JE Camellia; Mother of Pearl

Got Camellia mounted in preparation for class. According to Susan Stevens,  if the piece takes more than several months to complete, it should be double laced, which I did with #12 perle cotton.

Since I still have 2 weeks to JE class, I decided to try a practice piece. The accomplishment has eluded me, having tried a few times in the past to represent the effects of light, reflection, luminescence, iridescence, etc. Then I was pointed to the Faber Birren Color book, where he discussed how to achieve these effects: "The eye and the brain put into the design a quality which really does not exist externally but in the visual response of the beholder....Iridescence is achieved, not literally with shiny things but visually and psychologically through the magic and curious makeup of the sense of sight." How amazing and I really must try it out.
This is the Mother of Pearl piece I want to embroider.

It didn't work out, although there are small areas where there is almost the iridescent effect. I will study it and try a different way. Instead of horizontal stitches, I may make them slope downwards towards the center. I have until JE class starts to experiment.