Source: Elaine Frazee
(Another follow up post Alcluith is progressing slowly can be found on this link as well.) Yesterday I posted some of my own scribbles - Ygern's Secret - Something I Wrote. I really appreciate the wonderful comments that were left in response. But - now you have gone and encouraged me (you'll probably be sorry that you did!) and made me think of revisiting a book I was writing. The little 'story' I posted yesterday was a self-contained idea that I never really thought of expanding on. The book is similar in many ways as it focuses on the same era. I started writing it when I was on maternity leave (in other words 14 years ago!). After fiddling around with it for some time and finishing a first draft I sent it off to one of the Irish publishing houses about 5 years ago. They rejected it out of hand (as you do). I put it to one side and it has been languishing in the documents folder of my laptop ever since. Now with the new self publishing options available I may just dust it off again and think of doing something with it. For anyone who has the time, stamina and inclination I'm including the whole of the first chapter on a separate page. It will be warts and all as it stands now but I'd appreciate any feedback. Do I continue with it and try to polish it up - or should it stay put where it is? The end of the first chapter is supposed to be a surprise so if you do want to read it and don't want the spoiler the link to the page is here: Chapter One Otherwise this is the gist of the plot. A whodunit by Ellis Peters called 'The House on Green Turf' contains excerpts from an ancient Scottish ballad (The ballad is incidental to her storyline). When I read her book I found the story behind the ballad intriguing. It goes something like this: A just and popular king is defeated and killed in battle. His pregnant wife is given clemency but the life of their unborn child hangs in the balance. Only a girl will be allowed to live. The queen manages to slip away and gives birth in secret. The child is a boy (of course or there would be no story!) Before his existence becomes common knowledge the queen exchanges her infant son for the newborn daughter of a serving woman and the boy is smuggled out to safety. He is raised in obscurity, unaware of his heritage, but once he learns the truth of his parentage he prepares to return to his kingdom, revenge his father and reclaim his birthright. Besides thinking the story could be expanded quite nicely into a novel, what struck me about the ballad was the one dimensional characterisation. The queen in particular is quite remarkable - here is a woman who stoically accepts the death of her husband, gives birth on her own in secret and then gives up her child without batting an eyelid. Besides the narrative I thought it would be equally fascinating to explore the emotional response of the characters and their reaction to events. I'd be curious to know if my blog friends think the idea (and my stab at interpreting it) has merit. Either way I won't be giving up my day job! Real life Dumbarton Rock in Strathclyde - an actual location for a fictitious tale: All the places referred to in the chapter with the exception of St Aidan's Field are real albeit heavily disguised by the mists of time. All the people and events are completely fictitious. (Some real historical characters sneak in later.) The names (I give an explanation of their meaning in the full version) are all representative of the time and location except for Rowallan - that is my husband's name and he is still unsure whether to take its inclusion as a compliment. The story is called: Alcluith Tears on Stone I've prefaced it (a bit pretentiously I suppose) with this passage from Ecclesiastes: There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: A time to be born and time to die, A time to plant and a time to uproot, A time to kill and a time to heal, A time to tear down and a time to build, A time to weep and a time to laugh, A time to mourn and a time to dance, A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, A time to embrace and a time to refrain, A time to search and a time to give up, A time to keep and a time to throw away, A time to tear and a time to mend, A time to be silent and a time to speak, A time to love and a time to hate, A time for war and a time for peace. Ecclesiastes 3:1
Handmade, Natural Fairy House - So many extras! Handcrafted from wood, twigs, bark and moss this hut is ready to be sent to its new place. Surrounded by lots of little flowers, crystals, mushrooms, potion bottles, etc. this magical fairy home is adorned with lots of extras compared to our smaller fairy homes to create a perfect fairy house! These homes have a little space to read, relax and practice her spells, a portrait of Tula the Fairy Queen, a table for having snacks, and a little clump of fairy crystals. There is a front entrance with a hanging lantern to help the fairies see at night. Our new deluxe fairy homes have an approximate 6"-7" base and approximate 6" tall so they are a little larger. The deluxe fairy house is very special and the fairies and I prefer this be kept inside away from outside elements. As usual I'm sure the worker fairies will add a little special gift to the house as it gets shipped out. The dining table or shelf, and fairy crystals are included. The apothecary bowls and other accessories can be purchased at checkout. This hut is protected with magic from the fairies and makes a perfect night light for a room, office, or fun space when lights are added to enhance the glow at night lights. We can add lights to help her see and not trip over everything at night if you would like. (not shown). We've also given you the opportunity to purchase additional accessory items if you would like to use with your house. They are 3 of our choosing accessory items you can see in the photo examples. The bundle includes both lights and accessory trio. The lights are not permanently attached so you can move them around in your own special way. The light runs on 2 x CR2032 batteries (included). To change the batteries simply remove the battery cover and replace the batteries. Batteries need to be replaced when the lights get dim. Make sure to turn the light off when not in use! PLEASE KEEP CHILDREN AWAY FROM BATTERIES AS THEY CAN BE A CHOKING AND/OR SAFETY HAZARD. The power turns on with a simple slide button/switch. The battery pack is very small and can be easily hidden from plain sight. Please contact us with any questions! Choking hazard - contains small pieces and is not intended for small children. Photos are examples of the house you will receive. Your home will be created especially for you! Fairy House, Fairy Garden House, Fairy Gardens, Terrarium House, Gnome House, Terrarium Kit, Miniature Fairy House, Fairy Garden Homes, Fairy House Homemade by WeeWorld Construction Fairies @weeworldconstruction #weeworldconstruction @goblincore #goblincore @fairycore #fairycore
New! Choose from 4 SIZES! (8X10, 9X12, 11X14 and 12X16) PRODUCT INFO: • Sizes: 8x10, 9x12, 11X14, 12x16 and 16X20. • Listing is for a print or poster only. The frame is not included. • Printed on a matte, archival-grade fine art paper. • Professional-grade, fade-resistant inks. • Protected with backing in a crystal clear polypropylene sleeve. • Ships in a sturdy cardboard mailer or tube. • Ships within 1-3 business days. • Combine shipping! No additional shipping if purchased with any other Pop-Mat item! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ SALE! Buy 3 of more items, get 25% off! Just enter code: 3ORMORE25 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Thank you for shopping at Pop-Mat. “Favorite” me or check back soon. I add new designs regularly!
