It took me quite awhile to figure out what to do with the area surrounding my Crab. I tried large stones, dark stones, light stones and all these pulled the focus away from the Crab. See…
So I got an idea that if the background became muted it would enable the Crab to pop more and would still have a feel of stones and pebbles. Enter, tulle in many colors. I have yet to finish all the thread painting, but I think this it the direction. Let me know what you think.
The Crab in its Background
December 17, 2010
CindyRQuilts Blog 
Dec 21, 2010 @ 07:59:44
Hmmm. I like the one with the larger and light/dark stones. In all the various images, the crab is semi camouflaged anyway, just like it is in nature and in the photo.
The way it looks on my computer screen, the more dark there is right next to the crab, the more three-dimensional all of his “parts” seem. Not sure, tho, how the image matches the quilt you see with your eyes not mediated by the computer…
Dec 21, 2010 @ 11:12:40
I think the rocks distract the eye from the focal point, which is the crab. I think a muted background is more effective, especially for the purpose of this quilt, which is a calendar page. In this case a bright focus is the goal.