Back from camp

So I spent two weeks with Menachem up at camp. Busy days trying to get the physical aspect of things into place.
Just opening all of the shutters on the dining hall/kitchen, rec hall, staff buildings and cabins takes at least half a day.
Major projects?
We painted the kitchen -- not an easy feat because the previous paint had chipped terribly. Menachem did the scraping which alone took almost a full day. In many places, he scraped down to the original plywood. After the first coat of primer, we decided to do a second because the walls were so uneven. Even after the final coat you can still see the scraped patches but at least it looks clean and fresh. The way we do paint work is that I do all the "below waist " cut-ins (so Menachem doesn't have to get down on his bad knees) while Menachem does the ceiling cut-ins (so I don't have to climb up on a ladder). Then while Menachem paints the ceiling and walls, I am the "paint police" pointing out the areas that he may have missed with the roller.
We also painted the boy's washroom in the upper camp area. Also a two day job with a lot of uncomfortable "below waist" work -- behind the toilets, under the sink countertop, within the stalls. We were planning to do the girls' washroom as well but realized we wouldn't have enough paint, didn't want to buy any more, and realized that we were too pooped to continue painting. Maybe next year.
Then we put up the third tent in the tent area. It isn't really a difficult task but you need patience to follow the instructions step by step and it is time consuming.
We set up the office and checked the equipment and internet (dial-up) was working, opened the rec hall and evicted the raccoon family, set up Avichai's room with a queen bed (box spring from the local waste site re-use area) and mattress from Yaron's former room. Those babies were heavy!!
What with organizing the Shomria Hut (maintenance supply hut), powerwashing the kitchen metro shelving, degreasing the stove hood and ceiling fans, a little of this and a little of that, the days went by.
We spent Sunday washing down the walk-in fridge and half of the pantry in anticipation of the first food order and rehanging the shelves and stuff we had taken down to paint the kitchen.
Although I used to go up by train every weekend on Friday afternoon and return Sunday nights, not arriving home until midnight. This year I am hoping to return Monday mornings, catching the 6:30 a.m. train from Smiths Falls, arriving in Toronto between 10 and 10:30 and then subway it up to work by 11:00ish.
Yesterday was my first train ride and it went well. We're up early anyways and I read and snoozed on the train. I had baggage -- a carryon with clothes and my quilting "portfolio". Although I had taken stuff up to camp to work on, the only fabric related work I did was to cut my scraps into 2" squares for a future project. Next train ride, I hope to carry only my purse since I left clothes and toiletries at camp. OK, I may carry a bag with quilt supplies in case the muse strikes (I also left a sewing machine at camp...)
After work today, I have to mow the lawn, finish my Pomegranate challenge (well not finish but at least have it ready to show what I've done up til now) and figure out if I'm taking anything for Show and Share.
And that's all she wrote.

Off to Camp

Although I usually have every intention of posting frequently, sometimes it just doesn't work out. And since I'm off to camp Sunday for two weeks, I doubt if I'll get much posting done. But you never know.
I haven't really gotten a lot done fabric wise recently. Well that's not entirely true. I have been cutting up my scraps from previous projects into 2 inch and 1.5 inch squares. I hope to make a quilt with them. And I am working on the Pomegranate Guild "Women of the Bible" challenge for June 18th. I am making a tree, using the Hebrew words for mother, daughter, sister and wife. The tree top is fabric "paper" cutting (the Judaic art of paper cutting but done in fabric instead of paper) and the tree trunk which was supposed to be microcalligraphy on fabric is now writing on fabric. I'm not sure the letter size would qualify for micro and the lettering is in my regular handrwriting Hebrew script. I have fused the tree to a linen-like off-white background and now have to figure out what to do next. I may try to do some free motion scribbling tomorrow morning before we head out.
Which brings me to my next dilemma -- what work to take with me to camp. I am taking up a sewing machine but not my new machine so I can't do any fancy stitching. I have taken the remaining scraps with me to continue cutting into squares. If the muse strikes, I may start machine piecing.
I have also taken several books, including the Art Quilt Workbook. I have signed up on line for a group working through the book and June is chapter 1. I have to chose a theme and I think I will make it about the camp's natural surroundings -- the trees, plants, the lake, the landscape. I know, not terribly original but that's what there is.
Lest anyone think that I am going up to camp to loll about, I am joining Menachem for two weeks to help him open the buildings, paint the kitchen ceiling and walls, clean and organize. I may not have the strength or inclination to do much of anything let alone create after a hard day's work.
I hope to take at least one workshop while in Perth but won't say anything further until I've actually made the arrangements.

Photos as promised

This is my first machine pieced machine quilted (not in a grid) quilt. I will be entering it into the YHQG show. I'm quite pleased with how it turned out, so much so that I have decided to keep it for my first grandchild.
This is a "cheater panel" baby quilt which I quilted in a simple diagonal grid. The next photo is with the corner lifted to show the back. This one's for my neighbour's new baby due any day now.

The black, red and white was pieced following a free pattern on the internet for charity quilts. It is also quilted in straight diagonal lines. The next photo has the corner lifted to show the back. This one is going to Project Linus after I show it at the Pomegranate Guild's show and share.

