field, and thought perhaps it was a carrier bag, caught in the grass ....... but then I looked more closely, and saw that it was one of the neighbour's cats!

 

 

When I went out this morning the air was full of swallows, swooping and diving.  Do you think the ones sitting on the wires were giving them marks for degree of difficulty and artistic merit?

 

Or given how grey the sky was, were they discussing packing their bags and setting off early for Africa!

 

I was delighted when I heard my neighbour Marion's old donkey braying in the field, as I haven't seen him for quite a while.  He has an unusual black and white coat - but unfortunately when I got to the field gate, he was half hidden by the long grass, with his white rear end the most visible part of him!

 

 

However, I was soon distracted from the disappointment of not getting a better photo of the donkey by a very pretty grass seedhead

 

 

I was actually focusing on this seedhead, when the tiny bug (about the size of a pinhead) crawled into sight

 

 

This afternoon, I headed out to the studio, to make a prototype book cover.  I unearthed the books from my stash, and pulled out some fabrics

 

 

I cut the main piece of fabric, and two smaller pieces for the flaps, which I folded in half.  I also pinned a piece of ribbon in place, to make a page marker

 

 

I cut a piece of calico for the lining and pinned it in place.  I stitched round the four sides, leaving a gap at the bottom

 

 

then I trimmed the corners

 

 

and turned the cover through to the right side

 

 

I stitched the opening and pressed the seams, then slipped the book in

 

 

To finish the cover, I added a cord and some wooden beads ..... however I'm not sure about the the rough, textured fabric - I think I will have another trawl through my stash (but don't worry, that one won't be wasted, I'll keep it for myself!)

 

 

To finish, a very special photo!  As I meandered strode down the hill towards breakfast home, I heard what was obviously a large animal in the field to my left.  I looked round, and standing there was a deer!  I held my breath as I turned the camera on and slowly raised it ..... but the deer continued to stand there, watching me

 

Hot,hot,hot!

 
What a contrast to yesterday ....... today has been hot and sunny  These horses looked wonderful with their gleaming coats

 

 

 

I don't like flies when they are flying round the kitchen, but when seen close up, they are fascinating

 

 

I came across another plant which looks like a thistle, but this one is common knapweed

 

 

Every morning this dog barks at me, but I'm sure if I went over to the gate it would be friendly

 

 

I was so intent on trying to take a photo of a  bee (I failed), I was startled when I started walking again and found this little rabbit right in front of me

 

 

The birds have been tucking in to the fat balls - you can see how much they have eaten in a day

 

 

This young sparrow may be as big as his father, but is quite happy still to be fed

 

 

Slightly bigger than the sparrows is this heron, which was sunning itself on the River Slitrig in Hawick this morning

 

 

When I was in Kelso this afternoon with my friend Lorraine (on our way to knit'n'natter), we popped into the bookshop which, unfortunately, is closing down.  But of course that means a sale ...... and all the books are half price!  So did I buy any ..... of course - two for me and one for Malcolm

 

 

 

Weary legs

When I went out for my walk this morning, my legs just refused to pick up the pace ...... so I ended up strolling along finding interesting things to take photos of .........

 

a fallen conker in the middle of the road

 

 

raindrops on cleavers (goose grass)

 

 

a fly caught in a spider's web in the middle

 

 

a neighbour's chimneys, reflected in a tiny puddle

 

I have been working hard on my Baltimore block, and by yesterday afternoon had most of the leaves stitched

 

 

But before I could place the last four leaves in the centre, I needed to make a ruched flower.  I started by cutting a two inch wide strip, and pressing the two long edges into the centre

 

 

I marked one edge every inch

 

 

Then on the other edge, I started half an inch in from the edge, then marked every inch

 

 

Using a double thread I stitched across the end, then up to the first mark

 

 

At the edge, I took the thread over, bfore stitching to the next mark

 

 

After stitching several zigzags .........

