RECENT PROJECTS - Omar, the puppet.

This is Omar.

 He's a very well-dressed puppet, and he's recently visited our workshop to find a suitable (permanent) display in his owner's home. 

Dana (his lucky owner) says: 

"A friend of mine traveled to Burma (now Myanmar) and bought him during her visit.  That was at least 15 years ago (when it was still called Burma).  She brought him back and he's been traveling with me ever since!  Omar has lived in Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Sonoma, and now Cville!  Quite a well-traveled puppet!"

The first challenge in this perfect mid-winter-storm project was to find a frame that was tall enough to accommodate his bulging little belly.

I ended up extending/building up the back on this Max Moulding vintage gold speckled 3" shadow box frame and I then re-finished the sides again to match the front.

We decided to let Omar dance inside the box. I chose to raise his arms with the help of some silk wrapped wood blocks, to add a bit more depth and movement to the composition.

I also loosened and flared his garment a bit and stitched it onto the backing, to add some extra interest and to show off the beautiful workmanship and design. He is floating on a chai colored Bainbridge natural silk backing As an extra pop, we decided to add a beautiful Marsala colored silk to line the edges of the interior of the box.

 Above, here he is, happily dancing away...

... and below, in his final new housing, looking at the world with his intense gaze.

Naturally, we used the virtually invisible Museum glass choice.

He will be living on a soft gold and coral striped wallpaper and I cannot wait to see what he will think of his new surroundings.

A great big THANK YOU to Dana for sharing this beautiful piece with everyone!

Keep bringing us your beautiful ideas - working on these special projects is such creative fun!

Thanks for popping by, I hope you are feeling inspired!

Beate

c|2015

La Linea Bella ! Fantastic Framing & Art

Charlottesville, VA

New Project

Favorite project this month: 

Antique Chinese Carved Jade Shadowbox.

Click on image to see the project.

This week's favorite project: Antique pearl necklace (1800's)

This Tiffany's necklace stems from the 1800's.

It has been passed down from generation to generation and is about to be passed down again to the next daughter in line.

The delicate pearl beading has decayed a bit over the years, and when every jeweler my client approached declined to repair it, our friend & local jeweler Lynne Goldman sent her to La Linea Bella! so we could safely preserve it in a beautiful shadow box.

My client chose the navy silk to show off the pearls and the detail of the necklace (and to give it a royal touch:) and we chose to display it's history beside it.

My client chose this soft gold Larson Juhl moulding to pick up some of the design featured in the necklace. And the invisible Museum glazing keeps any glare to a minimum.

She was pleased as punch when she came to give the final approval before we sealed up the box.

We now say: "Bon voyage!" to the necklace as it is displayed with much joy and pride in it's new home, and we wonder who the next lucky girl is who inherits it next?

See you next time for another special project! (We enjoy these the most!)

Beate