Making boring black satin “snake-worthy”

So I’m working on this python print satin outfit, inspired by this gorgeousness of Prada.  (At right, Prada, Spring/Summer 09)  I’ve finished the top.  And I really want some kind of black detailing on the skirt to offset the python print.  I had a small amount of black satin, leftover scraps.  But plain black satin looks so boring; flat, shiny and plain.  I wanted some pizzazz, here.  What to do?
I spent a lot of time contemplating this and trying different things.  I even drove up to Fabulous fabrics and found some really gorgeous black snakeskin-detailed rubber coated jersey that I thought might be fabulous.  Bought 70cm.  It is fabulous.  Love it.  But against the python print skirt, it … just wasn’t working its magic.  It subtle little scales were lost against the python print, which is a pretty bold and striking print.  So I turned back to the black satin and tried to dream up some way of making it more exciting.  I know crushing satin permanently is a chemical process beyond the scope of my amateur skills; it had to be a sewing thing.  So I tried this:
Here’s a bit of black satin.  Not very “snake-y”, now, is it?

Folding the fabric with right sides together, I sewed 3cm-4cm lengths of pintucking, randomly placed to form rough asymmetric triangles and quadrangles.  This part is very random and “artistic”.  I’m aiming for a sort of fluid, languid flow of chaotic lines.

This is what it looks like from the wrong side.

And this is the right side, before ironing.  (Sorry, flash went off and I didn’t realise)  Looks kind of like a quilted eiderdown sewn by five year olds.  Fabulous.

Then I ironed on the right side, being careful not to pull the fabric out too much.  I kind of “placed” the iron onto the wrinkles to set them down as naturally and as scrunchy as possible.
Ironed, right side up.

And here I’ve pressed down the edges in a random wavy line (this is easy with satin) and sewn the finished satin strip along the side of my skirt.

Snaky enough?
I think so!
Stay tuned for the final outfit, shouldn’t be too far off now.
(And I still have that fantastic bit of black snakeskin jersey to make a matching cardigan, woot!)