Nuts in May

Linking up with Lily's quilts Fresh sewing day

 

There's an old saying that goes " May comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb", but I would say that in 2013, May came in with a splosh and went out with a dribble. We've been blown about, washed away and then in a brief hour one Thursday, burnt to a crisp. Probably not what we all had in mind for one of the favourite month's of the year and to  say its been an unpredictable month would be an understatement. However I am pleased to say the inclement weather hasn't stopped us from having one of the most hectic, but productive months for a long time.

May round up

In between clocking up the miles on trips to see all the gang, enjoy some live theatre and three music gigs ,(phew!), I managed to finish off not only the Sew Sew Modern  and Pretty Little Pouch Swaps but also to get all my bee blocks out and away to their new homes. The Postman must love me at the moment I reckon.

The block in the middle is the one chosen by Happy Go Lizzie for the Modern Stash Bee, called Rocky Mountain Puzzle, and this block is completely addictive. I have become hooked on these little lovelies. So much so that I have chosen it for my up and coming month in charge in the Together at Do.Good Stitches Bee. I hope the rest of the team like it as much as me. It is so quick and easy but looks really effective I think. There are some more great examples of how they can turn out, both  here and here.

So that was May. June promises to be calmer and I am desperate to get out into the garden so, as inspiration, I am off to "Gardening Scotland" on Sunday. First of all though I have a tutorial to write for another block which hopefully won't be too tricky, but pop back soon and I will let you know. Toodle loo!

Signs of spring?

Well it is still pretty quiet here as I am not allowed back to work yet so life could be considered  a bit on the dull side. My lovely Emily came home for a few days to check up on her old Mum and make sure I was behaving and it was wonderful to have her home. We watched films and chilled together which we don't get to do very much anymore with us both so busy and it was sad to wave her away again so quickly, back to her markets and her photography work. Hopefully it won't be to long before we can head down to her in Northumberland and see how her and her Jonny are progressing with their new home renovations, but in the meantime I will stalk her on FB like any good parent. An added joy was a visit from 7 of the Scottish family contingent yesterday in advance of Pepper-Ann's enagagement party which her Dad and I are having to miss . They filled the house with laughter and daftness that only they can bring. Oh and the odd flapjack or too...

The other great news though from QD land is the onset of spring, which has lifted my heart. That and an afternoon spent in my favourite way, listening to Johnny Walker's "Sounds of the Seventies" on Radio 2. Now before all you young 'uns give me up as an old codger you should really check this programme out as it is a gem, full of wonderful music and brilliantly interesting interviews from all sorts through out the music industry in its hey day. Today's was a special commemorating 35 years since the issue of Fleetwood Mac's Rumours and oh my goodness, was it a cracker.  For fear of giving too much away, this album holds a special place in my life as it forms part of that soundtrack from our uni days that most of us have. I am sure I have rattled on about this before though so wont bore you too much, just give it a whirl. You wont regret it.  In the meantime checkout this class track from Sutherland Brothers and Quiver- bit different to Rumours but oh my word- it takes me back...

After the sudden snow on Wednesday last week the garden is trying to sort itself out and little green shoots are forcing their way through the muddy soil and welcoming us to the warmer days. My garden has taken an absolute hammering with all the rain since last year and is needing a fair amount of tlc to get it back in order but it will have to wait a while until are all back to normal. I think everything has survived this year as we didn't suffer the severe frosts of the past couple of winters, but I do have my doubts about the pots of delphiniums as they are totally water logged so may well have rotted away to nothing. But fingers crossed.

I tried to do a bit of stitching today but still am feelings bit " bleurk" to coin a phrase, so it was not very productive. I had missed getting to the shops for a valentines card for the beloved JB so I thought I would make him one ready for his return from offshore later this week. Everyone say ahh.

Apart from that I made a small pouch to send with a swap as a little gift and thank you from this side of the pond, and of course I had to enclose the obligatory Tunnochs Wafer, that is the taste sensation of Scotland. Sadly no plain chocolate ones this time as they seem to have disappeared from sale at Mr Sainsbury's these day which is really annoying.

 

Anyway hope you too are having the loveliness that is the first sign of spring down your way and I look forward to you popping by again soon. Bye for now...

Dreich- adjective ( see also Scotland)

My back garden lawn !

