Adding a Pair to a Full House

While not period antiques, this pair of mirrors is very attractive, and are descendants of the way many frames and mirrors were made in the nineteenth century when the use of composition ornament took over from hand carving.

That means, unfortunately, they suffer from the same inherent faults of using compo as their predecessors: wood and compo expand and contract at different rates, and pieces of the molded ornament can lose their grip and fall off. These mirrors had losses (as well as a previous bad repair). 

The mystery is what happened to these large pieces - I suspect someone has an end table with these pieces in the drawer, and has wondered what they belonged to.

Removing a very bad old repair attempt.

While it looks daunting, this is usually a simple repair.

 Another problem with this style of mirror is that when not on the wall, they need to lie flat as there is no way to lean them on an edge without damaging them. This one suffered a break to one bottom swag, breaking the piece and bending the wire armature out of alignment.

When examining these closely, I noticed how they were not identical, due to the way the ornament was applied. While not attaining perfection, these differences indicate that human beings worked on them.

Someone wasn't careful.

The repairs were fairly straightforward - molding and casting, gilding and toning.

Molding and casting replacement sections.

Currently on the wall for their own protection until a suitable packing case arrangement can be built for safely transporting them. Meanwhile, the previous wall occupants have been exiled to storage.

Finished!

Free Chairs?

Finished! 

When I say I am taking care of some long-dormant projects, I really mean it. This pair of chairs is finally finished. I realized when looking over the old pictures that I have had them since at least 2012.  These chairs were originally donated to a fundraiser, and no one wanted them. The owner didn't want to take them home, and asked me to take them. I did so reluctantly. After various peregrinations between garage, cellar and attic, 

I felt a start would be to at least repair and prep them. This caused somewhat of  a dilemma, as described in an older post:

This type of chair, common in the Pennsylvania area, have various names: Yoke back, plank seat, lyre back and fiddle back (depending on the shape of the splat). Among one group they are called "Schnader" chairs, due to a collection of designs painted by a Mr. Schnader of Pennsylvania in the 1940s.

Typical chair design (source unknown)

 

Base coat of salmon pink

I always liked the bold colorful designs, and had some patterns to work from. But when it finally came time to start painting them, I simply went my own way, creating an original design by building up element by element.

Start of banding and striping

Building up a design (you can see I multi-task)

An original design!

While the design is not an authentic re-creation, it does provide a colorful pair of chairs ready for use, rather than incomplete and nagging at me. Note to self: don't be too willing when someone offers you free furniture!

The December Travels

We typically make some sort of December trip. In years when long distance travel is not feasible, we can take advantage of the many options available to us in the northeast. One favorite is to visit the Yuletide at Winterthur, and the holiday decorating at nearby Longwood Gardens.

Winterthur picks a theme relating to history, holiday traditions, or the lives of the DuPonts. This year's seemed to be a mix, with some vignettes coordinated with their current exhibition of Currier and Ives prints.

Christmas morning, DuPont style

Mr. DuPont wanted nice table settings and decorations

The cut-off date for the collection was pre-Victorian, but this display was created to show 19th century traditions.

Longwood's outdoor lighting is beautiful, but if you can't manage the long walk or the cold, just visiting the acres of conservatories and greenhouses is a winter treat.

I didn't need the scarf and coat inside there.

Organist from Australia (with jeweled jacket)

 With rest breaks, including a carol singalong in the organ hall, we managed to see just about all of it.

Small Federal Mirror with Eglomise Panel

 I love these small mirrors (probably because you can fit more of them on your walls). Once again, the panel was broken and there were some touch-ups needed to the gilding. But the gilding was 95% original, the original glass was there for a pattern.

If you have followed this blog, you have seen the process for etched gold leaf under glass (eglomise).

As found

Original cracked and peeling panel

Some of these mirror panels are quite sophisticated and skillfully done; others, such as this one, are far more casual, and were probably the products of production-minded artisans. In these cases, you need to do the replacement with the same feeling  - quickly, freely and without fussing.

Scan of original to use for pattern

New and the original

Some gilding required

The original mirror silvering had completely disintegrated, so a piece of replacement mirror was used. Only the critical areas of the frame received re-gilding; other spots were colored with gouache to make them less distracting. The final result is a mirror that wears its age gracefully.

Finished!

Holy Gilding Batman!

FInished Frame for "The Watchers"

A few weeks ago I posted about the "Accidental Frame" that was made when I really needed a frame for this artwork. The work is an etching titled "The Watchers". I had a frame of this type in mind when the print was purchased several years ago, but since it was not a customer project, it was at the bottom of the priority list.

Making the "accidental" frame was a blessing in disguise, as it allowed me to work out the design details, and the changes for this one made it even more effective than I originally planned. Practice makes perfect!

Leafing design elements in process

Leafed design elements completed

Fish motif

Salem Harbor Reverse Glass Painting (Part I)

One of my current projects is a reverse painting on glass of a harbor scene.

