Another Finish

At last I managed to drag this quilt away from Tully and put the binding on.  It was a BOM from Just Hands On TV designed by Jennie Rayment.

For some reason Tully fell in love with this quilt probably because it's black and she is very small and white and always managed to wiggle her way into it and fall asleep.  It has taken me ages to remove all the fur and put it back into a just about presentable condition.  She even tried dragging it off my lap the other day when I was doing a last piece of handquilting.  Still, it is now finished and hanging where she can't squirm into it and make it furry again.  I have named it 'Tucked Up Tully' though.

And just in case you were concerned that one of our dogs would be quiltless, I have donated another one to her patch on the sofa.  She is breaking it in gently.

The Mistress of all she can wiggle into.

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My Tweets 3 Finished

I've completed the My Tweets outer block 3 now.

Block 4 is all starched and appliglued down ready for stitching and block 5 is imminent.  My sewing Ladies are very interested in the starching technique so I am going to have to demo it for them in a couple of weeks time.  Should be fun!


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I Really Can't Abide Christmas Out of Season, But...

Elsa really liked the book I bought back from Spain and she is wanting to make as many of her Christmas things as possible as it's her first Christmas with Mike in their own home.  I had to give in a little on Saturday and we made a set of these ornaments each.

They were quite fun and easy even if  I was grinding my teeth a little!! I'm not sure If I will be keeping mine or putting them aside for gifts.  For now they can go in the box these things hide in so I don't have to see them and then they will be a nice surprise when I find them again after November. lol

I was being watched in my room the other day by this young blackbird.  I was also being watched very carefully by mum too.   

And well done Benta over at Slik Stitches who is today's guest blogger on Stash Manicure!   Go and see how to make her clever little bag.


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A Bit of Beading

I have lived with a bear with a sore head all week, just because of a certain wedding.  It was strange though that as soon as I said, 'look at the lovely colour of that Bentley,' every car was scrutinised from start to finish. There was of course the possibility that one may drive down the aisle so the ceremony had to be watched too, just in case.

Like everyone, we think it was the most fabulous wedding and we all enjoyed watching it and that dress was just so perfect.

So today Elsa and I did some beading to just relax and play and had a good natter about her and Mike's own wedding.  (I have told them that we are not using Westminster Abbey or flying them off the lawn in a helicopter).

A few months ago Shirley over at Stitcherydo made a thimble keeper and I thought it was a fabulous idea.  I don't really like flushing mine down the loo or losing it in the dinner as I like wearing one a lot.  I found a book called Thimble Catchers and after a little reading we made our own versions.

Really pleased with them and I'm sure they will be well used.  Just off to have dinner and then I'm reading through the next C&G Module for a little evening entertainment.

Have a lovely long weekend, again!


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Well She Liked It

I gave Barbara her other quilt top back yesterday and she loved it.  It was only a practise piece, yet another one of her 'been in the loft for 10 years' ones but she was over the moon.

It may be a repeating design but I did learn a lot from it especially about travelling from an end to the next start.  Also, not to screw my head up too much when every one is not perfect and as I wanted it!  The over all effect is what counts.

I must also add that I try and follow quite a few longarmers, American usually as it's still too few and far between over here, but one has really inspired me over the past few months, especially with this quilt, and you can go and see Karen Marchetti's work, as well as on Facebook (you really should look through the albums on there!) if you too like being wowed by stunning quilting as well as quite a few wonderful quilts.

Thanks Karen for pulling me out of the feathers!!!! (I'll keep tapping the microphone if you keep recording the videos!)

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Happy Easter

What amazing weather!  Yesterday Elsa and I, (mostly Elsa) cleared up the vegetable patch at the top of the garden.  The onions and garlic are doing great, but that's it so far.  Mind you a false sense of summer security can be dangerous in the garden, we can still have frost in May so there's no hurry with beans etc yet. I must admit to still really, really struggling with the gardening and I am very cross as to where the enthusiasm has gone.  I am grateful that we spent five years turning the garden around and it now just needs mowing and tweaking and a few hours from the gardener each week, not watering or major replanting marathons.  Maybe that is part of the problem, I burned out and had too many incidents, knee operation, stings, ceptic cuts, nearly losing the top of my finger, I just had enough.  I'm still a little sad though.

I have caught up with home things now though and Tuesday, while John was fishing for bream, I played hard with Bob.

