Thursday 3 February 2011

Uncovering The Brontes

I was tidying up the other day - visitors: you know how it is - and I found one of my favourite layouts, right at the bottom of a big pile of paper. It's been there for months. Longer, maybe, because I know it hasn't appeared on here before:


It's about a trip we made to the Bronte Parsonage in Haworth. A special birthday trip for me, something I had been wanting to do since I saw Val Singleton visit for Blue Peter in 1973 (74?).

You can see that I came home with lots of leaflets and extras - I've used my Bind It all to hold them onto the back of my page It's a technique I've used before simply for adding extra journaling space; and I made it fit in my album by cutting a slit in the front portion of the page protector.

I sewed the little dress to remind me how charmed The Small One and I were by the display of Charlotte's clothes, her snowdrop wedding bonnet, her tiny shoes ("I don't know who they would ever fit," said the other visitors. "I think they might fit us," whispered The Small One). It was a birthday to remember, organised with care by the man who knows what I like.

So, if you aren't a Jane Eyre fan, please look away now. If you are a fan, of course you know what I'm going to end with, don't you? For what do you do with a man like that? ....Reader, I married him.

33 comments:

Amy said...

Jane Eyre is without doubt my absolute favourite ... it is hard to believe that Emily and Charlotte are sisters, their style of writing is so different - Wuthering Heights is probably my least favourite.

I am very impressed with that birthday present though - fantastic The Accountant!

Jimjams said...

A wise move there!
I remember this page when you shared on UKS - and thinking WOW - making your own embellishments has reached a whole new level. Shame on you for burying it away though!!!

scrappyjacky said...

A wonderful page,Sian...the little dress is perfect....this is somewhere I would love to visit.
Though, unlike Amy, Wuthering Heights is my favourite Bronte book.

Cheryl said...

what a cute dress...and the tag, and the whole page! I plump for Jane Eyre myself.

Suzy said...

Another fab layout and as usual a lovely story behind it

Lynn Mercurio said...

What a wonderful surprise to find that layout after so much time had passed. I imagine that it brought back a flood of memories. I love this layout and how much journaling you did about your experience. Awesome job.

Cheri said...

In high school and college I was fascinated with the Brontes - all THREE of them! I wrote my college thesis on their works and I read them all. Funny, I haven't touched one of their books since.

Kirsty.A said...

This brings back memories, I did my Degree dissertation on Emily Bronte - Wuthering Heights and the juvenilia and I spent a week in Haworth doing research in the Parsonage library. I felt so important, stepping over the barriers into the library behind the exhibits, but I loved the museum itself. I am especially fascinated by the secret world the Bronte children created and wrote down in tiny books. I took loads of black and white photos - none of which actually made it into my dissertation. i wonder if I can find them!

Lou said...

Sian, your layout is a fabulous reminder of a perfect birthday. I love how you've included all the tickets.

Susanne said...

Pretty layout and your story-telling skills shine through in your journaling too. We get a little taste of being there.

Sian said...

Kirsty, that sounds wonderful! I would love to see your photos if you can put your hand on them, please.

Melissa said...

What a wonderful layout and it sounds like a fun trip. The dress is the perfect embellishment to finish off the page. (It looks like we have birthdays close together - July??)

flutter said...

Hi Sian, thanks for your visit. I'm here having a nose round your blog..

Would you believe that mum and I have just started watching the BBC drama Jane Eyre. Yesterday it was Wuthering Heights. I love the classics, they certainly have depth and romance to them. I have never read the book, but I have had it for years. Strange yes lol..

Thanks again for visiting, I hope you come again, I would love to see you x

Bubbles said...

How could you have buried away such an adorable lo? That dress is just so... so... well, it's 'sew cute' :)
Perfection, as always :)

Amanda said...

That little dress is so sweet. Sounds like perfect planning for a perfect day out by The Accountant.

Lizzie said...

Me too... My DH is just as thoughtful, so how could I help it?

What a lovely surprise - finding such a great scrap page under all that paper! (Glad I'm not the only one who "loses" things like this!).

It is a lovely page and I am so charmed by the tiny cute dress... The leaflets attached to the back of the layout is a great idea - I may have to "borrow" that one!

Great page Sian, glad you shared it!

debs14 said...

Can't read the words 'Wuthering Heights' without hearing Kate Bush singing in my head!
This is a lovely page and I love the idea of getting that extra journalling in by making a flap in the page protector, very clever.

Becky said...

What a wonderful layout - the little dress is gorgeous. I am surprised this stayed hidden for so long!

Anonymous said...

hehe, Smart girl! Lovely layout and the dress is so cute! Sounds like a really nice Birthday...and husband!

Scrappi Sandi said...

Found at the bottom of a pile of papers?!!! What were you thinking?!! A LO of that calibre languishing unpublished?!!! I'm just glad that you've shared it now....now get it into an album pronto!! TFS!!

Anonymous said...

What a fabulous page Sian. Genious idea to use the bia to attach additional things and that little dress is just beautiful. You take scrapbooking up to a different level.

alexa said...

How creative to make that lovely little dress, Sian - this is a page in the finest tradition of scrapbooking. And I'm not surprised he didn't get away :). Why on earth would he have wanted to go?

Anonymous said...

I so agree that you take scrapbooking to a whole new level. I'm so happy to get a few photos down on a page with a few embellishments. I can't imagine taking the time to create such a lovely little dress to adorn a page. It's been years since I read any of the Bronte novels. If my current list were not so long, I think I'd pull them off the shelf for a reread.

Sue Althouse said...

I love Jane Eyre and that looks like a place that would be a dream visit for me. That, and taking a Jane Austen tour of England.

Maria Ontiveros said...

Love what you did with the bind it all! Such a neat idea. I'm afraid I'm a bit more of a Jane Austin fan, but maybe that's just because of Colin Firth . . .
Rinda

JO SOWERBY said...

ahhh the brontes such an amazing group of women and so lil!!! so there u go, u have 2 fab things in common with them already!
i loved visiting Haworth, the town is amazing, i only wished i had more time to walk on the moors and get the feeling for their life there a bit more. fave book..........wuthering heights. fave quote,..........something about '' i am heathcliff etc''
Jo xxx

humel said...

I hadn't realised you'd made the little dress yourself!! I remember thinking it was gorgeous and wondering where you'd got it from and forgetting it to ask because we just kept chatting and the moment passed.... I did gaze at it in delight, but I now feel that I didn't give it the attention it deserved!

It's given me a very happy feeling to see a layout on here that I recognise from seeing in person :-)

Sandra said...

Such a fabulous layout, for what looks like a fabulous day :)

Clare said...

It sounds like a fascinating day out, a day out like this that has been planned especially for you mean the most I think, however simple or elaborate. The little dress you created for the layout is amazing.

Ruth said...

I love how your blog storytelling really brings your LOs to life ~ I am quite envious! Sounds like a keeper, The Accountant!

Anonymous said...

What a lovely layout - and even making the dress for it - wow!

Ann said...

What an excellent idea to include the memorabilia at the back of the page. The Accountant is definitely a treasure. I have to confess that I prefer Jane Austin's novels, but I'd still like a day spent at Haworth.

Wanda said...

I'm struggling a bit trying to make my way through a re-read of Jane Eyre. Your lovely page might be just the inspiration I need to continue.

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