What to do with Red Bird of Pennsylvania Next

Oh my, when planning the wool for this rug, in my mind there was an idea on how to hook it to try and replicate the antique as it appeared worn and aged.  It is, after all, the antique rugs that I so appreciate with their history and wonderment of the feet that crossed their fabric.  But now I'm beginning to question what I've done on my adaptation and where to go from here.

This is what has been hooked so far and the picture of the original antique below it.

And below is a picture of the original antique for comparison.  You can see how the top and sides of the rug has been worn OR that other similar wool/cotton was used.  I really wanted to get that look but no matter how much I try can my humble attempt at replicating the mellow antique make it happen.

So think that the rest of the evening I'll start whipping the Big Dog Hollow with wool yarn and give this little red birdie a rest and think about what direction to take next and which wools to pull out and replace.  Any input from my readers would definitely be appreciated.  Jeez, look at the soft mellow appearance of the antique to my humble attempt ~ no comparison.

Thanks for visiting and hope you and family had a wonderful Holy Easter holiday.

Saundra