Dave: The oversized egg and dart, as well as the encroching Spanish Iris capital (top of the columns) are spanish motif. A nod to the masculin and the "head" of the frame.... her father being Spanish...
the rest is basically a rip on the Flemish cassetta that was gross adorned into Trophy frames.
Linen mat: start with 4 swatches of linen slightly over-sized, as well as a quart of gesso mixed a bit dry and talcy. Lay down wax paper layer on a sheet of glass.
Lay out swath of linen and roll with gesso, lay next linen and repeat untill last linen. Lay 4th or 6th linen and cover with sheet of glass.
Let rest for 2-3 weeks. Then remove top glass and let finish drying.(2-3 days).
You can now size and cut interior window.
At this point, if you want a more "organic" bevel, do a fabric wrap with another linen layer using gesso as the adhesive and work with the hands and fingers.
Sanding for a smooth or even flat surface. A final coat of gesso can be applied and when "just" damp, tempera pigment can be dusted or rubbed in, giving a "Fresco" feel. Very organic and pleasant.
This mat is painted... black base then PVA was padded (fast and grossly) on and then the final blue color was gently brushed over the wet glue.
I then used a heat gun to dry certain areas faster causing larger cracking. and avoiding other areas that had minimal crackeling.
I then rubbed the entire mat with black wax and let dry, then rubbed out with pumic stone powder.
The bevel was sanded, blacked, and metal leafed, touched a lot to start the corroding and left unsealed.
Sherry: About 176 hours total... yes it's to bold to ask . . let's just say, you rarely get paid what it's worth.... but in this case, this lady restored my Journeymans cert that was partially burned. It's vellum, and I can't find the heal lines even holding up to the light.
She also is a Docent at the Getty Museum. And those people deserve every break they get. Without them, getting into a museum would cost a fortune. Or they wouldn't exsist anymore. Even the Louvre uses volunteers.
Thanks all for all the kind words. It leaves my hands very soon. I started building the crate this evening. A sad day, and a happy day all in one.
very 
