Onward: Polychrome Coif, Beginnings

For my next project, I have decided to create a polychrome coif, in part to have done the "trifecta" of late 16th century English embroidery: Monochrome, Polychrome, and Sweetbagges.

I have two main inspiration pieces: 1967-125-1, from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and 64.101.1258, from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I have been fortunate enough to view both of these in person, and they represent the style I most enjoy- lots of flowers and bugs, with gilt braid vines.

Below are some sample motifs I've drawn to use on the coif. I've selected motifs prevalent in many of the polychrome examples I've looked at. There's a gillyflower, honeysuckle, rose, lily, and violet, along with a strawberry, peapod, butterfly, snail, and bird. Each motif measures about 1.75 inches square, which is taken from the Met coif motif sizes.

I need to put these on the coif pattern and arrange them. Although the Philadephia coif repeats on the x-axis, the vast majority of coifs are symmetrical along the y-axis, so I will keep the common, common, and make mine bilateral.