Planning July JQ

Still on the theme of text and linked to Petra - I'm working on the rock dwelling entrances again as the main shape/form within the piece.
I have plastic bag dyed the base fabric and then applied Thermofax prints, one of an extract from my trip diary as 4 blocks of text each turned 90degrees to each other and one stylised Arabic calligraphy image.
In my first experiment I tried free machine stitching the shapes and freehand writing.

I was very unhappy with the free machined shapes and realise that this will not give me the effect I was looking for.
Then I thought I'd try using markal sticks and a stencil to create the illusion of shape.

At first I used a gold stick which gave a very subtle effect, so tried a pinky red stick, the effect of which I like a lot. I think the dark edge and then lighter shading works well.
I also tried quilting by hand and will add further detail by hand, the older technique reflecting the age of the dwellings.

I'm now ready to have a go at the real thing!