Flower Power

For Xmas my lovely friend gifted me

this beautiful necklace.

 

Apparently the person who made it

hand dyed the lace that she brought from Japan.

 

It was tres cher

and I never would have bought it for myself.

(Thus the perfect gift!)

 

I couldn't find the artist's name alas

or I would credit her here.

 

It's so lovely in fact,

sooo lovely,

that I tried my hand at making my own version.

 

 

The original version is more fantastic

 in lots of subtle ways

 

But, after much trial and error I figured out

how to duplicate the stamen.

 

My lace is from down the street and it came this colour.

 

But I LOVE it too!

 

Much like the dolls I finished sweating over,

after spending the time to hand tie the knots...

 

Sew the lace to the bead caps, filaments to the beads

and build the delicate pieces together

 

the price that I thought was initially so outrageous

 

 

seems totally justified.

 

These handmade details take time people!

 

Now go frequent your local artisans!

 

And thanks to the mystery woman who brought

this beautiful piece of artistry into my world.

And the smarty pants who gifted it to me!