Come Stitch With Me

To me, summer runs from Memorial Day to Labor Day. For educators in these parts, summer’s over in mid-July. It finally sunk in today that I’m actually retired. Guess what? I get to enjoy the ENTIRE summer!

Several of my administrator friends had to report for work yesterday. If I were returning for another school year, next week (July 18-22) would be my last week of freedom. Teachers report for preplanning week on July 25. School starts August 1 – less than three weeks away. Can you believe it?

I’ll still be following a school schedule to some degree. 🙂 Later this fall, Sadie and I will begin serving as a school based R.E.A.D. dog team at a nearby elementary school. It’s very different from a public library based program and requires a higher level of commitment. Exactly the type of volunteer activity I’m seeking – one that utilizes my skill set on a regular basis.

Quilting is also humming along – technical editing, pondering ideas for a potential book, quilt camp this week, memory quilt/pillows for a friend, hubby’s retirement quilt, Granny’s Garden Squared QAL and finding my way back into cross-stitch. Once I purged about 1/3 the stuff out of my studio, my creative muse reappeared.

Yes, I will thoroughly enjoy a full summer for a change!

Keep on quilting!

This week I’m volunteering as a mentor at the annual quilt camp sponsored by the Southeast Quilt & Textile Museum. An entirely new experience for me – being a worker bee in a kid’s class instead of the one in charge. This also marks the first time since I retired that I actually have to be somewhere at a specific time 5 days in a row!

I look forward to meeting my middle school mentee. She’s a returning camper, so it’ll be interesting to see how much sewing she’s actually done since last summer. The biggest thing I miss about working in a school is the relationships I develop with the kids. I feel very fortunate to have volunteer opportunities where I can continue to work with children and young adults in a fun setting.

Update: So, mentees were reassigned yesterday. My new stitchy friend is a 4th grader who is a first time camper. Apparently, the person who was supposed to be her mentor had a first year camper in the a.m. session and did not want another first year camper in the p.m. session. Totally understand – newbies require a lot more hands on. We had fun getting to know the ins and outs of the sewing machine, made a tissue holder and started on our quilt blocks. By Friday, my little friend will have a completely finished quilted wall hanging!

By golly, I think I’ve about got my travel/class sewing act together!

Every week, I seem to refine things a bit more. This week I added a paper lunch bag and a bit of blue painter’s tape to my “class” kit. This “trash can” is to hold bits of thread and leftover fabric. The space where my Friday group meets has one trash can for the entire room. This will keep things much tidier in my work area.

I tend to travel light to sew-ins and classes. I take a wheeled sewing machine case (Featherweight or 3/4 size Elna STAR) and one canvas tote bag with supplies. That’s it. No matching sewing luggage trio with 3 big bags or an overflowing collapsible rolling trolley. Quilters are sharing folks. If I forget something, I can usually borrow the needed item from another attendee. I gladly share my supplies in return.

The machine I take depends on what I’m doing at the sew-in or class. My FW and Elna STAR stay packed and ready to travel. Everything else stays in a canvas tote bag – including an 18×24 folding cutting mat, 12×18 wool pressing mat, basic ruler set, sewing pouch, travel iron, water bottle, Best Press, press cloth, power strip and *now* trash bag. I simply edit the tote bag contents as needed to fit the activities for the sew-in or class. The most frequent additions are a portable light and rotating cutting mat.

For retreats, I usually add an additional bin with multiple precut projects, a handwork project, chocolate and some quilting magazines. Oh, and a suitcase!