 

 

........ I pulled the gathering thread - it is much easier to do this as you go, rather than waiting until you have done all the stitching

 

 

That was as far as I got yesterday, before I had to stop and make dinner (lamb rogan josh).  So I carried on this afternoon at patch'n'chat.  I finished the stitching and gathering ....

 

 

...... then curled the strip round to make the flower, stitching the loops in place.  I put it on the block and pinned the remaining leaves

 

 

By the end of the afternoon, the block was well on the way to being finished

 

 

Of course Friday afternoon means cake - this week it was one of Annette's delicious chocolate sponges, with lots of fresh cream in the centre

 

 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, love Anne

Lighting up the sky

When we went through to the kitchen last night, just before we went to bed, we saw this amazing sky

 

The red line could have been made by a spaceship coming in to land ....... but it was probably a contrail!  As I was taking the photo, a dark shape landed on the back of the telegraph pole across the road

 

I didn't manage to get a photo as it flew off, so you will have to take my word that it was an owl!!

 

However, the next photo is quite clear - if tractors can be described as cute, then this one has to be the cutest!

 

 

This one has been at work turning the hay

 

 

While this one was just a little too close for comfort as it passed me!

 

 

Having failed to snap the owl last night, I did manage to capture this goldfinch - but it flew off before i could zoom in (click on it to enlarge)

 

 

I was busy again in the studio today, making another four brooches

 

 

I have also started another little project (I know, I know, I said I wouldn't start anything new until I had finished some more UFOs!).  Remember when we were away at the weekend, we saw a shop with 'patch' in its name that didn't have much patchwork?  Then, when we were in Denbigh we saw this shop .......

 

....... but it turned out to be a children's clothes shop!  Finally, we found a patchwork shop in Llangollen

 

 

I succumbed to a William Morris jelly roll, which opened out to reveal all these lovely fabrics

 

 

Having recently seen several friends working on hexagon quilts, I decided that was what I would use the jelly roll for

 

 

I know you can buy ready cut papers online, but I just draw round a template until I have filled the sheet of paper, then photocopy it - it doesn't take long to cut them out

 

 

The strips are just the right size for the template, and I quickly marked and cut the first strip

 

 

Soon I had half a dozen pieces tacked - just several hundred more to go!

 

 

When I was looking for something to keep this latest project in, I found this box, which I bought very cheaply when Woolworths closed - I think I hadn't used it before because of the rather lurid shade of pink!

 

 

This morning, I was standing at the bedroom window drying my hair when I saw a little sparrow fledgeling land on my car, closely followed by its parent.  Abandoning my hair to finish drying itself, I rushed off to get the camera.  The first shots taken through the window weren't very good, so I ended up standing on the camel stool that sits under the window(very awkward, as I have to stand on the outer wooden edges of the stool and not on the cane centrs), and pointing the camera through the small gap that the window was open (I didn't want to push it open further in case it scared off the birds).  But as you can see, this photo was worth the effort!!

 

Hello deer!

No - I haven't got the spelling wrong ---- this morning I finally saw a deer again, having seen one some weeks ago, when I didn't have the camera with me

 

 

Altgough we are still in July, there was a decided autumnal nip in the air this morning, and some plants have already gone to seed

 

 

 

 

But other plants are still putting out buds and new growth

 

 

 

Next month I have a sales table at the Southdean Show, so I thought it was time to knuckle down and make some things to sell!  I looked out a pile of ready cut circles that I bought some time ago, with the thought that I could make something with them one day!

 

 

I sorted some of them into pairs

 

 

I took the first pair, and ran a gathering stitch round the edge of each circle, and pulled the stitches tight, to make yoyos (Suffolk puffs)

 

 

I stitched the two together and added a brooch pin to the back ......