Baby quilts

I have been occupied doing baby quilts. The two shown here are not pieced or appliqued.
They're printed fabric panels we bought on our January field trip to Hamilton. The blue one with the friendly jungle animals is now in Israel, en route to Noam, our new grandnephew. The second one, the neon coloured jungle animals, is en route by airmail to Germany, where it will become a gift from my daughter & her SO to her SO's ex's new baby girl. (The photo shows it unbound, the binding is actually a lovely fuschia colour).
I have another printed panel sandwiched and ready for quilting for my next door neighbour's baby due in June, I think. PTF when finished.
I have also finally finished my PTF multi-coloured baby quilt for my first grandchild...
And I have finished my first PTF Project Linus baby quilt -- black, white and red.
Yesterday we popped into Fabricland to pick up two rolls of burlap for camp mifkad esh. While there, I bought some yellow fabric for an inside border for another Project Linus baby quilt I hope to finish this week. And some patterned fabric for the backing of another wholecloth baby quilt. And after that, I will go back to piecing my Project Linus baby quilts.
We're invited to Yunkie and Mindy's for Friday night and I want to make a table runner from fabrics samples I have. I sort of know what I want to do but haven't quite decided on the "how" yet. Also something I'm hoping to finish this week, if not today.
I ordered a book online called "Art Quilt Workbook" and I am probably joining an online group to work our way through the workbook. It looks delicious and I am looking forward to it.
So I'm busy stitch-wise.
Since I prewash my fabrics, I am off to the basement to see the machines' progress.

* PTF = photograph to follow

Two posts in one day!!

Multi-coloured quilt coming along nicely. I've finished quilting within the blocks and have done simple straight lines in the small border. All I have left to quilt now is the wide border which I will do free-motion. I tried earlier but since I hadn't done any FMQ recently, I forgot to drop the feed dogs and naturally had crummy results (and it took me a few hours to realize why...)
So my day has been fruitful. Yay!!

I'm back

What with Noam's Bar-Mitzvah and then Pesach (Passover), I haven't been in my studio much and haven't done any sewing.
But now I'm back and will try to get into a routine of sewing an hour or two a day and a bit more on the weekends.
I readied my studio, junking clippings of stuff I will never make, templates for projects I no longer care to do, etc.
This morning, I resumed quilting my curved multi-coloured baby quilt. I wasn't happy with the quilting which I started with a walking foot. But I decided to keep going and finish it. In "the big picture", the wonderful piecing will be the main event and the stitching will hold it together. I'll get more creative in the future. At this point, I just want to finish it.
Same with the quilt for Lior and Neta's new baby whose name at the moment escapes me. Oy, is the memory fuse ever faulty!
I have also decided to finally tackle Inbal's quilt to do the quilting. It doesn't have to be perfect, just heartfelt. And the charity baby quilts of the one a month new year's resolution of which so far none have been completed...
On more encouraging news, FibreArts Toronto has applied for exhibition space at the Toronto Public Libray. We won't know til mid-June if we've been accepted but it's a step in the right direction.
At the Pomegranate Guild meeting last week, we had a "garage sale". I didn't get anything packed up in time to sell but I did buy a bag of "stuff", mostly needlepoint yarns but also some fabric, for $2.00. My "fibre diet", you ask? It was a small bag and for a good cause. And everyone falls off the wagon now and then.
We were in Perth this week to check out winter damage at camp. There didn't appear to be any. Hopefully the vandals will not be overly active between our visit and June 1st when Menachem goes up for the summer.
Our next trip there is planned for the Labour Day weekend. We'll take up the stuff we need to set up our room and hopefully have a mini-vacation before the summer starts.
Back to stitch.

Studio clean-up

Just a post to let you know that I haven't given up on blogging but haven't been doing much sewing so didn't have too much to report.
I received the "Studio" issue from "Cloth, Paper, Scissors". What can I say? A Yiddish "eh". In my opinion, nothing to write home about. The good thing about it is that it motivated me to do a little tidying in my studio. I went through all my "files" holding things I may some day do or which appeared at one time to provide inspiration. Since I am more realistic now, I pared down the files to about half which opened up room on my shelfing unit. I also took out my boom-box radio with its speakers and freed up a whole shelf (the boom box sat on one shelf and one of the speakers on a second.) I had already started culling my books by donating some of them to the Pomegranate Guild library (that way I can "visit" with them when I want) and the ones which I have no intention of revisiting to the York Heritage Guild. My studio was pared down anyways and my fabric diet appears to be working except for the occasional small falling off the wagon episode of a fat quarter here, a trim there.
With Noam's bar-mitzvah last weekend (btw, he wore the kippah) and Pesach next, I am taking a small hiatus from sewing and am doing a mild spring cleaning.
We are again hosting the first seder and expect approximately 20 people. Approximately 20 because our guests sometimes bring others. The karp has been purchased and cleaned, so we're half way there already.
We're invited to Alissa and Mel's the second night and I may just sew up something for her. I'll see if the muse strikes.