ok before you unfollow me and stop reading my blog forever because of the offensive title....just hear me out.
as you know, i was SUPER excited to start stitching these nativity animals and dove right on into the stitch guide.
unfortunately the guide seemed to have conflicting instructions and there were multiple fibers included and i started to mildly freak out and search the web for other pictures of the stitched donkey so i could compare.
i was also getting antsy and felt like i had to at least start something, so i stitched his face in a shade of merino.
after i took a picture and got a second opinion from mason, i freaked out, ripped out, and re-stitched his face in the other color of merino provided.
after consulting more pictures on the internet, and looking at the image from the stitch guide, i counted to 10, turned my TV to the Bravo channel, reminded myself that this is just a fun hobby and not the end of the world, and resolved myself to re-stitch it again in the first thread.
if you are counting, we are up to 3 times that i stitched this damn donkey.
luckily he's small so it was still done in one day, but still.
i don't mind airing my dirty needlepoint laundry. this art is all about trial and error, trying new techniques, ripping out and re-stitching. but most of the time we're so focused on the pretty finishes and less on the process it took to get to that point. i love how my donkey is starting to look, and in the end it might differ from the stitch guide, but it's mine. and i appreciate the journey that it takes to finish each individual canvas (some more than others).
I always like it when people show the stitching they rip out. I used to be very, very reluctant to rip things out, mostly because I felt that I didn't have a lot of time to stitch, and I didn't want to have to do things twice. I've convinced myself that it's okay if I have to stitch twice. I also think that it's always good to remind yourself that ripping things out is okay a usual part of the process. Designers do it all the time!. And ultimately, the donkey should look the way you want him to! (And I have a couple of designs where I've stitched parts 3 times over)
ReplyDeleteIt looks great and I think your efforts to get it right were well worth it! Liz
ReplyDeleteI agree, he's adorable & I think you made the right choice.
ReplyDeleteI think he is a darling. And, after all, he is yours. You must be happy
ReplyDeleteand the number of 'rip-outs' is your choice. You must be happy! Art is what
the artist chooses.