Something From Nothing -- And a Discovery

The other day I wanted to sew in a therapeutic restful way. No worries about perfection. Just sew and listen to the rhythm of the machine and enjoy the vision of stitches adding up across the fabric. I remembered a placemat-size leaf I had pieced together with scraps of green fabrics and a bit of brown for the leaf’s spine. I pulled it out of the drawer, laid it on top of a piece of batting, and put a piece of muslin underneath for backing. I could skip the basting because the piece was so small. I found a variegated green quilting thread and began.

I stitched along the spine of the leaf. Looked great, but it needed more, so I did it a few more times. Now for the veins. Because the piecing lines are straight diagonal lines radiating from the center, I wanted to quilt curved lines. So I did a few lines in intervals down one side and then on the other. I thought it would look better with even more lines, but what if I did all that stitching and didn’t like it?

Then I remembered I was working with scraps. I should just keep going and see what happened. I’d learn something. It’s called creating! It’s called freedom!

Now, every time I look at my leaf on the end table in the living room, I smile. I designed it myself. I didn’t go out and buy fabric or a pattern. No wonder I love it!

PS: This was the first time I tried bias binding, and wow! It worked great for those curves.