Wednesday, April 02, 2014

Inspired by Reading March Blog Hop...

Today is the Reveal for the March selection of the Inspired by Reading Book Club!  For March, we read "An Irish Country Doctor" by Patrick Taylor.  All of the participants agreed that it was an enjoyable and quick read.  The book is about a young man named, Dr. Barry Laverty, and his apprenticeship to Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly in the quaint village of Ballybucklebo in Northern Ireland.  The inhabitants and the practices of the colorful, country village are vastly different than what he is accustom to in Belfast.  The book introduces a cast of quirky characters and depicts several medical procedures.

We always have a good time at the in-person meet-up!  In the picture to the left, I'm overlooking Terri's bead tray as she cradles the book.  Laurel and Alison both got dressed up!  In the center, Laurel wears her inspired creation and a tweed jacket with kilt pin tacked to her lapel.  Alison dressed up like a character from the book!  She dressed up like Mrs. Fotheringham.  The description read, "She was wearing low-heeled, laced brown brogues, thick lisle stockings, and a two-piece jacket and skirt of tweed Heather Mixture.  An amethyst formed the head of a silver thistle brooch in her left lapel.  Around her neck hung a single strand of pearls."

Speaking of brogues, here's a snapshot of the shoes being worn to the meet-up! 

Here's a picture of the treats we had at the book club!  Each one with an "Irish-inspired" theme.  I was going to make some of the Ulster Recipes found in the back of the book, but a quick survey suggested that my efforts might be for naught as one of the recipes was for a Chicken Liver Pate.  Laurel dressed the sherry (a favorite of Dr. Laverty's) in a kilt and brought a little bottle of Irish whiskey since it was a favorite of Dr. O'Reilly!


Alison stopped by the Sweet Shop and picked up several deletable chocolates.  Some were filled with English Toffee, Irish Creme, and some were filled with caramels sprinkled with Celtic Sea Salt.  She also found a box of potent truffles filled with whiskey!

(And not in theme with the book, but we ordered a pizza too!)

I always look forward to the meet-ups!  Everyone lives such hectic lives and the book club is a nice time to unwind, talk about the things we've read and the things we've made and catch up.

And without further ado, here's the reveal for "An Irish Country Doctor":

This multi-strand necklace was made by Laurel.  She incorporated vintage pearls, sewn tweed (to symbolize Laverty's pants that are constantly getting dirty), an antique medical pin, a cloud charm to symbolize the weather of Ballybucklebo, and a heart to represent the love story in the book.

This necklace was created by Alison.  She included a welly boot and used a color scheme inspired by spring and mallard ducks.  

Alison also made this cuff bracelet!  The cuff is topped with a piece of felted Irish wool with a piece of suede sewn on top with part of the spine of the book, lined with a map of Ballybucklebo, and embellished with a beaded edging.  She said that it was inspired by the character who was in a bar fight and got his head cut, and how they painted a shaved patch with blue mercurochrome. 

This focal pendant was created by Terri.  It was inspired by O'Reilly's garden.  She said she started it on the Bead Cruise and features butterflies and birds attached with cold-connection riveting.  It has a lovely floral fringe made with a cascade of Czech glass.

This bracelet was made by me.  It's sort of generically Irish, but I was inspired by one of the chapter titles, "Forty Shades of Green".  The bracelet features a hand-painted Celtic knot tube, terra aqua jasper rounds in vibrant green, and Japanese seed beads.

But that's not all... check out these great blogs for more pieces inspired by "An Irish Country Doctor" by Patrick Taylor:


The next selection is, "The Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri.  This book of short stories is the last book in the first cycle of book selections.  For the full list of last year, CLICK HERE.  For the full list for next year, CLICK HERE.  If you're interested in keeping up with what we're doing, CLICK HERE to visit our Facebook group page.  CLICK HERE to view our Pinterest Page with supplemental inspiration.  It's fascinating to see what elements from the books we read will resonate with participants and inspire them!

7 comments:

Sarajo Wentling said...

I love that some folks dressed up... in character even! I am going to make it out there for the Oct. meet-up with my hubby. (I've warned Terri and Andrew but need suss out the details).

Laurel's piece is such a great combination of materials and symbols. I love that she included fabric to represent the dirty trousers! LOL!

The colors in Allison's piece are so pretty...love the yellows and greens. and that welly is a great touch. Her bracelet is really cool too and it's such a neat idea to include the map detail on the underside.

I'm glad to finally get to see Terri's pendant since I never caught a glimpse of it during the Bead Cruise. It's perfect for the garden girl that she is! Love all those little Czech glass flowers and leaves.

And last but not least, I'm smitten with the focal bead in Andrew's bracelet and would totally snatch it given the chance. :) I went more generically Irish too and feel there's no shame in that. That's the feeling that the book evokes... being in the green, lush Irish countryside. It's a lovely piece with all that green and gold.

Jeanne @ Gems By Jeanne Marie said...

First of all, I am so jealous that you folks get to meet up in person. I wish there were more of us in the the metro NY/NJ area.

How fun that Laurel and Allison dressed up!

I was wondering if you would prepare any of the recipes, Andrew. Personally, I happen to like chicken liver pate!

Laurel's necklace is so creative, depicting many of the themes of the book!

Such a cute boot, Allison. Too bad Barry never did get his Wellies. I love the assymetry and colors of the necklace. The bracelet is really cool!

Terri - Cold connections is on my list of techniques to learn! Your pendant is great!

And Andrew, I see we had the same inspiration! That Celtic bead is fabulous! (as is the whole bracelet)

Eileen The Artful Crafter said...

These creations are simply enchanting! Now I'll have to read the book.

Ann Schroeder said...

The meet up looks like a lot of fun. I love how people dress up and bring themed treats. People went all out on this book. I love the unusual items included in the pieces like the boot and the old medical pin. It makes me want to go to some antique stores and find some items to keep in my stash for potential use in future challenges!

This book and the Irish theme was a great one. Green is one of my favorite colors so I really appreciate that in so many of the pieces and that celtic focal in Andrew's bracelet is beautiful.

This was such a fun book. Thank you so much!

Jenny said...

I also threaten to come to the meet ups in person some day...

Andrew - you may call it generic Irish - I call it lovely.

Terri - nicely done! i live the layering of the copper that hides the seed bead connections. Adds nice depth.

Laurel - a mixed media girl, a kindred spirit. I like the adversity of your materials!

Allison - mad props for the outfit! Where on Earth did you find that Wellie! OMG.

Hope I didn't miss anyone here! I will get a chance to hop the blogs tonight!

And I have "An Irish Country Girl" on my Kindle. Its the housekeeper's back story as a girl!

Karin G said...

How I wish, I could meet you all in person, but it's a bit far for me! I love how you all used different elements to represent the book, all the pieces are so unique, creative and personal!
Creating after a book is an amazing experience!

Bluefinch said...

Wow what fun and what AMAZING pieces! I'm going to have to come to the next meet up!
Andrew, I love the Celtic knot tube as well as the different greens in your piece! Terri's focal reminded me of the flower gardens-lots going on and all beautiful! Alison's cuff with the blue beads did remind me of that poor guy's head! And the boot on her necklace was a perfect addition! Laurel managed to get the whole book into one fabulous necklace! I love how she used the pins and the tweed!
I cannot wait to see what ya'll create next month!
Rachel