Anniversary Silk Renaissance Woman~Lady with the Rose buying BATIK Print~SILK Print for Anniversary~Stained Glass Design Silk Gather Ye Rosebuds.

This is a very lovely SILK Print, suitable for that 12th anniversary or any anniversary, very suitable for any occasion where you want the recipient to know that you cared enough to have a custom silk print created just for them: birthday, sympathy, Mother's Day, etc. This design depicts The Lady with the Nuthatch, a traditional BATIK I created buying a number of years ago. The design was inspired by a Stained Glass Window of the Art Nouveau period, Gather Ye Rosebuds. There is a poem associated with this design:

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today
To-morrow will be dying.

The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
The higher he's a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run,
And nearer he's to setting.

That age is best which is the first,
When youth and blood are warmer;
But being spent, the worse, and worst
Times still succeed the former.

Then be not coy, but use your time,
And, while ye may, go marry:
For having lost but once your prime,
You may forever tarry.

My version of the design expands upon the roses and border, adds a little bird that she is holding instead of a rose, embellishes her dress, colors are changed; it is lovely. It has been a favorite design over the years.

This print is printed onto fine SILK Habotai and comes with foam core backing and in a plastic sleeve. The size of the print is 8.5" X 11" however there is a 1/4" white border for framing purposes. I include a note from you on the back of the foam core, printed in a lovely font on fine card stock. Please note what you would like to say in the box offered at checkout. This is a lovely print.

The original of this design was a traditional BATIK. BATIK is a unique process of using hot wax to DRAW the design; the wax creates a RESIST. Dyes are added either by painting them on or by dipping the fabric into vats of the desired colors. The design remains intact since the wax resists the dying. It is sometimes hard to comprehend without actually seeing it done. In this case, the design was drawn onto white cotton. (She was life sized so the cotton was approximately 4' X 7'.) I heated up the beeswax in a small crockpot and then applied the wax everywhere that I wanted the finished design to be white. There is a lot of white in this design so I applied a lot of wax. I then dipped the fabric into a large vat of the first dye, in this case, blue. This was a quick dip and then rinsed so as to achieve a pale blue. After drying, I waxed everywhere I wanted the pale blue-the sleeves and various dots and decorations on her dress. I then dipped the fabric into the next color, dried it, waxed it, and so on. This process continued until the entire fabric was filled with wax and color, leaving just the lines and fine details without any wax and the entire piece was dipped into a larger vat of black, which adds the finishing accents. After the final drying, the wax is ironed off and the design emerges. Before ironing, the design is barely visible due to the thickness of the wax. It is a fascinating moment and when we find out if all our hard work paid off! Occasionally it is a bust, but having the skills that I do, my successes outnumber the flops!

This is a favorite: delicate, hand-made, unique, special.

I like my supporters to know that I am an avid environmentalist and donate fully 20% of the profit of my artwork to various non-profits. Birds benefit Audubon, Landscapes like Yosemite cards benefit Earth Justice; Ocean and Shore birds benefit Ocean Conservancy; my DOG cards benefit the Santa Cruz (CA) SPCA. This print will benefit Santa Cruz Native Animal Rescue.

Thank you for viewing my shop. I look forward to working with you to create that special custom gift.

Alexa
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