Emma costume

Emma Woodhouse, from Emma, by Jane Austen.

The third installment in my "Heroines" costume series.

When I saw this fabric, I knew it was the one for Emma.  :)  The flowers are pink/peach instead of blue, but besides that it's pretty close (see Atlanta's post for inspiration photos and her lovely replica version).  I just love the costumes in the new BBC series!

I had to try the Regency Colouring Tutorial too.  ;)

For the skirt and sleeves, I used Simplicity 7089 (with less of a train for the skirt); and Simplicity 5673 as a base for the top.  The back fastens with a snap and hook & eye.

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Bronte

Saw this at Costume Drama Madness:   Brooding Brontës replace Austen as ‘bonnet drama’ returns

I was REALLY excited; I thought it meant we were finally getting an adaptation of Villette and other underrated Bronte books!  But it turns out the article is only about the upcoming Jane Eyre and (yet another) Wuthering Heights films.  Mind you, if it's a good adaptation, I'd love to see another Jane Eyre.  I haven't yet seen the perfect one yet...so far I think the 1983 one is the best.  The 2006 one was accurate in some ways (the self-portrait scene, for example), but it drastically changed the character of Jane Eyre, which really bothers me. 

Now, if this new one is good, and if lots of people like it, it might lead to more Bronte stories being adapted--like Cranford was, after North & South.  I really hope that will turn out to be the case.  :)  The problem is, I'm almost a purist when it comes to Charlotte Bronte's books, so if the films aren't good, I will be exceedingly disappointed.  Exceedingly...

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A portrait of Miss Smith

Art & sewing are in 3rd place in the poll (so far), so I thought I'd post another pencil drawing.  By the way, what kind of movie reviews would you be interested in reading?  All the ones I've posted thus far have been new movies (to me, at least); however, I could also review some of my favourites.  Or least favourites; but then, I'd have to sit through them again...

Now, the drawing.  For their birthdays and Christmas, my siblings each give me a list of book/movie characters they like; I pick one, and then draw a portrait for them. Well, for Emiko, I decided to draw Harriet from Emma (2009), and I didn't realise until later that I was actually drawing "a portrait of Miss Smith", like Emma does in the story.  Lol.

[Note: this was slightly edited in GIMP, for printing purposes]


As you can see, the Woodhouses' landscaping is very...minimalistic.  And I still can't draw curly hair very well.

By the way, a bit of random news: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is going to be in 3D!!  And I'm pretty excited.  =)  While I don't want The Hobbit movies to be 3D (I think it would be bad for continuity and atmosphere), I would go see Voyage in 3D.  I wonder if the soundtrack will be released before the movie is?

And thank you for all the character name ideas; it was very helpful!!  I've got it narrowed down to 2 names, but haven't decided for sure yet, and I'm open to more ideas, too.  :)

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Book Review: "...you have remarkable talents and remarkable talents excuse all manner of oddness."

Bellfield Hall
by Anna Dean
Edition: Minotaur Books, 1st U.S. edition, hardcover.
Overall rating: 4 out of 5 stars

[If there are any typos in this review, let me know.]


The story:  Soon after his engagement is announced, Richard Montague suddenly leaves his fiancee, Catherine, telling her he is a poor man and must release her from the engagement.  Catherine's aunt, Miss Dido Kent, comes to help and advise her in her confusion and misery; but she is not long at Bellfield Hall--the wealthy Montagues' estate--before the body of a murdered woman is found in the shrubbery.  Richard's actions and disappearance become two of many mysteries that puzzle Dido, and the more she discovers, the more difficult it is for her to know what she ought to do.  Dido is convinced that the murderer must be one of the people staying at Bellfield Hall; and she wonders if she can still help her niece, or if the truth of all the mysteries will only serve to hurt Catherine, and others.


My thoughts:  I was not really expecting this to be a good read.  Recent experience has made me prepared to be disappointed in books written after the mid-20th century.  Bellfield Hall, I am very happy to say, was an exception.  =)

For one thing, the whole idea of combining the Regency era with the mystery genre is a very cool idea, and it worked REALLY well.  Combine a Jane Austen story with an Agatha Christie type of mystery (big house in the English countryside, lots of suspects, some mysterious plot twists), and you have Bellfield Hall. Not only does this make an interesting story, but it's pretty easy for the reader to relate to.

The writing style was very, very good.  It had the sense/atmosphere of the Regency era and the readability of an Agatha Christie book, and there were only a few anachronisms that really stood out.  The story was fast-paced, and I loved the parts that consisted of Dido's letters to her sister.  Great writing and good balance, overall.    

