Since a few people asked to see my macramé wall hanging when it was finished, I'll start here. The ends are just loose with a little bit of fringe at the bottom. I was afraid I would not be able to remember the knots and be able to replicate the last two diamonds on my own, but with the help of photos I took of my teacher's finished hanging and a few diagrams I had no problem. I might have fudged a few knots, but for a first try I am pleased with the result.
And a little close up of that middle section. I have been looking for another simple beginner project to do on my own and I found a small plant hanger that looks pretty cool. I had to buy the PDF from someone on Etsy, but the diagrams are very clear and it was not expensive--and also on the smaller side. I have my rope and the brass ring it calls for, so I am going to start this weekend I hope. My first solo project. I have not forgotten my cross stitch. Maybe this will inspire to pull out something in earnest (I have a few things close at hand but so far they are just waiting impatiently for me).
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Have you seen Where'd You Go, Bernadette? yet? I hope it doesn't matter if you've read the book or not, as I haven't and don't think I will manage it before trying to see it.
I am excited to see Downtown Abbey on the big screen. One of my local movie theaters is having a special dress party for the opening, though I think I'll just stick to seeing it on a nice, quiet random afternoon. The trailer makes it look as lavish and beautiful as the series was, but I wonder what sort of drama they will manage in two hours. The King and Queen are coming? I guess it is an excuse to go all out for ceremony, but after the shenanigans that took place over how many seasons . . . It might be kind of tame in comparison?
I am totally thrilled, however, for the forthcoming new season of The Great British Baking Show, which I have found to be hugely addicting. I am not one these days to either cook or bake, but I can watch these episodes endlessly. Often when I am not finding anything good to watch I will just pull up a show or two to keep me entertained. More exciting--we get to see the shows at nearly the same time they are airing in the UK.
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Now I have a request. If you stop by here frequently you know I am very much a mood reader, and a reader who moves between books (probably to the detriment of my current reading piles) easily and often. So, I am currently enjoying a reread of Susan Fletcher's award winning novel, Eve Green. It has been so long since I read the book I only have a vague sense of knowing I enjoyed it immensely the first time around and so far am enjoying as much as the first go. The story is told in retrospect--about a summer in the narrator's childhood which she now looks back on many years later. Evie is sent to rural Wales after the death of her mother at the age of seven. It's a pivotal summer in her life and she must navigate a strange world where she doesn't understand her background or the reason some of the villagers view her with so much animosity.
Fletcher's writing is gorgeous. It is a multi-layered story and told with a complexity that makes you think. She slowly reveals things and you have to pay attention in order not to miss details and clues that will fill in this picture and create a whole. If her other books are as good I definitely need to read them as well.
Being the book glutton that I am, happy to immerse myself in a good story like this . . . I am enjoying the journey yet I know it is only going to make me want more when I finish. I am a fan of a good coming-of-age story like this. Preferably told by a girl/woman and one of those stories told from the vantage point of age and knowledge yet with that pitch perfect girlhood voice. Now I am on a quest to find some similar reads and if you have any suggestions they are most welcome.
I have a short list of books that are similar, at least in that they are coming-of-age stories even if not quite the same way told. These are books/authors who are my go-to reads as I know they are reliably good even the second third any maybe even fourth time around. A few I have literally read that many times and a few are ripe for another read (like Eve Green). I found this list I made years ago that has a few that fit closely with this description. But these are the books otherwise that come to mind first, and I have read each one and in some cases multiple times.
Lost Art of Keeping Secrets, Eva Rice
On Borrowed Wings, Chandra Prasad
Learning to Swim and In a Good Light, Clare Chambers
Coming Home, Rosamund Pilcher
Ferris Beach, Jill McCorkle
I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith
A Brief History of Montmaray, Michelle Cooper (the first book of a trilogy and maybe it is time to read the other two books)
Readalike suggestions, anyone? Thanks in anticipation!