Work in Progress

To begin, decisions of size and paper have to be made. I decided to use Arches 90 lb. hot press, watercolor paper. It takes both paint and ink well, and I have lots on hand.

For size, I waffled between 11 in. x 14 in. (27.94 cm x 35.56 cm.) and 8 in. x 10 in. (20.32 cm x 25.40 cm.) There isn't a lot of large wall space in the dollhouse. I decided on 8 x 10. Yes, I will be doing Himself's family coat of arms, too.

While there are rules that govern heraldry, there is some latitude in design. While this is not an official coat of arms, I'd like to make it look a little bit authentic. Time is spent flipping through books or on line looking at coats of arms to get some ideas. Shape of the shield, helmet (with a few minor rules involved), mantle, and scroll for the motto or family name are a matter of preference.

I also searched the Internet to find out what a roe buck looked like.

Design is sketched onto the paper. Next step, inking the outline.