You often hear the phrase, “the devil is in the details”, which means imagining something wonderful is easier than actually making it happen. But – however benign this reference to satan may be, it rubs me the wrong way. Why? Because the details are the best part!
Here is what I think.
God is in the details.
They are the very essence of His brilliance in everything He created. When He designed giraffes, He didn’t just give them long necks and spots and call it a day. He also gave them beautiful eyelashes. You can’t even see those unless you get up real close, but they’re there. And they required extra work.
Costuming details also require extra work. A lot of it. But, in the end, they’re the things we most enjoy. My heart will always flutter more at the sight of a cartridge pleated skirt with soutach trim than when looking at a plain, A-line skirt. I can’t explain why, it just does. And the tinier the finished skirt is, the faster my heart races.
I actually googled this recently – why do humans love miniature things so much? The answer kind of surprised me, which is embarrassing to admit because I studied Cognitive Psychology at the graduate level and should have guessed this straight off. Our brains are information seeking machines. They hone in on sensory stimulation with the focus of a heat seeking missile. In fact, research has shown that our gaze is drawn to whichever area of our visual field contains the most information. And because the details on miniature things are concentrated into a smaller area, we can’t help ourselves – we just have to look.
Yesterday, my eye was drawn continually to the tiny corded ruffles on Maddie’s summer dress. I just wanted to stop sewing and stare at the wonder of them. I used smaller cording this time than I have in the past – a piece I’d pulled out of the corded ruffle on child’s dress from the 1850’s. That, plus 80 wt. thread, gave me results I never imagined were possible. They’re just so cute I can’t stand it.
Our brains want more of this. They LOVE these mega doses of stimulation. It’s a scientific fact.
So, the next time you groan at the thought of narrow hemming miles of ruffles or working hand sewn buttonholes remember this – it’s good for you.
And for everyone who gets to look at the finished product.
To continue following along with Maddie’s red sprigged summer dress project, click HERE.
To see all of Maddie’s wardrobe projects so far, click HERE.
And to make sure you haven’t missed a single post along the way, pop over to Outside the Lines by clicking HERE.