Quilting Picasso Update

While we were away at MegaCon I did work on my Picasso project, too, and made some progress primarily with stitching:



I decided against embellishing the lady's tresses with thread or fiber to make it look more like hair -- the thought was tempting, but I wanted to follow Picasso's lead and go bolder there. I thought of all the Latinas I grew up with, and how flowers tucked in their dark hair always looked so lovely, which I thought would also compliment Picasso's lady:



I'm not sure if I'm done with the flower, but I'm leaving it alone to brood over whether or not to add some crystal beads for some faux dewy sparkle (I really like it plain, but that may be a bit too bold. It's also glaringly white, which I could tone down with a bit of strategically- and sparingly-applied watercolor.) To pay homage to the artist's love of southern light I showered the background with vertically stitched holographic golden thread, which came out exactly as I wanted so I'll continue it on the left side.

I'm working at a snail's pace on this project, which normally would aggravate me, but I think going slow and carefully is helping me avoid the stress of pushing myself too fast toward the finish line. Sometimes in order to make better creative decisions it is worth applying the brakes, to give yourself time to think and process and consider. What you lose by sacrificing speed you can make up in replenishing the well as you work.