Tuesday, 14 February 2017

Spring is in my heart

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a tatted heart and a romantic classic for Valentine's Day

Spring is in my Heart !

Block Heart Brooch / pendant pattern notated on pic. It measured : 1.25" × 1.75"

  
I visualized the bright 3-petalled mustard flowers - a harbinger of spring in North India. The fields are literally yellow as one drives across the region !!!

Pattern for freeform Floral sprig 
SH1 - yellow ; SH2 - green , in size 40 thread.
Flowers : R1 : 2-8-2 ; R2 : 2+8-2 ; R3 : 2+8+2. All small picots.
Leaves : R : 1 (-1)×10 with large picots.
Stem between elements : short Josephine Chain of 4-6 hs.
Sandalwood beads sewed in center while sewing on the sprig.
A teardrop gem sewn in later.
A size 20 heart beside the larger one.


The Thornbirds
Colleen McCullough


This family saga book was a thank-you gift from a friend & colleague three decades back. Loved it then, loved it again !
The main protagonists, Megan & Father Ralph, are effortlessly brought to life, with memorable interactions.

Drogheda, itself is a looming, vast, vibrant protagonist almost! Her descriptions of the sheep station & the Outback bring it all to life - very vivid, very potent. A superb glimpse into farm life & breeding, the hard life, the struggles & loneliness, etc. And when the first droplets of rain fall, I could rejoice as if I were right there.


When I Googled to see if it was made into a movie, my jaw literally dropped !!!! Richard Chamberlain as the priest - Wow! 
I could Totally visualize Rachel Ward & Richard together. 
And how ironical - the man was unavailable to women both in the story and in real life! Now isn't that a pity ;-P

There was a personal surprise, though. High praise & gratitude for the valour of Indian soldiers! But the war narrative was the only part of the otherwise perfect story that seemed a bit of a  drag.

I'm sure feminists pan the story, and some of it may be "politically incorrect" in today's world. Whatever. A story well told, that touches the heartstrings is a winner! A personal quest for perfection, for the ideal - that's how I see it. 

💖💞💗 Enjoy :-) 💗💞💖




11 comments:

  1. We have a version of the mustard flower growing in our yard. It's a bit invasive here and NOT loved by gardeners. But, it's used in dyeing and is pretty! My current read is a fluffy paperback mystery with scenes written in a yarn shop. Fibery fun!

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  2. HiMuskaan, heart is so pretty!!!!! Hanging bead is perfect fit. Beauty enhanced with floral sprig tooo.

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  3. I love the heart with flowers emerging from it for Spring! I had on my to-do list for the day to try out your block heart and then got carried away spinning. Now that that's done... I didn't love The Thornbirds though, I thought it was a ridiculous book. (sorry about that!)

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  4. Very pretty heart, love the flower spray on it, it's on my list to try.
    I think there was a TV programme called the Thornbirds years ago, not sure if it was based on the book

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  5. Very romantic heart and beautiful flowers:)

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  6. Your pendant looks fabulous!! :)

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  7. Lovely heart, and I really like the little cluster of flowers.

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  8. The tiny flowers are such a lovely accent on the heart. Spring is definitely not getting here fast enough. Thank you for the patterns!

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  9. Mel, your mustard weed reminds me of the hare 'invasion' in Australia ;-P Your book seems interesting, right in our line !

    Jane, there's no accounting for reading taste ;-P Thanks for trying out the heart.

    Margaret, yes the book was made into TV series, not a film. So it must be the same. And "spray" is the word that eluded me !!!

    Many thanks, Usha, Anetta, Sue, Sarah, & Lavi. I have a few in-process pics of the flower spray which will be shared once the net connection is back.

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  10. I thought at the time that Richard Chamberlain was unimaginable as Ralph. I could easily have accepted Alan Alda in the role. I couldn't fit Richard into Colleen's descriptions of Ralph, even after I saw it (I'd been hoping that actually seeing the film series would make him more believable.) I loved the book (still do, truthfully) and wanted a re-do. I thought Rachel Ward was very believable. Now that I'm older and wiser, I figure most movies just can't live up to the books. I still love the book--and since you brought it up, I'm inspired to read it again--for the fourth time? Once every ten years or so seems good--I'm sad that so many of the great saga writers are no longer with us. Thanks for reminding me.

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    1. What a lovely comment, Dora ! I can never visualize a character completely, despite the best descriptions - the face, etc. are always hazy. So when I saw their pics on Google, they looked believable! Unlike Winona Ryder as Elizabeth Bennett, for example. Hope you enjoy your read - good books never grow old :-)

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