And More Roses...!
The Roses in my RL garden, Dear Readers, have been putting on an astonishing show this week. Every shrub has been doing its best to upstage its neighbor with the quantity and beauty of its blossoms. I try to admire every bloom but cannot keep up! And each new blossom is more beautiful than the one before! Is it any wonder that Roses are the theme of several of my endeavors right now? I have not shared with you my latest petit-point carpet project, another of Janet Granger's delightful kits.
It is a beautiful Aubusson style carpet,
complete with roses in clusters among lavish swirls.
There is only one problem...
it is too small for the room I wish to use it in!
The completed kit would make a 5x6.5 inches carpet.
The mesh cloth included in the kit is large enough
that I could fit a carpet 6.5x8 inches if I used all the space.
Which made me wonder if I could expand the design....
just add a border all around?
If I stopped following the kit...
and pushed the border out by 3/4 inch all around
And maybe added a couple of "cartouches" at the sides...
with roses in them...
Like so....
Would it work?
The first cartouches are too small
and have to be re-stitched...
Just one stitch larger all around.
Then I discovered I had counted wrong on the border....
The entire left side had to be taken out and moved over by one row...!
(Hours and hours of undoing and re-doing...)
These symmetrical patterns are very very unforgiving
of counting errors!
Can you see where my idea is headed...?
But there is still a huge amount of re-designing to do!
(This is harder than it looks!)
Meanwhile, Dear Readers, this is not the only place
where I am playing with roses!
For a while now I have wanted to try to embellish
the ceiling trim of the Dollmaker's Studio...
Adding swags of "carved" ribbons and roses...
First gluing a selection of "floral" pieces to a mesh ribbon....
Coating it in primer....
This is just a test run to see if it works...
Painting it gold...
and trying to see if it looks anything like I imagine...
Which is really hard to tell...
If we temporarily add the ceiling and shine a light in....
Can this work...???
Well, Dear Readers, I'm not done yet!
There is a long way to go and a lot to figure out...
But I am having a lot of fun...
Playing with the roses!
Inspired by my RL Garden!
Dear Betsy, I do admire that you can settle to doing minis when the garden calls. I can spend all day in the garden and not exactly know what I have done .... only that it gives me such peace and pleasure. The warm-weather days are so short.
ReplyDeleteYour RL garden is charming ..... and your petit point amazing.
Regards Janine
Oh my, the beauty of your real life garden is surpassed only by your gorgeous needlework. I think your instincts are spot on about how to make the carpet larger. It is coming along so nicely and I look forward to seeing the completed design - although, as a needleworker myself, I know it will take a while. There's a lot of little stitches there! Also, I really like your ideas for embellishing your ceiling trim. I think it will look fabulous. Great work! - Marilyn D.
ReplyDeleteYour roses are gorgeous! All three kinds. :-)
ReplyDeleteThe rug is going to turn out great. I think the 'plaster' roses will work nicely. They look like plaster to me!
Dear Betsy,
ReplyDeleteI love your roses - All of them! I wish was as good as you at growing roses in my garden. Sadly I am not, but still admire every single of the few flowers I get each year. Never mind.
Your solution to enlarging the carpet is perfect. It is indeed tedious work to work out, count out and make fit but from what you have done so far it will certainly be worth it in the end.
Gilded swags of roses - amazing. I know this is just a trail run, but who would have thought that beautiful carved trim was a group of plastic? crafty beads. It is wonderful. I will have to remember that little trick.
Hugs from a wet and rainy South OZ
Anna X
I love seeing your beautiful roses, Betsy, they look like a waterfall of blooms, and they truly are a feast for the eyes!!
ReplyDeleteYour Aubusson style carpet looks wonderful already, it's alot of work but worth it. And of course, you are Betsy, who is always her stunning additons to your miniworks, as it comes to kits ;O). Despite of the mistake I think it would work, the addition of the extra roses look charming.
Adding gold roses to the ceiling would fit so lovely with your naughty cherubs, and can be very romantic!
Your blooming roses inspired your mini work so much, it's so delightful to see. Keep making your miniworks, dear Betsy!
Have a lovely weekend, and enjoy your roses to the fullest.
Hugs, Ilona
Oh how gorgeous your garden is! Same out here - everyone's roses, even ours, seem to have put on extra pizazz this spring. It's a beautiful time. I love your "Aubusson" rug - good luck with the adjusted pattern!
ReplyDeleteSorry I'm late - it's been a bit chaotic. Yes, Hali arrived Friday - it's been difficult to "share" both Mandy & Hali between houses. I'm hoping to have everyone (including Diane, who will be returning) here for dinner tomorrow.
With love and admiration,
Mom
Estás haciendo un magnífico trabajo con la alfombra.
ReplyDeleteMe parece una buena idea la guirnalda de flores del techo.
Your Aubusson style carpet looks stunning.
ReplyDeleteThe roses are so beautiful.
Thanks for spoiling us with the queen of flowers - and I'm not surprised to learn that your garden is a magical, enchanted and very beautiful place. ;O) Sadly my own roses are not having their best time... first it was too dry (making it easy for the black spot disease to take over the weakened shrubs), then it was too hot which made the blossoms explode and since yesterday we have the long awaited rain in heavy amounts so my poor roses being in full bloom are now lying down from the weight of the water. *sigh* Well, the more I've enjoyed to see your wonderful garden.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's great that her Majesty will also get a place of honor in the Dollmaker's Studio and on your beautiful rug. It's a great idea to make a decorative trim for the ceiling the way you're doing it - your test run looks very promising to me. And I love the design of your newest stitching - and of course your clever design variations making it fit to your needs. But I pity you for all the work of re-doing it... yes, the difference one stitch can make. But the result is awesome! Have fun dealing with more roses, may they be stitched, may they be glued and/or painted and best of all with the real ones. Remember to always take enough time to stop for admiring them and best of all smelling them. ;O)
Hugs
Birgit
Oh, how beautiful your garden looks! I'm convinced it smells as nice as it looks.
ReplyDeleteI love how your carpet is coming along. Enlarging it will be a bonus. With miniatures, even two added lines to the border make a big difference in size.
Hugs, Drora
Beautiful, beautiful and beautiful!
ReplyDelete