frayed at the edge

Minor and major changes

The plan for today was to go into Hawick this morning, then I would spend the afternoon in the studio, while Malcolm finished a cracket he has made for Stuart.  However, there was a minor change to that plan when we met Lorraine as we left The Pickled Orange, where we had just enjoyed a cuppa and an excellent date and walnut scone.  So the minor change to the day was that I went to visit Lorraine this afternoon, to help her with laptop/printer issues.  Lorraine won't be at all offended if I tell you that she is a complete technophobe (actually, I could say what I like about her, as she doesn't read this!!)  She was recently given a laptop by her brother, and her son had set up internet access on it, but she was struggling to cope with it.  Then her brother gave her a printer, which was just a piece of technology too far for her!!  So I spent the afternoon taking her through the steps for her to access her e-mails and to use the printer .... she was delighted to discover it is also a copier!  And as an extra, I installed the software for her camera, so she is all set (maybe!)

Meanwhile, at home, the major change was happening ..... we had a summerhouse in our last garden, which we used a lot, and since we moved here we have talked about getting another one.  Several weeks ago, we finally took the plunge, bought a summerhouse and arranged to have it installed, along with some associated hard landscaping.  So this is what I came home to ....

 

The paved area outside the studio door had sunk in places, and we got puddles when it rained, so we chose to have the blocks lifted and paving slabs laid instead  This gives a nice defined area outside the studio, where I can have my flower pots.

 

the slabs have a nice texture

 

The paved area has been extended to take the summerhouse, and the slabs will come along the front to provide a path.  The work should be finished tomorrow!

 

I've been working on Kylie's cushions ....

 

 

cutting the fabric

 

 

 

 

the fabric and pattern on the lightbox, ready to mark

 

 

 

 

the layers basted together and ready to quilt

 

 

 

 

the quilting is going well

 

It is probably just as well that I shall be at patch'n'chat tomorrow afternoon when Andy Murray plays Rafael Nadal in the semi finals at Wimbledon - I think I would have to watch it from behind the sofa!!

 
 
 
 

 
 
 

A special visitor for a special weekend

So who is our special visitor?  Is it the Queen, fresh from her visit to Wimbledon yesterday?  We know it's not David Cameron, as he is in Canada, saving the world's economy!  No, it is someone really special ..... Malcolm's sister Jennifer!!  She has come to spend the weekend with us, as tomorrow we are going to .......Woolfest, where we will indulge in all things woolly!!

This afternoon Jennifer and I headed to patch'n'chat (after a very nice lunch) to indulge in an afternoon of sewing.  I was showing Jennifer how to make a folded Japanese patchwork box.  I was fussy cutting the fabric for her centre pieces .... I made this easier by cutting the centre out of the template

 

 

Seonaid was yet again working on a tiny project - this time a little log cabin fob for her key ring

 

 

Fortunately the weather has co-operated, and we were able to have dinner outside .... Malcolm lit the BBQ to do the steaks, while I dished up the goodies that I bought in M&S on Wednesday

 

 

Charlotte baby potato salad, edamame soya bean salad, couscous and roasted vegetable sald .... and in the smallest bowl, chilli and coriander dressing.  Perfect side dishes for our steak and chips!!

 

 

And now for the big reveal - I mentioned that I have a very special project to work on ..... I recently saw some paintings that I coveted ...... and to cut a long story short - I am doing a swap with Kylie, the artist.  I am going to send her two handquilted cushion covers.... all the way to Australia ...... in return for two paintings.  There is just one problem - she has done two sets of paintings, and I can't decide which set I prefer (well, I am a Libran!!)  So .... please visit Kylie and leave a comment saying which set you prefer!!

Please remember too, to pop over to see my tree, as drawn by the very talented Cathy.  We are relaxing now with a very nice glass of white wine, watching the tennis (but Malcolm will shortly change channel to watch that funny game with men kicking a ball).

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend - I will tell you about our woolly one on Monday, as of course tomorrow will be Shadow Shot Sunday (yes, I know it's Saturday here when I do my post, but it's already Sunday in Brisbane, home of the wonderful Tracy, who works so hard to host the meme!)  Love, Anne

 

Experimenting!

