The name of this piece comes from a story that keeps running around in my head. Princess Rugosa has knobby knees and freckles that match her auburn hair, which refuses to behave itself! She is surrounded by her imaginary friends, her toys and the animals in the woods behind her formerly fabulous and now crumbling estate. The way she sees herself is in stark contrast to her actual appearance . . . when she looks in the mirror she sees silky straight hair and lovely, perfect skin. She lives in a world of beauty created from ordinary things that no one values much nowadays.
Princess Rugosa has been traipsing through my mind quite a bit lately. The necklace came first, but the story keeps building. I had no idea that this piece would lead me to her decrepit mansion, but there I find myself almost daily!
I fell in love with the main brooch in this piece, a vintage Crown Trifari enamel rose with chippy edges. The color is the most perfect powder pink and the layers of petals are an amazing testament to a level of craftsmanship that is sorely lacking in costume jewelry today. The shortest layer of pearls and chain are part of a vintage Monet necklace. The other chain and findings are from who knows what old necklaces . . . I have containers full of bits and bobs that looked interesting once upon a time. A bit like Princess Rugosa . . . she finds things that look like trash to others and turns them into fabulous - even regal - trappings and decorations.
I'm not sure, but I think there might be an entire line developing here . . . .