 

 

......... and added a large button to the front to complete the brooch

 

 

I had an unexpectedly large meal at lunchtime yesterday, so I didn't want any dinner when I got home.  As Malcolm had already cooked it, that meant there were some leftover vegetables to use up when I made dinner tonight.  I also had a bit of stale bread to use up

 

 

I got out my trusty processor (it's about 12 years old!) and made breadcrumbs

 

 

Mashed the veggies

 

 

Mixed the veggies and breadcrumbs together, and added seasoning and a beaten egg

 

 

I divided the mixture into four portions, and formed it into potato and veggie cakes

 

 

I shallow fried them in sunflower oil - the trick is to get the oil quite hot, so that when you put the cakes in the surface cooks quickly and seals, so that they don't get oily

 

 

So what else were we having?  On Wednesday mornings, the fishman comes to the house in his van.  I'm usually in the bath when he arrives, so Malcolm gets to choose what fish we have.  Today he chose breaded haddock, which I cooked on the griddle, with just a spray of one-calorie oil

 

 

To complete the meal, I made a very quick sauce with low fat creme fraiche and blue Shropshire cheese - simply warmed until the cheese melted

 

 

After all that effort, I thought I should get out the fish knives and forks!

 

 

The verdict ....... delicious!

 

 

 

 

 

Head in the clouds

On Sunday, we drove to Llangollen, where my resolve to overcome my fear of heights was to be severely tested ...... but first there were good things!   I had arranged to meet Emily for a cuppa, and we spent a very pleasant hour chatting and sorting out her knitting (she was vey impressed with Malcolm's knitting knowledge!)  Then we walked up to the canal, for a very enjoyable stroll in the early afternoon sun.  We knew that our destination was four miles away - but as I am used to doing a hilly three mile walk every morning, four miles on the flat was no problem!  There were lots of boats on the canal - here are a few of them

 

 

 

 

We had recently watched a programme on tv about the canal, so we knew that this funny looking bridge is to allow the farmer access between his fields on either side of the canal

 

 

There were also several wonderful stone bridges

 

 

 

Suddenly, we came out of the trees, and in the distance saw our destination - the Pontcysyllte aqueduct

 

 

The structure doesn't look very high in the photo - but if you click on the link, you will find out just how high it is!  When we reached the start of the aqueduct, we were amazed at how many people were walking across ....... and how narrow the footpath was!  In the end, I was more worried about falling into the canal as we passed people, than I was about the height!!  If you look closely at the photo, you can see that the woman bending over is looking at a duckling, frantically swimming in front of the boat

 

 

Because it was so busy, it was hard to take photos, but I did manage to take a couple of the views

 

 

 

When we got to the other side, there was a path which took us slightly below the level of the aqueduct, and we could see what a massive structure it is

 

 

Of course, having walked across, I had to walk back again, but as it wasn't so busy, I relaxed a bit and managed to appreciate the experience of being on a structure which was built more than 200 hundred years ago!!  We also had a chuckle at this canal boat having to back up to allow the man in the canoe room to paddle off the aqueduct, as he had the right of way!!

 

 

When we got back to the other side, we sat in the sun and had an icecream and a cold drink, before setting off back the four miles to town.  We knew from the tv programmme that there are horse-drawn boats on the canal, and were disappointd not to see any ...... but when we got back to town, we discovered why - they go in the other direction!  We were just in time to see this horse walking to his stable, having left the boat behind him

 

 

We were going to go out for dinner on Sunday evening ....... but our legs were so weary, we settled for a bar supper in the hotel!

 

Catching up!

Now that we are back home and the internet connection isn't disconnecting every couple of minutes, I can show you more of our weekend!  To finish off Friday, here are the little goodies I bought

 

lovely coarse wool to knit a bag, which should felt well

 

 

a kit to knit a very cute sheep teacosy

 

 

oops - another book

 

On Saturday, we headed first to Denbigh, to visit the castle.  We were a bit perplexed when the women who sold us our tickets said that the castle was closing for a year ..... as it was being knocked down and rebuilt.  Howver, she clarified what she meant - it is the visitor centre that is being replaced, not the magnificent ruins!

