When I start a project I always want it to be perfect, just like the sketch that embodies my dreams. And if the sketch did not turn out the way I wanted,  at least I want the end result to be beyond my expectations.

This cozy project has given me headaches already. From the sudden death of my sewing machine to the puzzle of how to put in a hidden zipper around a corner. Luckily the sewing machine is as good as new after a session of machine CPR, but I just could not come up with an answer to the latter question. No matter how much I searched the internet, I did not find a hint. So I changed my original plan and came up with a different approach.

I decided to embed the hidden zipper in a strip of fabric that I used as piping. This fabric was the same I originally planned as lining. It has not only allowed me to use the zipper I wanted, added a pop of color and life to the outside, but it also acts as a little sneak peek of what is coming next.

Once opened the same cheery fabric greets you. It guards the surface of the e-reader and closes off any visible stitches from sight. I quite like the contrast of the vibrant red and flower pattern to the outside simplicity of the cover.

Although I had a vision of abundant embroidery and elaborate designs, once I got to this stage I changed my mind. Somehow the simplicity of the bird, the muted colors that are just splashed with a hint of red seemed appropriate and more than enough. I realized no matter how perfect the original idea seemed, how good the sketch looked on paper, in life the design suggested something else.

And it occurred to me that Moorish artists in the Middle Ages deliberately made a mistake in their designs because they believed only Allah’s work should be perfect. So I realized there is no such thing as perfect. There is Art. And Art has a life of its own. It breathes and it grows, and many times it decides to go in a different direction then you originally intended. But this does not mean that your end result is no longer perfect, because it is just ferpect as is.