Lyons Boatyard, Stratford-on-Avon Canal

We have managed to escape again! This time to the boatyard to get the engine seen to. The poor old engine has been overheating quite a lot lately - so we finally had to get it done. Seems the mountings are all sheered and all the cooling pipes are leaking. Well they are 10 years old so I suppose we would not be too surprised.

We came down yesterday and as there is no winding hole nearby had to travel on past the boatyard and then through the drawbridge at Shirley. Once winded we moored up and were soon joined by two other boats (both actually moored opposite the winding hole!

So after a lovely quiet night we got here at 0800 this morning. We had noticed on the way down that there was a new cafe at the boatyard - so we breakfasted on bacon and eggs after we had moored up. The Butty Cafe had, in fact, only opened the day before - so this was their second day.

Lyons Boatyard has recently changed hands. Phil has bought out Ian's share and he is running it with Sarah. He has lots of new ideas for the yard (including the cafe) - so we wish them luck in this venture.

Never one to miss an opportunity to show off a card I made this one to wish them luck with the cafe. It is a picture of Mr David in Millwall Docks in January 2000.

Don't tell them, but I splashed the photo in the bottom left hand corner and the ink smuged. Which is why there is a flower in the corner!

Gas Street Basin

A crocodile of excited little ones waiting to go on a boat trip.

Have you noticed, ever since the weather people said that we were going to have a barbecue summer, it has not stopped raining for more than 1/2 an hour at a time.

We went to the market this morning and it rained. We had lunch in a Vietnamese restaurant and the sun shone. We came out to come back to the boat and it rained again!





This little card has been made using onr of my new Nestability scallop edged circles. I pushed the edge into a pink ink pad to give it a bit of definition, then added the little fabric dress topper. The base card is a sort of pink and white cloud sort of design. Finally, I added a gem in the top right corner and a pink gingham bow in the bottom left hand corner.

Gas Street Basin

I seem to have got out of the habit of doing this blog daily. I am very sorry. Lethargy has been the main culprit. I will try and buck up.


After doing the 27 locks down past Milnworth and then having to come back up them all again 24 hours later did not do my hips any favours. We started off in drizzle but managed the majority of the locks (which were ALL AGAINST US!) in the dry and were back in Gas Street by 11am thus having to evict Calstock from our mooring (after we had told Bruno he could move there for a week or two while we were away).

After a quick lunch I retired to bed and was roused when our visitor from the BBC arrived about 3 o'clock. They want to use our boat for "an antiques expert" to talk about Matthew Bolton for an excerpt of "Precious Antiques" a spin-off of the Antiques Roadshow. Looks like I am going to have to finish off the last two curtains. It has only been 15 months....

David has been titivating Mr David, polishing, cleaning out the bilges etc, etc. I have been creaking around and finally got to see an osteopath last night (the first appointment was cancelled after I had hobbled into town, missing the phone call to cancel it). Anyway he did some manipulation and pushed hard and I screamed and I'm now a lot better. At least I can get out of the chair now without wincing.

If fact I was so much better that I took the train to Stratford on Avon, and would you believe it? We had a visitor, Andrew Tidy of Captain Ahab's Watery Tails (here). We had had some correspondence earlier this year when he had just done and we were hoping to do the Huddersfield Narrow and as he works near I invited him to visit some time.

Here are six cards that I have just made, all using my Cuttlebug to emboss the background card. I shall be putting then all in my ArtyMiss shop shortly.

Wiggins Hill Bridge, Birmingham and Fazeley Canal

Yesterday, David was interviewed again by a local radio station. Don't ask which one, we've got a bit blaze with all this (local) fame. James wanted to know whether it would be better to be on a canal in Venice, or a canal in Birmingham. Now that was a no-brainer! I'd rather be in Venice - even if the locals don't want tourists.

We decided on a mini-cruise to meet up with Ed and Julia on Wildflower to discuss France. So we set off at 0530 this morning and had a great trip down the two flights of locks. We stated with clear blue skies and nearly all the locks for us.

I suffer from vertigo - so this picture was painful to take.








We came upon this lock on the Aston Flight. Where is Health and Safety? The new wooden bollard takes up 1/3 of the narrow walkway on the of-side of the lock and the ladder takes it all up. David had to squeeze past to get to the bottom gate.

There were only 2 boats on the Aston Flight and another at Milnworth bottom lock, but by then it was 10.30, and quite a few boats have gone past since. Birmingham was very busy last night with boats on all the available moorings.

Mooring up just after the winding hole at Milnworth, I was ready for a snooze - well it was 27 locks. Later in the afternoon we had a telephone call from a lady at the BBC who wants to film on a boat for a spin-off of the Antiques Road Show. (Not sure if she meant us or the boat as antique.) So, for the second time in 2 years we have come down these locks and almost immediately turned around and gone back again. We will get off the B&F at the northern end one of these days.


Yet another Birmingham City Fan. I made the backing paper on the computer and decoupaged the badge. Using the Bend It font I typed out the name and sentiments and matted everything onto silver and blue paper.

Gas Street Basin

I finally caught up with Granny Buttons blog today and was interested to see this. No one I have asked around here seems to have any notion of this new trip boat or seen anything - so the camouflage must be really, really good.

David and I walked around to the top of Farmer's Locks (I wanted a picture of a boat coming up for a postcard - of course there were none). We did notice that the Flapper and Firkin pub and been "done up" and is now just called the Flapper. So rumours of its demise seem to be premature.

I phoned our friends on Wildflower yesterday and they told us they were thinking of taking their boat to France and would we like to join them! So looks like we might be sailing on big canals with lock keepers next year.


I made this card for a lady's 30th birthday, but it only says that on the inside - so she can display it without blushing! She liked black and white and lots of pink.

I Cuttlebugged the flowers on black card and stuck it to a large white card blank. I then added three strips of sparkly peel-off lines down the sides and at the join. The butterfly is made from pink feathers and is painted with silver sparkly paint. I finished the card off with a sparkly silver peel-off sentiment, a trail of pink glitter and some pink gems in some of the flowers.

Because the butterfly is so fragile I made a box for the card, but in reverse colours, making the lid with black card and adding a white Cuttlebugged flower. This time adding some white organza ribbon with black dots and a pink butterfly. Hope she liked it.

Gas Street Basin

The dirty deed is done. The wedding has taken place. We are free!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have been up to my eyes in wedding stationery for our daughter Caroline's wedding which took place yesterday.

Everything went to plan except for the weather, but it did manage to stop raining for the photographs. She was married to Curtis at Eastnor Castle in Ledbury, so we spent last night in a four poster!

Now we have got our lives back I can start blogging again - and maybe even go on another cruise. We missed the 10th anniversary of being on Mr David last week, I didn't remember until two days after the event. At some stage we had a visit from Jan and Bowman from Rivendell who we met on the Leeds and Liverpool earlier this year and he and David managed to get through half a bottle of whisky - so no-one remembers much about it.

On Friday night we accommodated an very old working boat called Spey crewed by a group of young people (calling themselves The Young Friends of Spey) - see the picture above. They repaid us with Pimms and wonderful English folk tunes (well until one of them dropped her flutey thing in the water.

IF YOU ARE EASILY OFFENDED DO NOT READ ON ANY FURTHER

I made a Thank You card for Sidney, the owner of the Legs Eleven lap dancing club for his present of a bottle of wine. This is it.




I found the picture from the Legs Eleven Website (quite an eyeopener in itself) and made a shaker card using my new Nestabilities for cutting and embossing the frame. I added sequin flowers to cover her modesty

BUT

if you jiggle it about a bit,












All is revealed.