A Very Personal Pearl…

Order of the Pearl, on vellum, gouache, gesso and gold leaf, and shell gold.

This particular scroll is dear to me for a number of reasons.

• First and foremost, it is for my Laurel, Goodwife Michel Almond de Champagne. It is a turnabout that is rare for while she is a Laurel in A&S, she did not receive it in Atlantia. She has a similar award from the East, but she had done so much for Atlantia that all within our Pearls agreed this was due her.
• Second, we share a love of Fleur de Lys (Lis)
• I had been drooling over this particular exemplar for quite some time, when the only photos had been when it went up for auction and finally when it was placed on exhibit. Quite a wait indeed!
• Fourth, I wanted to show what I’d learned (see the Pearl), stretch my wings (trying people for the first time).
• Finally, I wanted it to the the exact same size as the exemplar, and to have the appearance that I had pulled two pages from within the Hours itself.

Size view.

Showcasing her initials in 3 different gold “strengths” as a monogram.

The exemplar’s page of influence.

Progression of the piece.

My first “people”. Me offering my Laurel a Pearl, irises as our shared fleur de Lys influence and on her under gown, more raised gold fleurs. While I see so much I would do differently now, working in miniature was very new and faces were intimidating.

The exemplar’s page where Mary receives her news…

This was a scary challenge:of my first non-perg scroll, a concept of attempting exacting size replication, and a gift from my heart to Michel, for without her, my wings would have never taken flight.