2-dimensional design: sketches upon sketches

Beginnings are hard for me as I’m one to start all over again even after just one or two small marks on page. I then crumble the paper into ball and start over on a fresh clean sheet. And do that again and again. But I am getting better at the follow-through of the mark making. Below are the thumbnail sketches I'm submitting for implied and visual textures, from observations in nature, e.g., tree bark, feathers, rocks, etc. Since I am not confident in my drawing skills, I find myself going for something not realistic, but not completely abstract either.                                

On a whim, I decided to sketch implied textures of the four elements of fire, air, earth and water. I'm not wanting to use chromatic colors, but we're not allowed to paint our final composition in just black and white. And so I'd like to paint in those neutrals of black, white, gray, with pops of chromatic yellow.

Below will be my submission of patterns. But really I want to embellish or fill spaces in my mandala with Islamic geometric floral patterns.

But I'm wondering how to balance and integrate that which is naturalistic with abstract....and so I kept sketching more textures I could think of from nature.

At a loss, I started to sketch whole flowers and stitching textures.

We also must submit 4 thumbnail sketches of mandalas. And I'm still wedded to the idea of fire, air, water and earth somehow into my mandala.

I've been researching how mandalas are spiritual guiding tools of various religious traditions and psychoanalytic practices. And still at a loss on how to fill spaces in my mandala, I browsed Barnes and Noble yesterday and bought this book for inspo.                      

And oh the gold leafing! It's so gorgeous, and if ever I get good at drawing and painting, I'd like to add that kind of finery to my compositions.