We're Getting Married - An Engagement Cushion

Back in January, we had the best phone call from our son, Joe and his partner, Katie, to tell us they'd got engaged.

She's 21 Today, 21 Today

Last week I flew over to St Andrews, Scotland to celebrate Flicky's 21st birthday with her. Five days of fun with some of my kids is just the ticket when I'm missing home.

If you've never visited St Andrews, or Scotland for that matter, it's absolutely beautiful with tons of history but also quite bleak and very cold.  I've put together a few photo collages from the weekend.

 There was lots of food and drink and a fab spa day at the Fairmont resort.

My son, Joe and his partner Katie joined us and, as it was their first visit to St Andrews, we did the touristy bit showing them around the town.

The University

The Castle...

...don't you love a loo with a view? (centre pic below)

and crawling through the tunnels underneath the castle was a lot of laughs too, though I think there were moments when we were laughing just so we didn't cry.

The Cathedral

Love this selfie of us all at the top of the Cathedral Tower.

The Gin Tour

We also visited the local brewery and gin & whisky distillery, Eden Mill, where we may or may not have sampled four G&Ts each as part of the Gin Tour.

If you're a gin girl (or boy) I highly recommend the gin tour.  All the Eden Mill gins are abs delish, the guys at the Eden Mill were super friendly and I think you can tell from the pics we had a lot of fun there.

Eden Mill Gins

Original gin - citrus and seabuckthorn - forget the lime slice add some pink grapefruit

Love gin - tastes of berries and citrus - try it with raspberries

Oak gin - tastes of whisky - great with an orange slice

Golf gin - made using hickory (golf club wood)

Hop gin - tastes of beer - add a sizzling chilli slice

And on Sunday, Flicky's actual 21st birthday, there was even a birthday cake...

...with candles that Rob and Colin, Flicky's two housemates helped her blow out.

It was over all too soon but I was almost glad to get back to slightly warmer weather on the US east coast and slightly pained in the knowledge it'll soon be just as cold or colder here too.

Happy 21st Birthday Flicky xxx

If you'd like to read more about St Andrews you can click through to my previous posts on the images below:

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This post may be linked to some great Linky Parties, always a great source of inspiration too.  If you click through to my 'Fave Linky Parties'  page you can  see where I like to share my work.

That Was February, This Is March

So it's March and I've been buying some gorgeous new fabrics at Pins & Needles on the Upper East Side.

A couple of Ed Emberley "Picture Pie" for Cloud9 fabrics - you just have to love those raccoons and Michael Miller's black & white Clown Stripe.

2 yards of multi pom poms, white fleece and white french terry.

Some fat quarters - I haven't got a printed selvedge on any of them so I have no idea what I've bought, if anyone has any idea I'd love to know!

So that's what I've been doing in March but what about February and, for that matter, January?

Well in January this little guy came to live with us, his name's Watson and he's a Havanese.

Yep he's pretty much running the household and, as you can see, he's totally taken ownership of Tatty's bed!

Then in February Simon and I headed off for a week to Seville to see all the kids - that's right, ALL the kids - it's 2 years since we were all together!!!

The trip involved a lot of this -

there's half a bottle of Tanqueray gin with a thimble of tonic in my glass!

Need more evidence of how we passed our time?  

Here's Ana, Jack, Joe and Katie and a table full of our cocktails.

We didn't take many pics (see my post about my previous trip here) and a lot of what I do have are poor quality phone photos, but there's not a single one of us all together :( and turns out this is the only pic I've got of Flicky!

and this one's me with Simon.

It rained every day and although it wasn't warm it was most definitely warmer than NYC.  The sun did break through for a couple of hours one day as I snapped this pic of Joe and Katie dancing in Seville's Cathedral garden

and this is the sunny view from the top of the Cathedral's Giralda Tower.

I loved all the hand stitched scarves

and there was quilty inspiration on every floor.

Here I am on the flight home - knitting and stretching out as there were only 80 of us on the 335 seater plane.

Airplane food was, as always a trial for me - just because I'm gluten free doesn't mean I like rice cakes, I hate rice cakes.

So that's my dinner and below's my breakfast - another rice cake that someone's gone to the trouble of cutting in half - makes no difference, I still hate rice cakes.

Since I got home I've been working on a sampler for a potential class, late into the night I've been busy sewing together jelly roll strips.

Tomorrow I'm off to San Francisco till Monday and I'm looking forward to some potential sunshine instead of more of this.

Here's to Spring in New York - though I've got a feeling we'll be skipping Spring and going straight into another scorcher of a Summer!!!

I know it's terribly British of me but I'm wondering how the weather's treating you?  Answers on a postcard please or even in a comment.

Guests, Like Fish, Begin To Smell After Three Days ...

... but fortunately on this occasion, Benjamin Franklin was proved wrong.  My son, Joe, has just visited us from London with his girlfriend, Katie; they stayed 11 days without even an odorous whiff and we were sorry to see them go.

During their stay they celebrated their first anniversary so, as they both love cooking, I made them each a reversible apron to say 'congrats'.

 Up first is Katie modelling her apron.  Her chosen fabrics are Lotta Jansdotter glimma 'Marby'; Amy Butler Alchemy 'Queen Ann's Butterflies'; and Dear Stella 'Confetti Dot - Peony'.

 fussy cut front pocket

 pocket detail

 

Next, we're loving Joe's apron with a couple of fabulous 'tongue in cheek' fabrics: "ready for action" Alexander Henry; 'Keep it Sassy! Olive Sandwiches for Moda; and 'Labrinyth - Charcoal', Ikebana by Dear Stella.

 Fireman Sam close up detail ;)

 back fastened tie detail

 front fastened tie detail

 "You had me at Merlot!"

and then I made a third apron ably modelled here by Flicky.  This is also to be a gift and my chosen fabrics are "paseo de los muertos", De Leon Design Group for Alexander Henry and Belle Epoch by Kaffe Fassett.  Unfortunately, I don't know what the lilac straps are as I made them from a fat quarter that didn't have the printed selvedge edge.

 Flamenco dancing skeletons!

This whole 'photo shoot' was thrown together in less than five minutes as Katie had to get off to see a Broadway Musical Theatre Casting Agent - I don't think I've ever snapped so many photos so fast.  I did get the three of them to pose together though before we finished.

You may remember My Mini Adventure cushion and also my Roses For A Drama Queen quilt - well the cushion was a gift for Joe and the quilt was my welcome gift to Katie as, though we do chat on Skype, Facebook and Twitter, this was the first time we've actually met each other!

The pressies were a huge hit and we all had the best time together

and check out us girls jumping on Brooklyn Bridge!

It was all over way too soon, can't wait for them to come back and visit again - please don't leave it too long Joe and Katie, you really didn't start to smell ;D

You might be interested in seeing some other aprons I've made too, just click on an image below to read more about each one :)




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This post is for informational purposes only, no payment or commission is received on click-throughs and opinions are my own.