'Post as You Go' paisley panel outline

I took the work out of the hoop and drew on an outline design. I've used the same postcard size format as the bit I've already completed, and 'linked' the boxes together by overlapping the rectangles and extending the paisley motifs outside of the boxes. I've backstitched some of the lines in red. The paisley motifs inside the boxes are drawn in green ink ready for filling in. The big question is...............Where do I go from here?


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Paisley panel - first section

I've finished the first section of the paisley panel, although I expect to revisit later to add some more embellishment. I made this section 6" x 4" because I have been working on pieces that size for the fibre postcard challenge 6x4 lives.


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Next step is to take it out of the frame and mark up some more sections to make an overall design for the panel.

The boss just had two weeks off and when we dipped our toes in the sea here at Eastbourne we decided it was cold, so we've just spent a week in Majorca. Guess what this month's fibre postcard will be based on! May be a little late, because I have to get the house straight first and we're halfway through September already.

Here's the link for the fibre postcard challenge, anyone is invited to join at any time, take a look at what the group have produced already:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/6x4lives/

Paisley panel

I marked out another 6 x 4 paisley design on this piece of hand dyed natural linen, then I thought I'd draw a couple more and link them together somehow to make a panel, to save cutting my piece of cloth. Unfortunately, I couldn't photograph the piece of cloth before I started on it but here it is, a work in progress. I haven't designed it first, I thought I'd just let it grow and see what happens.



Here's the first paisley bit. I've used a mixture of crochet cotton (some of it painted) and stranded cotton. The paisleys are outlined in buttonhole stitch and there is couching, four sided stitch, padded satin stitch, spider web and french knots.



Here's a closeup:

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Sharon B put up a post about designing small motifs on her blog:

http://inaminuteago.com/blog/index.php/archives/2006/08/30/a-prune-or-a-pickle-the-process-of-working-up-a-small-design/

This made me think 'outside the box' because Sharon's design cutting off the paisley motifs at the edges of the box has so much more energy. Her design, for a postcard, has lovely curling, flowing lines.

Progress on this piece will be slow, and my blog will be quiet for bit, because the boss is on holiday for a fortnight, WHOOPEE!