As I browsed through Annies Crazy World just now, I had one of those lightbulb moments.
Her latest work includes a band of gorgeous silk-ribbon flowers. They’re truly lovely and the ideal touch for this piece — an embellishment I’d like to emulate. But my vicious internal critic said, “Don’t bother. You can’t make those flowers correctly. You’ve tried a hundred times and they always look stupid and false.” Then I saw this close-up shot of the flower band, and it finally hit me: Annie Whitsed’s posies are not symmetrical! They’re tipped and tilted and gently ruffled. The composition is balanced, but the flowers are as varied as they would be in a live garden. By avoiding perfect repetition, Annie has achieved……perfection!
How in the world did it take me so long to figure this out? Many, many thanks to Annie for providing a model that I — and perhaps a few other stitchers — can connect with. Guess what I’ll be practice-stitching tonight.
Go to Annie’s blog to see beautiful photos of this and many other charming projects.