I'm a little worried. Usually the garden fairies are happy enough in winter; some go south for a few months, others stay here in Connecticu...
Be careful using our Basic Waldorf Peg Gnome Pattern. Once you let a gnome in your life, you’ll never be without one again! Our house is crawling with gnomes. We have unassuming gnomes and rather ostentatious gnomes. We have gnomes that love to tell stories and shy ones that prefer to listen. We even harbor …
Miniature plantscapes known as fairy gardens enchant Midwest gardeners. Here's how to make your own.
So one day my sister sends me a text, and I quote, 'gnome doors are going to be huge this year.' I had absolutely no clue what she was talking about and so it was explained to me carefully so that I could make her one. Basically it is a fake door that is placed
It looks more like a Who House doesn't it??? :-) LOL!!!! That roof was a difficult one, I tell ya. That is why I'm a little late posting this. It took me about 10 hours just to grout the roof!...
Greetings again Everyone, As a clever little boy told me once years ago, "Summer is tired". The days are getting shorter and these last days of delicious warm and shimmering blue sky are each one a such treasure. Every day I try to enjoy each gift of the day as if it is pure gold... a dancing butterfly in the fading garden... the trilling of crickets in the warm fields at dusk... the emergence of the harbingers of autumn - the Goldenrod and Asters which are now starting to bloom. Many of the summer birds have either gone quiet or have gone completely as the migration season gets into full swing. Early September is such a poignant time of year. The male hummingbirds left on August 25th. The females 3-4 days later. Now we are down to just a few of the juveniles and every day I watch the feeders in the morning to see if they are still here... and more importantly I watch again in the evening. It is such a mystery how these young ones make it on their migrations. What is it like to feel the call to leave when the only place you've ever known no longer feels right? I've been pondering these mysteries deeply as late summer wanes. But before we get too far down the road towards autumn, a few more summery Faerie houses are ready to share! This house is one of my most delicate and "feminine" houses yet! I made it from the same twigs that were left over after making the Firefly house (though you can barely see them since the house is now covered in flowers!). I loved the whiteness of the twigs and I knew I wanted to use white flowers too. I had to wait a few weeks till the Hydrangeas and Queen Anne's Lace started to come into bloom, but not too late because I wanted to catch the wild Thyme before it was finished with its peak blooming season. Since I wanted the house to be all white, I used the cleanest White Birch bark I could find in my collection. I wanted it to have a rather formal look, and it reminds me a wee bit of a Chateau or something equally fanciful. The doorway has a sweeping arched frame and the delicate latticed windows have a slightly Moorish feeling to them. I was very pleased with how the house turned out with the little turreted tower added onto the side, but it looked a bit lop-sided so I added the Gazebo which has a floating walkway connecting it to the opposite side of the house. The "walls" of the house are the flat heads of the Queen Anne's Lace blossom heads which were placed face-on onto the walls, packed in tightly together so the entire wall is just the blossoms. Finally, I had made two spiraled pieces of bark into a garden bench just to the side of the house.... the spirals held some slumped glass baubles which added just a touch of sparkle to the whole scene. Since the wild Thyme is growing in a full-sun, sloped area I knew I'd need some stone steps so I had those in my pocket as I set the house up to take the photos. It turned out that I had to work very fast... the Queen Anne's lace flowers wilted very quickly in the full sun! I was very pleased with how it came out and would have loved to linger longer with the happy bees but the sun was hot and the blossoms faded and it was thyme to be going! More to come soon!
“The old dame combed her hair.”As she combed little Gerda’s hair, the child thought less and less of Kay, for the old lady was a witch. She did not harm people, however, but used her power only to …
Miro Hanak,think it illustrates Bluebeard
“The group of fairies skipped merrily through the nasturtium patch, happy in their sunrise task. Early morning was the best time for collecting dewdrops for the Fairy Queen’s bath. This was Daphne’s favourite chore. Daphne was in charge of blessing each pearly droplet with a magical spell before it was funnelled down the huge green […]
Fairy gardens are so beautiful, I guess that's why the fairies are attracted to them. They are also built with love, another reason you can't keep those fairies away. Small gardens with fairy houses
Undated, cloth spine... so many treasures in here!