Today has been the sort of the day the Scot's invented the word dreich for. It's been grey and damp with that horrid drizzly sort of rain that gets you soaked right through to the bone. When I first ventured north to university I wrote home to my Mum ( yes, that was in the days when you used a stamp and an envelope, but not quite a quill pen) and told her that the rain up here was wetter than down in the good old south. And do you know, I still stand by that daft statement to this day.

Rain in Scotland has a persistence about it that matches the national character. It is strong and unforgiving. But like the Scottish character the land has a warmth and glow about it that I cannot resist and that makes my heart smile. So I will wear wellies and cultivate the biggest umbrella collection known to man.

Anyway all this drivel about drizzle is because today was "Bank Holiday Monday" which translates as "Guaranteed Wet Dreich Day" so I spent the time catching up on some odds and ends and started a new project. You might remember a few blogs ago I asked for suggestions on what pattern to use for a Layer Cake I had bought entitled "Happy Campers". Well I settled on Emily's suggestion of  "You Zig and I'll Zag" , from the Ruby Blue Quilting Studio and have made a good start. I have promised to give this to Pepper Ann, who is a huge retro fan as I thought it would be a great start to her and Scott's home which they have started  saving things for. It used to be called a "bottom drawer" and that probably  sounds very old fashioned thing now , but actually I think is quite sweet. Pepper Ann and her big and wonderful Scott ( who is somewhere around 6 ft 6 I am sure) are the last of our gang of 5 to set up a home and we hope it won't be too long for them before they are all set and find their ideal place. In the meantime, I can start off their nest with a nice big and bright quilt to snuggle under on the dark nights. I have hit a wee snag though, as the pattern requires 41 blocks and as the layer cake only has 40 pieces I have had brain fade trying to figure out how it's meant to work from the cutting instructions, so I hope I hear from Ruby Blue soon. If you have made a similar pattern or any ideas that will help me please drop me a line to rescue me.

I have to confess though that I did get a bit distracted from my task of this quilt as I stopped for a cuppa and a slice of Marmalade cake and discovered a rerun of Sense and Sensibility on Channel 4 and, well you can't beat a bit of Austen on a wet bank holiday can you. Not to mention Mr Rickman in breeches. Three hours later it seemed a bit late to return to the den to pick up the pieces, if you pardon the pun, so I will continue next weekend, as the beloved JB will still be away at work.

Given all this moaning about rain I thought it would also be good if you saw a few of the upsides of all this northern precipitation. You know I love my garden and its been a tough year but these last couple of pictures show  some of the beneficiaries from this summer. I have been trying to grow Agapanthus for years and this is my first ever bloom. I know its a bit on the weedy side, but its a start. As for the Hydrangea, they remind me of our wedding where we had them stacked high in buckets by the entrance to the marque, and they looked stunning in shades of pink and purple. Next year I will try the iron filings trick and see if I can get a similar effect. The last picture is one of the rain laying on the Achemilla which I thought just looked rather cool. Hope you like them .

 

Anyway, that's me off to find a cure for webbed feet and trench foot... see you again soon

a Sunday in June ( and James came to tea )

Its been a quietish day in the QD land. Summer has tried to make its way to Scotland, leaving the rest of the UK in its wake with gales and floods, but we luckily have enjoyed a mild , if not a little grey day. I took the opportunity this morning to check the garden to see what was managing to bloom and got a few pleasant surprises. Whilst the peony was stunning  when it started to bloom last week, the heavy rain that hit us immediately the buds started to unfurl meant that this was one of its poorest shows since planting 5 years ago.  Never mind, we will see what next year will bring, and we will have the added excitement then of seeing what the new root does, which Emma from the office gave me and which we have planted in a good sunny spot.

To make up for it though the poppies are looking splendid as ever, and will once again  give me some inspiration for stitching I am a sure. They haven't let me down yet, so watch this space soon  for a quilt from today's pictures. I thought you might like a quick peek at what else is showing up at the moment too.

Cornflowers in the "Zoe's Secret Garden"

I am particularly fond of Primula, with the tiny tiny little elements that make up the flower heads. Here we have blue Primula Capitata, which is in its second year and the far larger Primula Bulleyana, which I bought at Gardening Scotland last year. It is recommended for cooler areas so I reckon its an ideal plant for us here in Scotland. No roses yet, a bit early I think but the delphiniums will soon be ready so really looking forward to those. I bet they bloom when we are away on holiday - you could count on it in fact.