 It was my first Lone Star! (20 inches)  I confess to finding a foundation sheet of interfacing in Spain.  It was so quick and easy.  I would still like to do another the real way, but maybe in a while.

I finished the My Tweets centre panel, Miss Kelly (24 inches) and I'm just cutting and starching the next two blocks ready for stitching.

I've also managed a little more on the Stay at Home Robin with embroidery and quilting.  Yes the needle is still in there, I'm still working on it as it's evolving.

There are three more, and I think they are the last, bits boxes to find homes for and then my room is full.  I've enjoyed re discovering all the things I bought because I knew I would need them someday.  Ariadne the  longarm is sitting patiently upstairs with a quilt on it hoping to be finished at some point this weekend.  I want to put the little Lone Star quilt on and make that up so I had better pull my finger out.  The C&G is sitting patiently too so perhaps that will have a look in later.

Have a wonderful long weekend and keep cool.


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Bore Alert

Home now and back to a comfortable mattress and squishy pillow.  Just a quick post with a few pictures. Nothing too heavy so you can yawn later!!! 

Our first inspection by a Short Toed Eagle.

A packhorse bridge that, along with others down the gorge, just seemed to lead right into the cliff face (to the right).  Makes you wonder how different the landscape was when it was built.

The first escarpment in the distance we would have to cross.  The village on the hill was deserted and it had the most fantastic view over the Embalse (reservoir) de Yesa.

Spain seems to be on a continuous road build mission.  The one below still needs a little work to be done. Actually they have some of the most fantasic roads, even in the remote places and the fact that you can see a car coming towards us was unusual for our trip.  We left Siguenza on Wednesday and it was an hour and a half before we actually saw another car.  It is still early season though.

One of the smallest daffs I've ever seen.

Once over the escarpment we drove around a bend in the road and saw this bluff.  Beyond that you can just see the snow topped mountains we would be crossing to reach our hotel for that night.  You can imagine the satnav picture looking like a child's scribbling most of the time.  John spent a lot of time grinning.

Another inspection by a Griffon Vulture.  It was amazing how many large birds could be supported over there, especially the opportunists like vultures.  There is about zero road kill due to lack of cars and live stock is not very plentiful.  Again it makes you think about the wildlife you can't ever see that is there as part of the food chain.

Some of the Neapolitan ice cream landscape.  And this was quite subtle compared to what we had driven through the day before.

If only the sky had been a little more purple and this would have been a perfect tertiary colour selection by Mother.  Then again She knows what She's doing and it still looks pretty good to me.

All menus were translated, some parts more successfully than others.  John had to have the 'colds more entertaining' just to find out of course.

Yesterday was the Brockenhurst Needlework Fiesta.  With the likes of Mulberry Silks, the Silk Route and Ario there I just had to have a splurge!  Enjoyable it was too.

We're catching up with family today, I hope you have a good Sunday too.

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And On and Up a Bit

First off sorry no pictures. No battery power and I didn't think of using the phone!

Today we passed through the last of the Ebro valley and it's 30 degree temperature and started back north and west along the very edge of the Iberian System which is the eastern boundary of the Meseta Central, the heart of Spain.

As we rose we must have seen every colour of soil available from the brightest white to the deepest burgundy maroon I have ever seen with every colour of orange, yellow and pink in-between. There were even folds in the earth where all the colours were together. It made Alum Bay on the Isle of Wight look very plain and boring. When we levelled off at about 4500 feet the temperature stayed at a very comfortable 17 degrees. Mind you it's 24 outside on our balcony at the moment but it's in a castle so the walls are very thick and cooling.

As it's spring everything is very fresh looking. Lots and lots of tree pruning going on, if it's a tree, it has an extreme prune! It also took us quite a long time to drive out of the olive groves. And yes they do taste wonderful.

I've been very impressed by their solar farms, much nicer to look at than the wind farms. And if you are a raptor fan, there are plenty of those too. We've seen at least two types of Kite, and very high up the Golden Eagle and Griffon Vultures and I did manage a picture of a Short Toed Eagle but I can't crop the picture on the iPad without it blurring so that will have to wait.

We found a fabulous quilt shop called Trozicos with three lovely ladies who spoke as much English as I do Spanish but we all spoke sewing. I bought the usual bits of this and that, I am a happy bunny.

I have the sketch book Maggi but it's had little airing. I will stand in the corner for a bit.

Mac n Janet, you maybe surprised how it's changed. I've read quite a bit about how dry it's becoming. It's still very beautiful and varied.

