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Friday, May 9, 2014

the novel bakers present the forgotten seamstress~

today the novel bakers would like to share a new book we hope you will all enjoy, the forgotten seamstress~


when mlee suggested this book i knew it was something i would have most likely missed, i was so pleased she brought this to our attention. i confess, i am not the type that wants to share a story line, to me, the joy of reading is the unknown that propels me to turn the pages fast and faster. i like to know nothing about a book when i pick it up for the first time, i just want to be transported by the authors words into unknown places, times and emotions...




i will tell you this, i read it one sitting. i was eager to take it all in. i rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars. it was a wonderful read, sitting outside on a blustery day by my fountain while the hummingbirds drank freely, the dogs laid quietly at my feet and my minds eye wandered freely...

























***i just must intervene before the next group of pics, personally i am mortified, but i did what i did... i baked the cookies days before, i was getting ready to decorate them when i realized i had no powder sugar to float my pretty designs. after searching through my pantry, to no avail, i came across dozens of icing tubes at least fifteen years old! i was going to throw them all out when i thought why not save myself a trip to town and just get this quilt over and done! i remember buying pinks and purples for a friends flamingo party waaaaaaaaaay back when...

this is a far cry from the tasteful blues, rust and white quilt i had planned. i should also mention it was 100 degrees standing in my kitchen, it just ain't pretty! my intent was to show a quiet elegant moment sipping tea and quilting in the midmorn by the fountain, instead it looks like a clown car pulled up and shared some of their endless hankies. bottom line is this book needed a quilt, and by gosh you got one! just don't hold it against the book~
















 

i hope you enjoyed our preview of the forgotten seamstress, it's no secret i love to recreate visually scenes from the many books i read, truthfully, it can enhance your life, from food to activities, i have enjoyed countless vignettes that i would normally never have experienced.

for me, playing with books comes naturally, but i have to hand it to the special readers of forgotten seamstress that made the ultimate commitment, they recreated the beautiful quilt at the heart of the story. if you check out her blog you can see the links to their handiwork.



for more information about the author and her books visit her web page, i was fascinated by her own family history, enough so that i quickly bought her first book.

"Liz Trenow's family have been silk weavers for nearly three hundred years, and she grew up in the house next to the mill in Suffolk, England, which still operates today, weaving for top-end fashion houses and royal commissions.

It was the recollections of Liz's father about how, during the Second World War, the mill worked night and day weaving parachute silk, that inspired her first novel, The Last Telegram. It is the story of Lily Verner, a young woman who has to grow up very quickly and learn to manage the stresses and trials behind the Home Front in the Second World War. The love story at the heart of the novel is also based on real life events and characters."

we are so glad you stopped by to visit the novel bakers, we hope you too will be able to enjoy a stitch in time with the forgotten seamstress.




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11 comments:

  1. Oh em gee...I'm scrolling back and forth at your photos in shear :) delight and complete awe! That you crafted a sewing basket and button cookies out of pastry in Jain-fashion boggles the mind, well, no it doesn't. What fun to watch you play and bring a book to life! Your patchwork quilt of cookies with the perfect leftover icing colors makes me grin from ear to ear. That's my kind of quilting and sewing, with sugar and pastry! I can only imagine what you have in store for garden week! Thanks for the fun and squeals of glee this morning. I'll be back a cookie, to pin, and for another look at all your creativity later this morning :)

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  2. Jain, I think you are too critical of yourself or else you're a really great photographer, as I think your cookie quilt came out quite nice. I actually think you did a really great job on all your baking. The cookie buttons are adorable and the basket is a work of art. I am looking forward to spending time with The Novel Bakers.

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  3. Hello Jain
    Your novel baker posts are delightful! I remember quite a few years ago when you did posts with a recipe inspired by a book and I joined in. I can't remember what you called it.
    I will definitely be reading this book because I make quilts and it sounds like a good read. Your cookie quilt is great!! I also love the button cookies and sewing basket you made. You are amazing and your photos are perfection!

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  4. thank you ladies for your sweet comments, so nice of you to stop by! so nice to see you again rhondi, i think you will really enjoy this too!

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  5. Bandwidth helped me get Zap situated so I could run over here...I'm just bowled over by your artistry and details--they bring the pages of TFS to life. I have SO much more to say, but first, I am going on a pinning frenzy. Can't restrain myself...Ooolala, the joy of it.
    Be right back...

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  6. Jain, only your creative mind would think to make buttons and a sewing basket. Both are so adorable! As for the quilt cookies, they are as well. The fact that you used what you had in your cupboard is certainly what a true quilter would have done. Patchwork quilts are made from the fabrics that are in the fabric bin. ;-)
    The book sounds like a delightful read. I'm off to find a copy. Thanks!

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  7. A pause for fluid therapy, but I'm back! Jain. I knew you would do something extraordinary, and you went beyond all expectations. I am in awe of your skill in pulling words from a book and creating a visual feast. Hand's down, your button cookies, quilt pastries, and woven, edible basket are completely and utterly amazing. The photos of Buckingham Palace, Edward, the royal crest..all were little "keys" to the book without giving any spoilers (I swear, an angel gets chest pain every time a spoiler is unleashed into the world). This is the perfect review, IMHO. I, too, ordered Liz's first novel because of the comparison to the Potato Peel Society and because I enjoyed TFS so much.
    Coming here and seeing how you combined baking and reading just added to the joy. So happy to be a NB. xxoo

    PS You'd asked about my pink mandevillas...they were bought for the horrid, bare "flower beds." Long story involving a Gladys Kravets type. Then my husband called it Candyland. :-0 Adding insult to injury, he said my "bag bed" by the fence (climbing mandevilla and clementis and sweet potato vine, all of it going up a $9 trellis) looked like a graveyard. It does. The $9 trellis is a dead ringer for a skeletal tombstone. So I'm off to the garden center to find something that won't evoke images of a funeral. Anyway, I so loved this post. I know the publisher and author will be over the moon with this brilliant, evocative post. xxoo

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  8. I think clothes from now on should all have button cookies and seamstresses should have pastry sewing baskets and quilts should be made out of icing...then the world just might be perfect :)
    Jenna

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  9. Oh my your magic continues, you bring the books alive! I love visiting, so much beauty and love in each post. Thank you for visiting my very neglected blog. I have had health challenges for the last year and a half but I believe they are now behind me. I look forward to returning to the creative "me".
    Keep reading and sharing!
    OXOX, Kelley

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  10. Jain, I am almost speechless with awe! I have been staring at that incredible basket, trying to be sure you actually made it with dough, but I now see from the other comments that I was correct! So beautiful and creative! And the little quilt cookies can come to me if you are not happy with them. I would proudly serve them to my guests. Your post has me interested in this book now. Thank you for all your efforts and a beautiful way to start my days. I'm looking forward to the next NB posts! Linda

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  11. I already commented before but just wanted to say how much I loved the book, read it in one day! I'm going to check out her other books too.

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welcome~