Magazine Rack

News on the whales is not good, a further whale was found dead beached at Wainfleet , a little further up the coast.  Such a shame, scientists are now working to find out what has caused this catastrophe.  There has been sightings of more whales in the North sea, lets hope they don't come into shallow waters.

I was a woman on a mission with the quilt but got sidetracked today by my husband.  He is having a flare up and is in a lot of pain so needed some help with a project that he had started.  We have had a magazine table which was in very poor condition in the shed for quite a  long time.  My husband had lovingly repaired the damaged table and stripped the veneer ready for painting.

 

Several hours later, two coats of paint and a waxing sees a table that would have gone to landfill restored to its former glory and now taking pride of place in the craft room.

 

 

I do wonder how long it will take me to fill this work space to the same capacity as the rest of the room?  My dear husband thinks minutes rather than days...I think he is cheeky!  What do you think?

 

Back to reality and sore fingers I have a quilt to finish.

 

See you soon.

 

 

 

Quilting With Love

We have spent a lot of the weekend  listening to the news of the pod of whales in our local area who swam into shallow waters.  The first death was reported at Hunstanton and then there were three further deaths at the seaside town of Skegness, a mere 7 miles away from our home.  A real tragedy, it was heart rendering to see as reports were made on the local news.

On a lighter note I have been working on my quilt and have impressed myself with the progress.

 

The hexagons were stitched onto the fabric patches using a blanket stitch.  I chose a vibrant Cath Kidston green thread to make it pop!

 

The patches were then hand stitched together.  I used some scrapbook paper to ensure they were all 12" x 12".

 

 

The papers removed and a sandwich of batting and fabric backing were pinned together.  Stitching them all together is a work in progress.

 

 

I am happy with the progress and love the colour mix.  It is to be a gift for my daughter for the nursing chair. 

 

 

Every stitch, a stitch filled with love.  A heirloom in the making for my new baby Grandson due next month.  I am so excited and am looking forward to meeting him.

 

 

I am just hoping that I will have it finished in time...

 

I am working on it in the lounge so that I don't have to keep popping in and out to the craft room but it does make for an untidy room which I am not used to.  Needs must, I am on a mission.  I have big plans to crochet a cushion for said nursing chair but that could just be a pipe dream at this stage.

 

See you soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Five On Friday

We are back to Friday again and therefore joining Amy over at Love Made My home for the weekly get together.  This is a week that started with the decluttering  of the kitchen , sorting and cleaning cupboards and drawers and accessing the freezers.  There was an abundance of leeks that had been in there for some time, therefore my chosen five this week are meals that included the use of the humble leek.

We had a roast chicken dinner on Sunday with all the trimmings which included creamed leeks as a side.  I didn't take any photos but rest assured it was good.

There was so much chicken leftover that I made a chicken/ham and leek pie and also a chicken stew with dumplings both of course using leek.

 

The sauce in the pie was cream based and topped with shortcrust pastry, definitely not a healthy option.

 

 

There was enough stew for two days with enormous dumpling that fluffed up once cooked, a real winter warmer.  Perfect for the cold weather that we have had this week.

 

My fourth use of leek was a shepherds pie, an old favourite from our Army days.  I haven't bought any minced lamb for awhile so was quite surprised at the price.  We are considering this as a treat, you have to have a treat now and again.

 

 

I made them individually and topped them off with mustard mash to give them extra flavour.

 

 

They were good...

 

Finally, leek and potato soup that I make on a regular basis there is enough for today too.  Another warming dish for these cooler days.

 

 

How do you use your surplus vegetables languishing in the freezer?

 

See you soon.

 

 

 

 

Structures On The Edge

 

We live in a semi rural village on the East Coast of England and very rarely go to the umpteen beaches that are available on this bracing coastline.  One of our plans for the new year was to make more of our beautiful surroundings and use the facilities available.  To this end yesterday we took a drive along our local coastline.  Don your hat and coat and come along with us.  We have a flask of milky coffee and some sandwiches to sustain us and we are quite happy to share.

 

 

We drove along the coastal road and then had a little walk at each place stopped.  As you leave our village you will come across the beach huts, a wonderful sight in the summer months with all their bright paint.

 

 

Each area as you go along the coastal road, barely wide enough for two vehicles is clearly signposted.  There is toilet facilities at them all, a large car park and some wonderful picnic areas with wooden tables and benches.  I would imagine they are quite busy in the summer months.  For now people were using the beautiful areas for dog walking, only allowed in the winter months.  There were some fishermen on Huttoft car Terrace, which were fun to watch for a short while.

 

 

 

The sea was a lot calmer than I had expected.

 

 

At Chapel Six Marshes there was an amazing structure built to enhance your experience there.  I am not sure that it did, but it gave me some height to watch over the vast sea.

 

 

The structure actually made a frame around the view which I did find strange, see what you think.

 

 

This was to the right...

 

 

...to the left.  You can see the shadow of the structure in the wintery sunlight.

 

Each area visited displayed local information which was a real bonus and I did feel that this enhanced the visit.

 

 

The last photo made me smile, you can see the shadow of me taking the photo.

 

It was a cold January day but the short strolls were invigorating, with the ever changing seascape, the odd bird or two and some delightful shrubs, grasses it was a delight.

 

 

Some new growth was starting to appear, showing early signs of Spring here along the coastline too.

 

 

It was reassuring to see that the flood defence gates were shut.  The last flood here in this area was in the '50s but changing times, who knows?

 

 

It certainly blew the cobwebs away and made us appreciate what we have got in our local area.  Hope you enjoyed the ride with us.

 

Finally, just because...

 

 

See you soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Morning Glory

Red sky at night, Shepherd's delight.
Red sky in the morning, Shepherd's warning.

 

This is what I woke up to this morning, a beautiful red sky.  A warning for unpleasant weather to come so they say, but so far the day has been uneventful weather wise.

 

I had a wonderful gift from my eldest daughter for Christmas encompassing the two things that I love, Disney and crochet.

 

 

A start has been made on the Mickey Mouse, my favourite of all the characters...

 

 

I wonder how many I will have to crochet once the children see it?

 

 

Thank you for all your  comments on my last post, it was wonderful to hear about some of your experiences.  Its always comforting to know you have some support.  A warm welcome also to new followers, I hope you find something to interest you on my little adventures through life.

 

See you soon.