 

 

 

 

Next we went to Conwy, where there is an even bigger castle.  To reach it, we walked across the suspension bridge

 

 

This was when I had to be very brave, to climb long spiral staircases, and stand on top of very high walls and towers

 

we were standing on top of a matching tower!

 

 

yes, that's Malcolm's hand!

 

 

the enclosed bridge on the right carries the railway

 

 

the people are dwarfed by the walls

 

After leaving the castle, there were more heights to scale, as we went for a walk round the town walls

 

there is only a railing to stop you falling off!

 

 

we were above these wonderful old chimneys

 

 

looking down on the smallest house

 

But then - the reward for surviving all those stairs and heights ....... fish and chips for dinner (and bread and butter)

 

 

However, Saturday's heights were nothing compared to where we went yesterday!  Come back tomorrow to see just how brave I had to be!!

 

Making amends!

After yesterday's meagre crop of photos, I thought I ought to try harder today ...... and ended up taking 108!!  Of course a lot of them went into the recycle bin, but here is a selection of the better ones.

 

 

the just-after dawn chorus

 

 

never too old to cuddle mum

 

 

I think this mare is in foal

 

 

I had to consult my birdbook - this is a serin

 

 

I'm coming to get you .... our everlasting sweetpea reaching out for a dead clematis

 

 

a sparrow fledgling

 

 

a female sparrow

 

 

a male sparrow

 

 

I managed to pick this cherry before the birds ate it!

 

 

a swallow showing off its forked tail

 

 

this would be a good address for me!

 

To finish, some beautuful red roses in a neighbour's garden

 

 

 

Disorganised!

Having been out for most of the day, I sat down after dinner to transfer my photos to the laptop, and realised that I hadn't taken anything much today ...... oh dear, let's see what I can do with what I have!

 

It was grey and wet this morning .....

 

 

unlike the same scene yesterday morning .....

 

 

But there was one creature enjoying the wet - this rather long earthworm

 

 

Whereas this lovely grey horse just looked bedraggled and miserable!

 

 

It's not just the rain which wets me on my walk - it's also the drips from the trees.  The water running down the middle of the road is from the trees

 

 

And there is no chance of avoiding the drips at this spot where the trees meet over the road!

 

 

After all that misery, there was only one thing to be done after breakfast ...... a long soak in the bath with a good book and a mug of hot chocolate (and I pinched one of Malcolm's little bite-sized cakes!!)

 

 

ps - note to self. please be more organised tomorrow!

 

 

The way to a man's heart ......

....... is definitely through his stomach - so why not look after his heart with a delicious, but healthy salad!

 

This was quick and easy to make - lettuce and rocket (from my friend Lizzi's allotment), chives (from the garden), basil (from the pot on the windowsill), a clementine (from the fruit bowl) and strawberries (from the fridge).  I also made a quick dressing with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and chilli flavoured salt.

 

I have been impatiently waiting for the bees' balm to flower in the back garden.  Today I ran out of patience and took these photos - perhaps in a few days it will be fully in flower

 

 

 

We didn't have any birds using the nesting box this year .....

 

 

But some new tenants have moved in ..... wasps!  Well, at least it means they have stopped trying to invade the summerhouse!

 

 

Although the nesting box wasn't used, we have lots of little sparrow nests under the eaves at the front of the house - here are some of this year's crop

 

 

When I went into Hawick this morning, I took the camera and big lens, hoping to find the heron on the river.  I looked round all the places we usually see him but he was nowhere to be seen

 

 

The only bird I saw on the water was this seagull

 

 

In the studio this afternoon, I lightly pressed the Linus blanket.  I made the pattern up as I went along - 20 rows of garter stitch, then every row for the first half was k50, p40, k10.  Then for the second half, k10, p40, k50, then finishing with 10 rows garter stitch.

 

 

I also prepped the second piece of the wreath.  It didn't take so long to do this one ...... and amazingly it just about matches the first one!