This request came from a man in Florida who wanted a panel in a mirror, but had no original to copy. Since the mirror was possibly not period, and there was no restriction on the design, the decision was made to honor his wife's home town of Salem, Massachusetts. And since the style of the mirror is Federal, which is the period at which Salem was at its height, this seemed like a good match.

I had done something similar before, but there were difficulties finding images that were iconic enough to be read as "Salem" without presenting historic anachronisms.

The solution was to use a section of a painting in the Peabody Essex Museum showing Crowninshield's wharf. This reflects the influence of the China trade which brought wealth to Salem, and the influence of Asian decorative arts to the western hemisphere.

Panorama of Crowinshield's Wharf at the Peabody Essex Museum

Detail of painting selected

Due to our now famous "winter from hell", as well as assorted mishaps and other issues, our planned trips to the Peabody to view the painting in person kept falling through. The test panel I am preparing to work out the design will have some areas of ambiguity, as the on-line image was not of high enough resolution for me to see all the detail. I am planning that before the final panel is done, I will be able to photograph the original painting.

The first steps were to create a pattern, which, thanks to modern technology, was not difficult (as long as you remember to flip it, since you are painting in reverse!). I added a "Salem" sign to the side of the building, as it seemed the most graceful way of identifying the location.

Color testing on scrap glass (as seen from back)

Since this was a complete new creation, I needed to make at least one preliminary glass. This is not as refined as I want in a finished glass, but it is simply to work out the design, colors, and find out where the problems will arise. In fact, it may even be necessary to do another pass at a test panel before the final, but even if that is necessary, it will still be possible to work on that and the final panel simultaneously.

Even simple designs require drying times between some steps. In this case, there are more steps involved, and the logistics of what to paint in order to shorten the process can be frustrating.

A front view as the work progresses

Completed test panel.

As this progresses, I already have notes on what will change in next version. I'll probably need to do a second test panel before the final.

More to come later....

Newport Holiday Decorations 2014

Instead of any major travels, this season we are taking some shorter trips closer to home. More and more sites are promoting their holiday decor, so this week we spend a couple days in the Newport, Rhode Island area.

Our first stop was Blithewold, in Bristol, Rhode Island. This home, while grand, is much smaller and homelike than the Newport mansions. The volunteers decorated throughout, with different themes. Some of these were clever interpretations, and all were lovely. The centerpiece, however, was the tree that was tall enough to reach the second floor in the stair hall.

The next day we toured three of the Newport mansions: The Breakers, Marble House and The Elms.

If you have never been to visit these mansions, you will probably have a hard time grasping the size and grandeur. These "palaces" were only intended for the summer season, so any holiday decor is a modern interpretation. Photography is not normally permitted, but during this season they do allow photographs of the main decorated areas in the three houses. Frankly, most of the decorating looked pretty much like what you would see an any upscale shopping mall or grand hotel lobby. It does seem like an uphill battle: Do you do simple designs that will be lost among the house's architecture, or try to match or out do it? 

The "Poinsettia Tree" under the watchful eye of a Breakers staff member.

The most intriguing aspect for me was the use of LED candles, which provided a lifelike, flickering flame effect. These are perfect for house museums, and also for people who don't want live flames around.

Marble House and The Breakers are both so over the top, that the floral decorations didn't have a chance (I didn't even have the heart to take a picture of the main hall at Marble House - even with a wreath of enormous size on the marble wall, it still looked just sad. The Elms, more restrained in its elegance, seemed like better coordination of color and theme.

A decorated mantelpiece at The Elms

The Elms grand holiday tree

But all was not lost. We had breakfast and lunch at Annie's restaurant on Bellevue Avenue - where the kitchen staff puts up the ceiling decorations. Apparently there will be a contest to guess the number of ornaments.

Brand New Antique Frames

Collectors of antique art can become frustrated trying to find an antique frame that is appropriate to the art, not to mention being the correct size. While antique frames are still often cut down, you can't cut a frame "bigger". Or you may find the perfect frame, but, alas, you have a pair of paintings.

For this grain painted frame, the client had an antique frame that had the graining pattern and color they wanted. While it can be time consuming to match an existing item, one benefit is that there is less debate and indecision about color, etc.

In order to give the frame  more "presence"  the width and depth were built up with additional pieces of wood.

Examining the lightest areas on the antique let me match the base color of the old frame.  The grain painting will be done over this base color.

After making some sample sticks, I began the paint process, manipulating the paint with various brushes and tools to achieve a good match. Since the new frame was wider and larger, I felt the pattern had to be just a bit bolder than on the smaller original.

When the grain painting was dry, I began the finish coats, tinting them as needed to match the color more closely. Some of my finishes take a few days to build up, compared to the originals which likely had either no finish coat, or a quick varnishing.

By slowly building, you can continually adjust color, as well as creating the impression of a well-aged item.

A good match between the new (outer frame) and the old.

The frame was given a final waxing, packed and shipped. Then begins my anxiety period - "Will it fit?", "Will it look good?". Relief comes with the message that all is well, and both customer and frame maker are happy with the final result.