I had some fun yesterday, in the middle of all my domestic duties.  It started with these flowers that I picked on yesterday's walk - I arranged the flowers on a piece of fabric to take photos

 

 

 

 

Then I took a sheet of this .........

 

 

........ and printed the photos on to the fabric.  The printing is a little bit hazy - I was using Malcolm's printer and I think I will have to have a look to see if I can alter the settings to get a sharper image

 

 

After printing, I then ironed the fabric on the wrong side to set the colour

 

 

then swished it about for a minute in cold water

 

 

then put it on a towel to dry

 

 

then a final iron

 

 

So, what am I going to do with the pictures?  I plan to embroider them - both by hand and machine ........ but I won't be doing it anytime soon, as I have something very special to work on over the next few weeks.  Of course, I'm not going to tell you today what it is!!

To finish ...... you know I have shown you several photos of my favourite tree.  The last time I posted a photo, Cathy e-mailed me to ask if she could use the photo as a reference for a drawing.  Of course I said yes!  She e-mailed me yesterday to say that she had posted the drawing ........ please click on the link and have a look - it is FABULOUS!!!  Who would have thought that my little old tree would end up being drawn by someone in Sicily and seen all round the world - this is one of the reasons why I love the wonderful world of blogs!!

 

 

 

 

Definitely worth waiting for!

The iris have finally flowered ....... and they are so glorious, I will forgive them for keeping me waiting so long!

 

the colours are gorgeous

 

 

this one hasn't fully opened

 

 

the markings are striking

 

Yesterday morning we went for a walk at Harestanes, one of our favourites.  A lot of the photos I took will probably appear soon in Shadow Shot Sunday, but I thought you would like this one ........ why?

 

.......look carefully - there is a robin perched on the end of the bridge!

 

Back home I was busy again in the studio, working on my next row.  If you scroll down to Cathy's quilt, you will that her row of houses has four large houses.  However I like symmetry/proportion,whatever, so I decided to do six houses, to match up with the six hearts and the six log cabins.

This was my first effort - which I wasn't entirely happy with

 

 

So I drew out another block

 

 

This is a better proportioned block, so I will use this one - as you can see it still has to be trimmed to size

 

 

It has been a lovely day here, and I was able to get three loads of washing hung out and dried ........ if only I knew an ironing fairy!!

 

Hooray - it's the weekend!!

It had been another busy week, and although we are 'retired' .... it's still good when the weekend arrives!

I came home with a little handful of something this morning - but unfortunately today it was something sad - feathers from a woodpecker

 

 

In amongst the black feathers with white spots, there was this rebellious one, with the colours reversed!

 

 

This afternoon at patch'n'chat, there was such a lot to admire ......... Seonaid has made a lovely lap quilt for a friend who is a reflexologist, so using her embroidery machine, she added this wonderful detail

 

 

Cathy has been making a fantastic quilt for her daughter's wedding.  We have been following its progress since she started the blocks .... it is almost finished now

 

 

Anne was working hard at putting the final borders on her Thimbleberries quilt

 

 

This is Cathy's 'row' quilt - as you can see I have a few more rows to do!!

 

 

Of course we can't have a Friday post without cake - another of Annette's light-as-air sponges, topped with cream and strawberries!!

 

 

After two glorious days, it was a bit grey and chilly this morning, but it is a lovely evening - if only we could have several weeks of unbroken sunshine!  Whatever the weather, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend - I will be spoiling Malcolm on Sunday for Fathers' Day!!  Love, Anne

 

And then the heavens opened!!!!!

I spent lots of time in the studio over the weekend.  Some of the time was spent on the chickens

 

 

 

and some on the 'row' quilt.  I satin-stitched the hearts onto their background fabrics

 

 

then I made my log cabin blocks

 

 

so I now have two rows completed

 

 

The garden is now just about recovered from the severe winter ........ but this iris should have flowered about eight weeks ago!

 

 

I love poppies - this one in the front garden is stunning (it would make a lovely applique block!)

