Creative Nudge – Stitches of Love

Wherever I go, I always have an eye out for collectible textiles. I don't mean fabrics for my stash, but beautiful handmade pieces that are made by local artisans, that illustrate a mastery of the craft by someone who doesn't necessarily consider themselves an artist.

Here is an example – an embroidered piece from Mexico that I photographed in San Antonio last week. It is such exquisite handwork, and the design is so beautiful. The stitches are nearly perfect, and they are so dense that we can only wonder how long it took to embroidery this piece.

However it is not totally perfect, which gives it charm and its handmade value. In a realistic painting, you want to see the brushstrokes so you know it was painted by hand. Similarly, in a quilt you might want to see the imperfections so you know it is a one-of-a-kind made by a real person.

It is seldom that we see embroidery of this density in quilt shows, and to think it is just sewn into the front yoke panel of a dress in a tourist shop kind of blows my mind. As I run my fingers over the texture of the compact stitches, I think of the maker, probably a woman, and wonder how many days it took, and what those days were like for her.

I believe that in a hand-stitched, hand-quilted or hand-embroidered piece, our thoughts and intentions are sewn into the piece, and the energy or blessing of those intentions are passed on to the user. This is something that all quilters understand, when they make a quilt with love and pass it on to someone dear. Every stitch is LOVE, and the healing power of love is immeasurable.