Lol Benta, I was looking the other way!!!

Were off to diner soon and tomorrow we cross the Duero Valley, we have done the Portuguese end a few times, it will be nice to see the smaller version.

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The Rain in Spain

Falls mainly in the distance and stays there hopefully.



We drove down from the mountains yesterday onto some of the flatest flat land trying to be flat. It was full of vineyards and orchards and obviously the fruit bowl of the region. After a couple of hundred kilometres it changed into cereal crops and more rolling hills. We ended up at a town called Alcaniz and this wonderful hotel.




Our rooms are the top two in the tower. The bath is so huge that John started filling it and I managed to have a shower, change, put my face on and there was still only 5 inches of water in the bottom of it. But I had a good view while I was waiting.



Off to have an explore this morning. I believe theres a quilting store in the town!

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Hola Amigos

The view from our hill at this moment is a little more mountainous and quite a bit warmer. We're just having a scoot along the bottom of the Pyrenees. I'm managing to satisfy my urges to visit rather big hills and John is having a ball on the winding roads. He's also going a little silly at all the fabulous mountain rivers full of fish. Off to dinner in a mo with lots of local produce to choose from, exploring tomorrow and then off again.






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Just a Quickie

Lisa Walton posted this on Facebook this morning and I had to re post.  It's so sensible ....

http://www.austinkleon.com/2011/03/30/how-to-steal-like-an-artist-and-9-other-things-nobody-told-me/

And when one is feeling a little under the weather, one does silly things.  This is Ruger who had an off day on Tuesday and wanted to be near Mum.  So he pinched Tully's bed in my workroom.

A Day Out Hand Quilting

Yesterday was the hand quilting day with Barbara Chainey at Cupcake Cottons.  We set off at 07.30 and had a nice drive up. Only a brief delay at Marlborough, which was unusual, and a drive around Burford when we missed the turning on the roundabout and we still arrived at 09.30 on the dot.  John and the dogs went off for a day at Lechlade fisheries and I went up to join in the sewing group.

It’s a lovely light shop with lots of fabrics and quilts to admire and room enough for classes.

Afternoon tea and the beautiful cupcakes arrived (in style if you read over on the Cupcake Cottons blog). 

I had to buy a piece of fabric or two and a lovely little wooden beehive with beeswax for quilting thread.  My effort at quilting in a hoop was passable but then I didn’t learn to drive a car in a couple of hours either.  I will try and finish the sample so I can say I achieved an end result! 

I was a great day for me meeting two bloggers in one. Thank you Barbara for travelling to the shop and to Jackie and Steph for hosting.  John’s fishing was unsuccessful but he did have a couple of chasers apparently.  Jackie and Steph were kind enough to send me home with a secret parcel for him which put a huge smile on his face though.

Elsa and Mike drove down last night too to start their move back to the south coast.  Lots of cleaning and decorating to be done over the next few days before they can move in fully but they are so excited.  And a last picture of the Imperial Fritillaries that we planted three springs ago and had done nothing each year until now.  Patience does pay in the end. 

I hope your weekend is as lovely and sunny as it promising to be down here.

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Pepé Le Pew Eat Your Heart Out.

Don't you think I'm gorgeous?

Up here's good...

No?...

Ok then...

 I've just spotted another conquest.

You sure?

I'm going to sulk now.

More of the everyday antics of our resident pheasant population.  Please bear in mind that they really don't do trees if they can help it and this male is very persistent!

Time Waits For No Electrical Supply Company

Well I’m now fed up with the company supplying the track lighting (Not Stuart the electrician who is great and bends over backwards when he works!). The lights are in the room, in a box.  The track, I believe, has now arrived and is the correct one but the connectors are wrong.  Stuart has hair that is too short to pull out or I’m sure he would have by now.  He has told me that he won’t need full access like the blind man did so I have more or less moved in and started using the my space place.  

The room may be shoved in down the side of the house but it appears I am in sparrow central.  I looked up the other day at this view but then the trellis had at least 15 sparrows sat in it, a bit like Celebrity Squares, and up in the top left you can see the sparrow flats.  They have chosen to nest in the eaves at the end of the gutter instead though just above the box.  (Not far from the headboard of our bed on the other side of the wall, hmmm).