Dido Kent is an interesting character; she has been compared to Miss Marple, but I actually didn't find her to be very like Miss Marple.  She's not as quaint, and she has more of a Sherlockian way of being able to talk to people and getting them to talk to her and answer her questions.  At the same time, she's still a rather nice, middle-aged lady, and (usually) her character is pretty much in keeping with the Regency era.  It's good to see a character who doesn't come across as cliche, or like a copy of some other popular detective, and Dido does not seem to be either.  I also found myself feeling sorry for her, as she was looked down upon for being a plain, poor, middle-aged "spinster."

The mystery was excellent.  I figured out part of it, but most of it Dido figured out before I did.  ;)  It was not the scariest mystery I've read, but there were a few eerie moments.  There seems to be an anti-abortion message in the story, and Dido Kent is the daughter of a clergyman (in fact, I don't think Christianity is ever portrayed in a negative light), so those are more reasons to approve of this book.

Now, some stuff I didn't like...

Some of the characters are introduced to the reader very vaguely...even at the end of the book, I wasn't exactly sure why they would even be at Bellfield Hall.  It was not a big deal, since it didn't detract much from my understanding of the story, but it certainly confuzzled me.

Secondly, in a couple scenes, Dido pretends to be a fortune-teller/palm-reader in order to find out information.  I don't claim to be an expert on the Regency era, and I don't claim to know what most middle-aged women thought of fortune-telling back then, but I had less respect for Dido as a result, and it seemed out of character/era.


Thirdly, the solutions to the mysteries were also explained in a vague way.  I guess I'm used to Poirot's point-blank explanations, but there was one aspect of the story in particular that I didn't really get, and that was Richard's moral character.  It seemed ambiguous. 

Overall:  It was a fun, suspenseful, and worthwhile read.  I don't know if the local libraries have the next book in the series (A Gentleman of Fortune), but if they do, I will most likely check it out.  :)

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Badly done? Quite the contrary!

Well, yesterday was the last part of Emma, and (not being a football fan) I also finished rewatching Lord of the Rings for the umpteenth time--actually, I've been keeping track, and this is approx. the 6th time I've seen Fellowship and Two Towers, and the 4th time I've seen Return.  I'm still impressed by how good they are!  I keep noticing things I didn't notice before, and certain scenes are almost just as amazing as when I first saw them--Emiko and I ran out of Kleenex more than once. 




This version of Emma is definitely one of my top favourite Jane Austen movies, and it wins the award, imo, for best Regency costumes ever!  Most of the dresses are pretty, colourful, creative, and relatively modest; and all the costumes in general look pretty realistic...I mean, they actually look wearable!  Episode 2 inspired me to make a Regency blouse, not finished yet but I'll post pics when it is.  :)  And forget Darcy; MR KNIGHTLEY IS THE BEST!!!  I think I like this version of him just as much as Northam's version, and that's saying a lot, lol.  This Emma Woodhouse is also the best version I've seen, actually a little bit likeable; I love the scene where she echoes "Badly done!"--that was brilliant on the part of the scriptwriters.  Overall, the most enjoyable adaptation of Emma yet.  Most of the cast is excellent, and I love the use of flashbacks, narration, and Emma's imagination.  I wouldn't call myself a Jane Austen purist, but I still think this series kept to the spirit of the book well, and most of the stuff the scriptwriters added was in good taste and in keeping with the original story and portrayals.

Now if they would only do some Bronte adaptations that kept to the spirit of the books.  *sigh*  Maybe someday!

What did you think of "Emma"?

Also, thanks to those of you who've tagged or awarded me!  I'll be posting those soon, as well as some photos......

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Lol

Fanny left the room with a very sorrowful heart; she could not feel the difference to be so small, she could not think of living with her aunt with anything like satisfaction. As soon as she met with Edmund she told him her distress.

"Cousin," said she, "something is going to happen which I do not like at all; and though you have often persuaded me into being reconciled to things that I disliked at first, you will not be able to do it now. I am going to live entirely with my aunt Norris."

"Indeed!"

"Yes; my aunt Bertram has just told me so. It is quite settled. I am to leave Mansfield Park, and go to the White House, I suppose, as soon as she is removed there."

;)

Been re-reading Mansfield Park...I also want to re-read S&S and Emma (which was my favourite).  I'm not much of a fan of Austen's writing style, but I've been appreciating it more this time around.  What's your favourite Jane Austen story, and why?

BTW, thanks to everyone for voting on the poll--and if you haven't voted yet, I'd appreciate it if you did!  =)

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