A Funny Thing...

It's a funny thing about inspiration -- you never know where or when it will strike. Which makes it such an unpredictable ingredient in the creative process. Here's an example of where inspiration has led me thus far this year:


See this pattern?
I created this little swatch in my most recent floral collage: LILY OF THE VALLEY COLLAGE. And when the whole piece was stitched, and pinned up on my wall, my eye kept going to that swatch. I really LOVE that little swatch! The more I looked at it, the more a glimmer of an idea began to grow....
What if I took that little pattern and enlarged it to encompass the whole piece, and then used that pattern as a background for a small inset cluster of flowers?

Suddenly, I could "see" that new project in my mind's eye...and I just had to sit down and start stitching to match what I saw in my mind... And as I began to stitch, this is how it looked:

Oh, I really liked this pattern!
So I just kept stitching, and adding more elements to make it a little sparkly...a little elegant....but also spring-y. I wanted to create a design that shouted "SPRING!" And to me that means primroses. So I chose the purest yellows and pinks I could find that were the truest match for primroses, and of course, found a variegated thread (Caron's "Mountain Meadow") that had just those springtime colors running through it.

The patterns were really fun and easy to stitch. And I enjoyed creating a few new stitches that replicate the look of primroses in different sizes: the tiny clusters in the background, the larger clusters in the corner squares, and then the up-close bouquet of primroses in the center block.

And here's the finished design:


YUM! Does that create a springtime tapestry, or what?!?
Can't you just see this as a lovely box pillow on a sofa or bed?
What a lovely way to celebrate Spring!