The difference small things make

I spent a large part of yesterday arranging two sizes of Swarovski crystal on to some satin dupion for a dress commission, and it struck me while doing so how the smaller crystals actually seemed to make more of a difference than the larger ones, so I thought I'd share this thought with you.

First I scattered the larger (5mm) crystals liberally over the area being covered - in this case a downward pointing triangle on the back of the dress, with the point finishing just above the hips.

So far, OK, but even with more of the 5mm crystals added it was still missing something. Then I added the smaller (3mm) crystals and voila, suddenly it came to life!

Oh, and it wasn't just that one piece that took so long - there's also a large quantity of crystals arranged over the bust as well, and carefully graduated in density for added effect. All in all, going on for 2000 crystals!!

Now to iron them all in place...