Finishing
Originally uploaded by plainsight.

I don’t know why I procrastinate finishing so much. Maybe I put it off because finishing means I have to send the project away (usually), and it is hard to get rid of something you’ve worked on slowly over days or weeks. It’s a bit like finishing a good book–you stay up all night reading, you can’t put it down, but towards the last few chapters, you’re wishing it wouldn’t end.

I actually really enjoy the finishing process. I love piecing together a sweater, making separate bits of fabric magically join into one garment by stretching here and pushing there to get the perfect alignment. I love the quietness of sewing by hand–the change of perspective I get from looking at a project spread out on the table instead of crumpled in my lap. I like making the decision–crochet a seam, or sew it–wrong side or right side? Even though I create a lot of one-piece designs, I like seams–they add stability, structure, balance and detail. I even like watching as the ends–the thousands of them, it seems, in this case–disappear, one by one. Then, when the assembly is done, the creative process begins again–how to edge, cuff, hem.

Finishing