I also have plenty of visitors in the close shrubs down the side and perching on the gate right next to the desk.  The Robin has decided it’s the best place to boss everyone from, until the wrens tell him off that is and there is a regular visit from a group of Long Tail Tits as they do their rounds.  It really is amazing to be so close to them all.

The BTO has a Nest Box Challenge from 27^th March which is good to take part in even if you only have a small space, every observation counts.

Jen over at Twisted Stitcher (Oz Style) (she is also doing the City & Guilds) asked about the stand used by Jan Beaney in the In Action video.  I thought it looked good too but had given up trying to find one.  Then the other day I was looking through Three Dimensional Embroidery Stitches by Pat Trott and there it was in the equipment page naming it as the Lowery Workstation, so I treated myself.  

If it helps me not have this constant crick in my neck it has to be good!  (Yes still suffering, still haven’t been able to finish Barbara’s other quilt.  The last thing you want using a longarm is stiffness in the shoulders!).  I have re bound some round hoops except one broken one which I will use as a frame. The things we find to do just to pretend to be creative!!

Thank you for all the lovely comments on the quilted top.  Barbara H was over the moon.  I also quite liked how open the pattern was.  There seems to be a trend in some of the longarmers I follow online to do such heavy quilting one wonders how stiff this makes the quilt in the end.  The Great Tits are still visiting the box Maggi, minus earplugs now too.  Yes hayfever has backed off and Spring is springing so I’m really hoping more and more it’s just the pollen of the hazels.  And Barbara C.  Ha, haha, hahahahaha.  See you Friday.

I was incensed to read Maggi’s post over on her blog To Dream To Stitch.  How can that be, no one can put a trademark on an adjective!!  Anyway it’s an English style and phrase, how dare they!!  I vote we all use SHABBY CHIC as often as possible.  Stupid people. 

Minor rant over, messy stuff to be sploshing around, I have plenty of coursework to catch up on and rugby this afternoon.  GO ENGLAND!!!  Quick pic of Ruger ready to work in the garage last week.

Oh, and don't forget, tonight is the night of the super moon and should be quite a sight at sunset.  Have a good weekend.

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Silence Has Been Golden

I've only just realised how long it's been since I last blogged.  Well I haven't been overly creative, we've only half the electrics done in the workroom due to the wrong lighting track being sent, and the blinds don't arrive until this Thursday.  Too much moving things around to fully settle in yet.  It is a great place to be though and everyone else seems to want to be in there too, which is nice really (I could always lock the door if I wanted to be that alone!!).

I was kindly given a couple of pieced tops by one of my ladies, Barbara, to use to play on the long arm.  Barbara is an incredibly particular piecer and all her work is always 110%.  I was quite worried but I did offer and she complied.  I know she will be having a top quilted for free but I need the practise too so I thought it a fair trade off (she did say it would be in the loft for another ten years other wise!).  I have discovered that deciding what to do is so hard!  And finding what to do that the piecer agrees with too can be a stumper, though I was given free rein I wanted her input. This is the result of my first 'someone else's' top.

I didn't want to do yet another all over design which would have been the easy way out.  I wanted to use the opportunity to actually think about a block design.  I managed to only use the ruler for the diagonals and freehand the in the ditch and curves.  It's not an overly dense covering but we think it works well with the log cabins.  The other top I have from her I will do a totally different way and it wasn't too hard to decide what to do on it.  More of that when it is done.

I have finished the Goldwork star, about 4 inches across.  An interesting exercise, I'm not sure I could really do lots of it but I have had a taster of another technique.

I have had nasty hay fever for the past two weeks too.  I've not really had it before other than a brief few days last year.  It seems to be dying down at the moment along with the hazel catkins so I'm hoping it's plant specific and I can plan for it.  Our field behind us seems to have Oil Seed Rape in it this year though so that may be a little interesting.  I must admit to not feeling great on the antihistamine but it's better than the hay fever.  I've also had a pulled muscle in my neck which has been very painful and the tight nerves have been giving me dizzy spells, sometimes very scary ones.  Another reason for the lack of creations.

This morning John called me to see this fellow on the bird box on the Atlas Cedar.

He is a blur because I managed to catch the moment he was drumming.  There have been Great Tits in and out of the box so if they were in there I'm sure they were rather unhappy!  We think he was using it as a sounding box as another, rather elusive woodpecker came to see what all the noise was about.

Guests for dinner tonight so slow roast Spanish lamb to be prepared and left to do it's thing before the rugby.  Have a great Sunday.


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