I think it is wonderful. It makes me think of the Disney film, The Hunchback of Notre Dame--Esmeralda in particular. I can't wait to see what you do with the beading. are you thinking gold and purples and those beautiful rich blues? a lot of beading or just a little? I see lots and lots. ;D

It is very striking.  I'm not sure where you are wanting to go with it, so I'm not sure what to suggest.  The approximate dimensions would be helpful as well.  Beading could definitely add to the piece.  Will it be going into a larger quilt or just a lovely piece on its own?  The fabric that are coming into my mind is a cotton velvet hand dyed with bright colors to accent.  Another thought is something that you can distress like a synthetic fabric melted to create texture and painted or paint sticks over top.  I had some interesting results with a black cheap velvet that melted some, but not a lot and that could be a nice border with some embellishment. 

Hope that helped and didn't muddle up your own thoughts!

Hi Pokey

This is a wonderful piece, love the colours.  I wondered if you noticed that the colour is a bit more intense in some places, this may be something you want to exploit.  The diamond symetry makes it challenging to do anything but add to the diamonds, maybe Beryl Taylor style, adding small pieces of paper fabric, buttons etc.  You might want to bring up one colour over another, emphasisng the pink with added embellishment and softening the purple or vice verse.  At the moment it is pretty with no focal point and no encouragement for the eye to move around the piece. 

 If you like it just as it is (and I do if you are thinking of throwing it away I can send my address :) ) why not use it as a journal cover, then it does not need a structural device to help you 'read' it.  If you want to make it in to a wall hanging then you need to draw the viewer to it, maybe remove just a bit of the couching and do some feature work there in one spot, preferably off-centre, maybe over-sized embroidery or reverse applique (if you have another fabric that would tie in you could apply it to the back and that could be what you see when you cut away some or burn it away).  If you choose a focal point try and have a smaller point on the other side to balance it. 

Beautiful piece, I hope my comments have been helpful.

Pam in Canberra, Australia.

I really like this piece. It got me thinking about stained glass windows, gold candlesticks, brocade (like priestly vestments or altar cloths), and carved oak benches. Although the oak benches wouldn't help much here, some gold and brocade additions would definitely give it a Renaissance feel.

I agree with the beading, too. Go for gold, crystal, or anything rich looking.

contrasting Silk would fancy it up