Gentle Spiders,
The temperatures have risen somewhat since yesterday, and we decided
not to turn on the heat. So I was sitting and shivering, then looking
out the window and shivering some more - we're having another non-stop
rain (26 hours to date) - when DH brought in the mail, and in it
"something with a Spanish stamp" he said, as he tossed it on my pillow.
It was my Christmas exchange card from Pam Mattioli and, oh, what a
splendiferous thing it is! I hope that Pam has sent a scan of it to
Barbara, because I'm not sure my photography will do it justice, though
I'll do my best (couldn't do it today; the light was just too dismal,
and I don't like using the flash for lace).
I think the whole card is home-made. At least, I've never seen anything
like it anywhere. It's a Christmas-red three-fold, with a cathedral
window cut out in two of them. On the front, the window is outlined
with an ornamental, gold, paper (?) braid, there are 4 gold ornamental
"corners" and "Happy Christmas" above the window.
Between the two cut out folds, there's a "stained glass window": red,
royal blue, green and yellow "panes", "soldered" together in gold,
surround a figure of a praying angel (mostly white "glass", with yellow
wings). It's lovely already, and yet, it's only the "environment"... :)
On top of the "stained-glass" angel, there's the real one - in lace! An
8cmx5.5cm (3.25"x2.25") piece of Point Ground lace, white, with a gold
thread woven into its frame, has an angel at its centre. The piece
matches the window (all but the arch) and the angel (head and torso in
net, wings in honeycomb ground, skirt in mayflowers) matches the one in
the window - it took me a while to realise the two "windows" were made
independently... :)
In her note, Pam wrote: "The design is one I did for PBLC in 1997" and
she sent me the pricking as well. I don't know who or what PBLC is, but
he/she/it is lucky :)
She also wrote: "I hope you like the card". "Like"???? You don't apply
a bland word like that to something as beautiful as this :) DH, when
shown it (took me a couple of hours to "contain myself" <g>), summed it
up beautifully: "You _scored_. Big time. You'll need to do better
yourself next year".
Many, many thanks Pam; I'm _enchanted_; you've turned a dismal rainy
day into a glowingly happy one. I'm not yet sure where she'll (I agree;
it's a she <g>) end up dwelling - I think she's too fragile to hang on
the tree by herself; I may hang the whole card. At the moment, she's
propped up near the pillow, so I can gloat :)
And thanks to Bev for organising this exchange and giving me such a
wonderful sender. Though I feel almost guilty for having received this
card; I'd have been happy with less, honest, I would... And I now feel
bad about someone else _not_ getting it, as well as worrying about my
recipient, who'll be getting a pretty card, but nothing as beautiful as
this. And it's still raining :)
--
Tamara P Duvall http://t-n-lace.net/
Lexington, Virginia, USA (Formerly of Warsaw, Poland)
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