Sometimes magic comes in the form of luck, sometimes as a result of hard work and perserverance. Sometimes, magic is just a state of mind - or a great sewing machine.
The four fish costumes I've been sewing are just about done. Every time I or my family look at the finished product we are amazed - it's like magic! I would place this effort in the 'hard work' magic category, since I've been laboring on this for the entire Christmas break. But still, I have always thought of sewing as a state of mind too - a sort of zen meditation. You pin and you cut, and you sew, and you rip out, and you pin and you cut and so on and ...sew on. The time my family has given me to pursue this project has been priceless and...yes, magic. Especially in the eyes of my sometimes jaded teenagers. I must be a magician if I can take that pile of material in varying shades of grey, and some spools of thread and a sack of some notions from the fabric store and turn them into four gleaming personality filled piscaforms - I think they must believe in magic too!
Once I actually got frustrated enough to take the time to focus and read the instructions for the machine, which by the way, are in German, French, Italian and English - I finally figured out how to adjust the tension in the thread and the presser foot! Turns out this "fancy schmancy Pfaff" has adjustments for just about anything - including sewing through two layers of foam, two layers of slippery shiny material, and two layers of lining. Knowing how to use the said 'fancy schmancy' equipment in the right way, makes a lot of difference in the ease of having a 'fancy schmancy' - dare I say magic... outcome.
It reminds me of the wizards of old, practicing incatations or healing with herbs. Over and over again, they must have tried and failed tried and improved and finally, after reading the directions, or focusing their concentration, come up with something that actually worked - something that looked like magic!
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