Problems and Solutions

My PTA retreat is coming up next week,...we are all excited, getting ready and of course trying to come up with a project that will not be too intense so we can enjoy the camaraderie.  I often work on the same thing as Kate and Mary...we started this at the first retreat doing I Spy quilts and being able to pool our fabric for lots of choices. It has been so much fun, we've kind of stuck to this plan every year. This year we're doing the same pattern, different fabrics.

I have a lot of different Indigo prints. I've also created some myself but not quite as dark as this. I decided to use this to make my quilt and a sashing of white. I thought (after cutting out lots of white strips) that the white was too stark and too much of a contrast to the very dark blue. 

I had this other wonderful piece of fabric that I thought might do well as sashing - just the white areas with spidery veins (and work around the dark blue areas) - but not nearly enough fabric and too much waste...so what to do?

I made a copy of the fabric - several actually and using an exacto knife, cut away the dark areas. I then laid the cut away area over a copy of the fabric and found a place that would blend...I did this for every dark area....a little crazy but it worked.

I made it into a silk screen and tried it on fabric...also sprayed it with water to see what would happen...Yikes...not a good look.

I really liked the screen and will use it but too strong for here...above, on a folder...

so I'm back to "what to do? again.

I thought I'll put it in Photoshop, go to filters and make it into a "photocopy" or a "find edges" both of which will turn an image into a line drawing...Success! You can see both images, the one on the left is the original and the right is the photocopy - a much softer version I think.

And here it is screened on fabric...I like the look - now to preview it on the Indigo fabric.

So here is a mock up of the white (many tone on tones) with the Indigo..

and here it is with the screened fabric....
hmmmm....still haven't decided. I think either way I'll be happy, but I do lean a certain way. What do you think?