After my stroll and snapping the latest additions I set too baking as little James was coming to tea (and bringing mum and dad) so that he could collect his long awaited quilt. He has grown so much since his last visit and was full of smiles and giggles today. Mum said he had been a bit of a pickle recently but I reckon he's a little sweetheart and a very jolly little chap.  Anyway I am pleased to say he seemed very happy with his quilt and quickly settle down for a snuggle. Thanks to Dad for the snaps. (He likes to think he is a bit of a pro at these things, so it was best to leave him too it.

After all the excitement it was soon time for his tea of rice cakes and milk so we adults settled down to a cuppa and a piece of Blueberry Sour Cream Cake, which is becoming a bit of a favourite. If you fancy trying it out check out my recipe tab. Its a very moist cake and reminds me of German style baking, with its slight denseness. Definitely one for the summer and the garden I would say. Sadly not quite up to tea in the garden this week, but never mind. James' company was enough for me and Mum and Dad weren't bad either . I will probably let him bring them along again too next time. 

Don't blink - this might be summer

What a difference a day makes. Yesterday we suffered yet another day of lashing rain and we were all  beginning to wonder if we are going to go straight into Autumn, so much so that my mind has started to turn to thoughts of apples, pumpkins and all this autumnal. My favourite time of the year. This feeling was not helped by my latest copy of Country Living Magazine hitting the door mat, displaying  a beautiful cover photo bearing all those things that make me feel comfy and cosy but I quickly buried such thoughts. It is only August for goodness sake. I must not succumb to the urge to either hibernate or seek out all things witchy . And do you know my resistance was repaid immediately.  The sun has come out!

Edinburgh Castle ready for the Tattoo

I braved the elements, coatless, on the commute in this morning and then spent my lunch break envying all the passing tourists in their skimpies as I charged about the shops on a very important mission ( shoes!!) boiling my little bits off in office gear. Edinburgh is such a stunning city and the arrival of the Festival in August transforms an already hectic city into a place of madness. However I do not begrudge the extra ten minutes it takes me to plough through the crowds to get to my train home, as the colour  and vibrancy of the place makes me smile. Me and the beloved JB have not been very organised with tickets this year as I think the ongoing Olympics has been a bit of a curved ball and drawn our attentions away, but I am sure we will catch up for the final couple of weeks once the Games have finished. Last year we very proudly took Zoe on her first ever trip to see live theatre , seeing " Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy", based on the wonderful books by Lynley Dodd. If you are not familiar with these you really should check them out for the little people in your life. Tales of naughty pups and their friends, with names like SlinkyMalinky, Bottomly Potts and Hercules Morse. Cracking stuff.

Anyway as ever I digress. I purpose of this blog was to share with you a little update from the garden, as I was able to catch a few rays when I got home tonight. It has taken an absolute battering this year with all the rain and although it looks very lush and green, we have had hardly any flowers since back in May when things started to peek out. Its been such a shame as many of my favourites just didn't appear because of the low temperatures and the rain.  We do have a garden full of roses at the moment though which is giving a great show of colour, but if you look closely you can see we have the worst black spot I have ever seen.  I will need to consult Dad, as rose guru, to see if he thinks this is due to the rain or some other horror. He told me years ago to plant garlic near the base of the rose bush and this did appear to help, even if it looked a bit on the odd side. If roses are your bag and you have and ideas , do let me know your ideas for beating this blight.

As well as the roses, the hostas are out which I adore but again they are very bruised. I love these giants of our garden and we are very lucky not to have a slug problem. Don't tell anyone though but when I have found the odd mollusk or two I have been known to fling them over the fence as my neighbour doesn't garden at all and I figure the little blighters do need to eat at some time.

 

 As you will see we do have a few other favourites in bloom, even if it is a bit of a poor shown this year, but I hope you enjoy the pictures. As for me I am about to put my feet up with a glass of something chilled and enjoy the dappled sun under the dovecot, comfy cushions to hand ( as you will  see we have gone for an international flavour - of a sorts ha ha)



White Buddhlia



Under the dovecot, the sun breaks through