 

 

I have loved lupins since I was little - this one is a gorgeous colour

 

 

Malcolm's vines are flourishing - you can see the tiny grapes on this one

 

 

so, to return to today's heading ....... we had just finished dinner last night, when we had a torrential downpour .......

 

the rain was so heavy, there was a waterfall from the gutters!

 

 

you can see the rain bouncing back up!!

 

Much as I enjoy my morning walks, there is one unpleasant aspect ....... sometimes I encounter dead animals!  The past few days have been particularly bad - in order of size, there have been : several newts, a mole, a crow, a badger and a lamb.  I had an idea this morning for a film, where I float along the country lanes, talking to dead animals (Dr Doolittle meets Sixth Sense?).  Obviously, Julia Roberts would star as me - but I would stand in for her when it came to the romantic scenes with Bruce Willis (as long as he promises not to wear his vest!!).  Of course George Clooney would have a cameo role as Malcolm .......

 

 

 
 

Change of venue!

This afternoon, we were unable to have our patch'n'chat at Borderland Fabrics, as twenty eight quilters were visiting the shop, and there was no room for us!!  So ........ of course they came to spend the afternoon in my studio instead.  Anne D is for the moment living in a tiny cottage, while her new house is being made habitable, so she has nowhere to set up her sewing machine.  She had two things with her to do by machine and asked if I could help her out by putting the binding on this stunning quilt (she originally intended to make it for her friend's 60th birthday ....... her friend is now 63!!)

 

 

This details shows Anne beautiful applique - I love the tiny buttons in the centre of the pansy

 

 

Anne was adding borders to her stunning Thimbleberries quilt - the blocks are all hand stitched, but she decided to machine stitch the borders because of their size

 

 

Agnes was working on something just a little bit smaller - her log cabin blocks are only four inches square

 

 

Anne S (yes, it's confusing with three Annes in the room!) was also working on tiny log cabin blocks - she had her sewing things in this cute litlle bag

 

 

Once Anne finished using her sewing machine, Seonaid asked if she could play with it and had fun trying out some of the embroidery stitches

 

 

and she had even more fun when she discovered the elephants

 

 

I was working on the chickens .... I'm determined to get them finished.  I bought some sequins and beads for the eyes ...

 

 

Of course, Friday afternoon means cake, and you have seen over the weeks the wonderful cakes that Annette makes for us.  I had a look through this little book ....

 

 

and decided on a ginger cake, which has finely chopped stem ginger in it 

 

 

The recipe actually has the cake topped with a very rich ginger flavoured butter icing, but as there was already a lot of butter and sugar in the cake, I decided to simply dust the top with some icing sugar

 

 

As I very rarely bake, I was worried about how the cake would turn out, so Malcolm and I bravely had a slice to check it out!

 

 

Fortunately, it turned out well, and everyone enjoyed their slice with our afternoon cuppa!!

At the moment, we can't watch tv, llisten to the radio, or read the papers without being bombarded with the World Cup - but don't worry, that is the only reference to it that there will be on the blog - this is definitely a football-free zone!!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend .... mine no doubt will include more work on those pesky chickens!!  Love, Anne

 

 

 

All things chicken!!

It has been another busy day!  It started with a doctor's appointment for some routine stuff, but while there (I tend to save up minor ailments!) I asked my GP if she could have a look at my right ear, as I have had a bit of earache off and on for a while.  The first thing she did was look in my ear - would you believe I have tickly ears!!  Now, I know I am very tickly, especially my feet ...... but I never knew the insides of my ear were tickly!  After a bit of peering into both ears, the left one was judged to be fine ........ but I have a perforated eardrum in my right ear.  So, now I have to wait for an appointment to go to ENT at the local hospital to have it checked out.  Ah well, to cheer me up, Malcolm took me out for lunch - a delicious bowl of wild mushroom soup.

Then it was back home for a major session in the studio, working on those pesky chickens!  I am not the tidiest of workers, so by the end of the afternoon, my worktable looked like this

 

did you spot my hot chocolate mug?

 

 

I finished the second section ......

 

 

...... and the third section!

