Abstract trials

My stash of new fabrics has been winking at me from the shelf for a while now. This week I have finally got round to doing a little bit of prep-work. I want to try some very abstract work, largely appliqué but with some piecing using some stunning colours and some metals. Learning some new tricks.
Using some ideas from the Pitt Rivers visit and some doodling here are a couple of initial ideas.

I then started making some small samples to work out how I might put the pieces together. I worked with some samples using sweetie papers to create a metalic effect. I have used bondaweb on the back of this sample to anchor it while stitching, the foils do not lie well if not glued. They are very delicate and tear if you just try to stitch them on as they are, but covering them with organza and then stitching round them knocks back the shine a bit (good thing I think) and safely anchors the paper which then doesn't actually feel like paper.

Next I'll work with some metal shims and experiment with working them into the design.