Under Glass
At the weekend, Constance, Rose and I attended a workshop at a local historic house. It was all about making a little scene to put under a glass dome – an activity that would have been familiar to the family that lived in Ross Bay Villa during the 1860’s. Click here for information about the house, it’s restoration and workshops.
We were intrigued by the style called Phantom Bouquets, and so we based our scene on skeletonised leaves and dried plants.
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After gluing the delicate lichens, twigs and leaves in place, the glass dome was put on. This dome and base were from an old broken clock picked up in a junk store.
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Rose did a bit of invisible stitching…
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…and then she and Constance slid the gimp into place to cover the bottom edge of the glass.
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They were very pleased with their work, but on reflection, decided it took up too much space in their living room…
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Luckily the Hitty Cupboard has a dedicated space for works of art!
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The dome was resplendent in the gallery…
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….and the shadow was rather spectacular too, but very fleeting at this time of year.
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What a fun project! Now that they have some experience, Constance and Rose are wondering if they will be able to find another dome they can work with – small enough for the inside of the Hitty cupboard…?
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This is lovely, so ephemeral and delicate. Thank you for sharing it. There is an entire school of thought regarding ephemeral art.
Thank you…the girls had fun, and we were very glad to have found a pretty way to preserve these delicate leaf skeletons!
I learn and see so many interesting and creative activities that I would never have been introduced to were it not for your blog.
I have always been fond of the silver dollar money plants” that you used in this beautiful arraignment…the added skeletal leaves are wonderful. Just beautiful.
We have been finding these pretty leaf skeletons under hedges and in forests here and there…always wondered how to preserve them….this was a delightful way to keep them safe, and Constance and Rose had so much fun creating the dome scene.
Lovely work ladies…..Phantom Bouquets, Phantom Thread….I’m trusting we never see a Phantom Hitty.
It will be great to see more Art Gallery works as the days go forward. How nice that you have a place for such wonderful creations.
We really like having the Art Gallery too…I am pretty sure there will be more occasions to display some interesting works of art!
Phantom bouquets…love it! The very idea not to mention the execution! Lovely. No wonder Rose and Constance want to create one to grace their living room! Maybe they could check out those machines that dispense little toys or candy in plastic eggs or domes….might work! Also enjoyed reading about Ross house…and the gardens.
Constance and Rose May have to wait until January before I have time to help them with a tiny dome project…but we will have fun when we do get around to it! We are glad you enjoyed the Ross Bay Villa website!