*Full disclaimer - I had fun with this scroll and would have asked to do it on my own anyways.*
The background: In which our intrepid scribe does not see the bad idea bus that hit her, backed up, and ran her over again.
I have a weekly sewing group I hang with (and sometimes we even sew). It was on such a Monday that Simona walked downstairs into the sewing room where we were all gathers and let me know that she "had a great idea" and "got the Signet to agree to give me the assignment". First of all I'm confused....then I'm intrigued....then I remember the backdrop for Edward and Thyra's second reign and yell "what the hell did I get volun-told to do this time?"
The glee and mischief in Simona's eyes gave me such dread that I almost ran. Anytime anyone is that pleased with themselves, you just know you're in for it. To paraphrase - "Fortune's getting her Silver Crescent!!! We (meaning House Strangewayes) had a great idea to do a majolica plate and thought you'd be the best person to ask!"
It's at this point I think, sure I can do that....and then I see what a majolica plate is. It is the bane of my artful existence....drawing people. Not even just people, big honkin' front and center portrait that is the goddamn centerpiece of the entire plate. I am placated and assured that and I quote "Meh, it's period to make them derpy. You'll be fiiiiiiiiine." Famous last words.
Research: In which our intrepid scribe stares into the derp and the derp stares back.
Simona helped me out by finding museum pictures of real maiolica (sometimes spelled majolica) which were heavily decorated plates that gained the most popularity in the 15th c Italy, but were also present in England earlier in the century. The real plates were tin glazed; featuring very vibrant colors and displayed fanciful art of either a historical or mythical variety. The deep blue caught my eye on a lot of the plates and I decided that would be my focus color. Of the pictures I was given, I chose various element that I thought would work for a scroll.
The design: In which our intrepid scribe starts to make with the ideas.
The first plate - I liked the idea of the circles which would hold the order symbol, Fortune's heraldry for her Grant of Arms, and what I initially though would be a circle for each of the signatures of TRM. Things changed over the course of the project. Fortune received her GoA with her Court Barony at Panteria which I no longer needed to include, but since Panteria was in May I had already made the decision to include the arms. Late into the project, it was suggested to put the signatures on one circle and actually write the damn date on the plate since I had a design change which would have left it out.
The second plate - The least derp of the portraits and my inspiration. I found it easier to do a right facing portrait for some reason so I stuck with it. The scroll would also serve to display Fortune's name and the award title.
The third plate - This is where all the edge design came from. The pattern was very regular, not too busy, and most importantly looked like it could be something I could do in a reasonable amount of time without fussing with it to death.
The timeline: In which our intrepid scribe begins to contemplate her fate.
I didn't start the core work on the scroll until late April and had a firm deadline to have it completed two weeks before GNEW. This would allow for the 7-10 days for the plate to fire and I needed to have it done before I left for Known World Heraldic and Scribal Symposium. I did not want this kind of project hanging over my head. Oh, and I was still 1) actively working on live scroll assignments for the kingdom, 2) working as the Backlog Deputy to the EK Signet, and 3) also working as the Quintavia MoAS. Somewhere in there I also have husband, real life work, and a personal life. Good times.
To be continues in Part 2....
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