 

As they are now safely secured in the wallhangings, I won't have to buy the chickens one of the henhouses which we saw at the gardening show on Sunday

 

this is definitely a deluxe model

 

 

but this plain one does the same job!

 

I keep asking Malcolm to buy me a John Deere tractor (well, we do live in the country!), but failing that, I thought he might buy this for me .....

 

..... but he pointed out it is almost as big as our lawn!!

 

So maybe I'll get one of these, so I can chill out after a busy day - the inside is beatifully finished with padded fabric - I could put in a chaise longue with lots of cushions, perhaps a small fridge to chill some white wine, employ Robert Downey Junior to peel grapes for me ........

 

....... maybe I'll keep the rest of that fantasy to myself!!

 

 

 

Please do not adjust your set ........

......... normal service will be resumed soon!  I'm sorry if you were expecting a Tuesday tutorial, but I've just got so much on the go at the moment that I thought I would take a few weeks to catch up with things, and to work on some new projects for future tutorials.  But don't worry, there will still be plenty of crafty goings on included in my daily ramblings!!

Of course I have been playing with my embellisher - this is the piece I produced at the weekend

 

 

I started with two layers of roving, with the fibres in the top layer at right angles to the bottom layer

 

 

After needling it into a rectangle, I added stripes in two colours, weaving them over and under each other.  The piece is about the size of a post card and is very firm - it would make a nice little mat to stand an ornament on.

 

Some time ago, I needled (by hand) this pink heart on to a piece of blue felt, intending to turn it into a little bag.  It was the work of minutes to use the embellisher to 'seam' the sides .......

 

 

It's the perfect size for my little i-pod shuffle - and one day it might even acquire a button!

 

 

I haven't mentioned my housegroup for some time.  We meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month.  The group is called Kist, which stands for knit 1 stitch too ......... but kist is also a Scottish word for a chest, in particular the sort of chest that a girl would have stored her hand stitched household linens in, ready for when she married.  It is an informal affair, with everyone working on their own projects.  Today I was making a start to a quilt we are doing on Friday afternoons at Borderland Fabrics.  The quilt is made up of rows of different patterns.  The row I have started with has crazy patchworh hearts (I've got them in two rows to make it easier to take a photo!)

 

 

In the course of the day, copious amounts of tea, coffee and hot chocolate are consumed!  Today I was using this fun mug, which I bought some years ago in Houston

 

 

I have a matching t-shirt ...... but I don't think you will see me wearing it !!

 

I want a new garden .......

........ and I want it now!!  Why?  Well, yesterday, we had a trip up to Edinburgh to visit Gardening Scotland  It wasn't quite on the same scale as the world-famous Chelsea Flower Show, but we saw some wonderful gardens

 

we liked this low maintenance garden

 

 

 a place to relax, surrounded by water

 

 

an eco-friendly garden

 

 

this little water feature looked as if it had been there for years, not days!

 

 

planting to attract bees

 

There were also tiny gardens, which were entries in a schools competition

 

I hope they dried the sewing machine afterwards!

 

 

time for tea?

 

There were other things to admire

 

this was a rather scary bird .......

 

 

..... unlike this fluffy chick!!

 

But the best bit of the day for me didn't involve gardens or cute baby birds ......... it was seeing my lovely friend Helen, who had a stall selling her beautiful yarns, as I hadn't seen her for almost a year!

 

 

If you look at two wraps hanging behind us, you may recognise the one on the right as the kit I bought recently ....... and yes, I succumbed to the kit for the other one, the gorgeous Alina, which can be knitted as a wrap or a triangular shawl (I think I'll do the wrap)

 

the kit comes in a lovely little bag

 

 

Helen's colours reflect her surroundings in beautiful Sutherland

 

I have been busy knitting, as I hope to have a stall at a Christmas fair

 

lots of baby gift sets

 

 

I could knit these washcloths in my sleep!!

 

This afternoon, I had a break from knitting and did some sewing ...... on the chickens!!

 

 

I still haven't finished embroidering the legs and beaks, but I thought I would be encouraged to get on if I started assembling the blocks!!