Tuesday 14 February 2017

Spring is in my heart

Pin It now!

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!

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

    ReplyDelete
  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!)

    ReplyDelete
  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

    ReplyDelete
  5. Very romantic heart and beautiful flowers:)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Your pendant looks fabulous!! :)

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

    ReplyDelete
  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!

    ReplyDelete
  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.

    ReplyDelete
  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.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    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 :-)

      Delete