2013 Jane Austen Collection

It's been a few years since I introduced a tribute to Jane Austen with Book Beads. Thanks to you, this was met with much enthusiasm and has become a resounding success. How to build on this? I decided I couldn't go wrong incorporating three themes: Regency, floral prints, ladies of fashion. Without further ado, may I present....the 2013 Jane Austen Collection. 

Sculpted out of polymer clay, book beads are burnished, fired, sealed & glazed before being configured for the end piece (earrings, bracelet, necklace etc.) it was meant to be. It takes about 3 weeks from start to finish, to complete a bead. Their cut, clarity of image, size and durability are without rival -  a fitting tribute to the timeless Jane Austen!   Whether you want something a la carte or wish to custom design an item just for you, come and visit our MAIN site or via Etsy. There's bound to be something there to feed your inner book geek.

UNRAVELING THE MILLENIUM  TRILOGY

The best selling novels by the late Stieg Larsson were originally written in Swedish.  In fact, when I first started researching the books, I was soooo confused because the Swedish titles did NOT correspond to the English ones.  For example, the first book, Män som hatar kvinnor, literally Men Who Hate Women IS actually The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo here in the US. (A big "thank you" to my sister-in-law, JB, who translated the various editions for me.) 

Front: US covers   Back:UK covers

I didn't have a clue - at first. Why in the world would you title a thriller, "Men Who Hate Women"? Apparently, US editors agreed with this assessment and promptly switched to a more "provocative" handle. But get this: when Larsson was a teenager, he witnessed the gang rape of a girl, which led to his lifelong abhorrence of violence against women. Having failed to help the girl, he made it his mission to combat sexual abuse against women through his writing. Ergo: Men Who Hate Women.

 

The editing didn't extend to the book covers though, in my opinion. The US editions come in plain, garden variety text-on-background staging. Nothing there to reel you in. A sure case of "don't judge a book by its cover". If my sister-in-law hadn't been gushing over the trilogy (along with the many great reviewers on Amazon), I probably wouldn't have picked it up.

The main female lead, Lisbeth Salander, features prominently in the UK covers. She is a twenty-something punk with poor social skills, relying on her intelligence and photographic memory to solve cases. Paired with investigative journalist, Mikael Blomkvist, who works for the magazine, Millenium, the two team up to solve crimes.

It is thought that at least half a dozen books were planned in the series, with Larsson having written most of a 4th book before his untimely death.  An American film adaptation of the first book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, is slated to hit theaters Dec. 21, 2011.

For information on the Millenium Trilogy Collection, visit Just Charming!

UPDATE: Apparently, Lisbeth Salander's "look" is now a major fashion movement in Europe:

H&M is launching a limited edition line "Millenium Look" in some selected stores in Europe beginning 28 Nov in Colette in Paris, 14 December in H&M stores in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Den Haag, Utrecht and Eindhoven as well as online!

  

Thanks to my alert sis-in-law, JB, correspondent-extraordinaire from Holland.

TURKEY, THANKSGIVING and TINTIN?

The turkey has been consumed. Waistbands stretched. Leftovers inevitable. The sale papers absently discarded as you move on to the next day's sales. 

Braving the crowds at Target today, I came across a childhood comic book favorite: The Adventures of Tintin. Beautifully illustrated, Herge's classics come to life with vibrant colors and funny tales. Brings back memories!

In honor of my DH, who has collected The Adventures of Tintin series since he was a little boy, the Tintin Book Beads have come to life:

The collection includes 12 beloved titles from The Adventures of Tintin series split into 6 books (I’ve collaged different titles in the front (F) and back (B) of each book bead):

1) Secret of the Unicorn (F) with Cigars of the Pharaoh(B)

2) Tintin in America (F) with Tintin in the Congo (B)

3) The Blue Lotus (F) with Prisoners of the Sun (B)

4) Red Rackham’s Treasure (F) with The Seven Crystal Balls (B)

5) Tintin in Tibet (F) with Tintin in the Land of the Soviets (B)

6) Destination Moon (F) with Explorers on the Moon (B)

 The Tintin mini book charms can be used as earrings,

 

strung on a leather cord necklace,

 

adorably used as stitch markers for knitting or crochet,

 

or creatively linked on a thick leather cord bracelet (for men & women):

The applications are only limited by your imagination.Check out Just Charming! for details.

Feed Your "True Blood" Fettish

This is dedicated to all Sookie Stackhouse fans, 

and/or True Blood lovers and fang bangers alike:

Featuring 10 of 11 published books by Charlaine Harris, the interchangeable book beads can be worn by him or her (unisex). Dangling from a thick leather cord, it's pretty cool! Check out Just Charming! for details.