Tapestry Weaving - preparing for the final sample

After looking at the ideas I had at the beginning of this part of the course, I have decided to use this image for my last weaving sample. Because I keep being drawn back to it, and because I am interested in trying to make those vertical stripes with the alternate rows/ alternate colours technique.  The burnt matches are going to be more troublesome but I am thinking I can use knotting as long as I find the right yarn to do it with.

I spent most of a day planning a design for the tapestry weaving in coloured pencil in my sketchbook, and then transferring it onto graph paper to make the 'cartoon'. This is it, with the wound yarn down the side of it showing which yarns I intend to use for which section.  After I had done this wrapping, using black fabric for the lines of matches, it was obvious that this was way too black. I will have to use something different for the matches. I can see that the most important thing about them will be the stiffness of the yarn, as it needs to stick up and more or less hold it's shape against gravity.   

I do like the way the loom looks when it's just been set up. You can't really see if there's anything behind the loom, so I've photographed it against a very red wall.
In this case I've made the warps very close together (5 per inch) as I am intending to make the yarn thin, and I want it to look rather fine, to reflect the ethereal feel of the image. I am rather proud of getting them so even.

Ah well. This is what it looks like after I've done a few rows.

There are 3 beginners mistakes (and that's only counting the ones I've noticed) as follows:

1. I forgot to do the few rows of rug wool to fold over at the end as planned.
2. I made the stripes 3 wefts apart, thereby making it impossible to avoid visible wefts
3. I started it from the bottom, which would usually be fine, but for this one I want
the knotted yarns to stay sticking upwards so I have to start at the top.

And as well as that I think I need to make the purple thinner
so as to be the same thickness as the blue for this stripey section.  So......start again!