I love hosting the Virtual Retreat!!! Now that my commitments are out of the way, I can actually enjoy the entire day!!!
I finished the editing and presentation prepping in the early morning. When I did start the retreat at 9 AM, it was to get the binding and the sleeve on the magazine quilt.
The quilt got packed in a box, and then I went to print the labels for shipping the box. Oh, boy - that was an experience. It's super easy to put all the information into the online form, but when I went to print, I was told the printer was OFFLINE. OH NO. Then I had to run around the house, upstairs and downstairs to get the printer to work.
I ended up saving the label as a PDF and sending it to my other computer. And all the while, there are people on the Zoom call! It was funny, and yet it wasn't. The label got taped to the box, and the box got placed on the front step. HEY -- this is super easy!! I used to have to run to the UPS store and wait 10 minutes for them to generate the paperwork. Now I do it myself, and I swear it's cheaper!
It just so happened that I had a delivery from UPS in the afternoon and so they picked up the package at the same time! This is one positive thing that came from self-isolation. I don't see myself ever going to the UPS store to ship boxes anymore!
Then it was time for my presentation, which went well. I still need to do some tweaking, but overall it went smoothly with all the technology, etc.
At last, I was able to work on my own stuff, and what was I going to choose? Well, I was working on those tote bags, and I'm not switching tasks until the current project is complete.
Once I got myself to work, it really didn't take long before the bags were assembled. One of them was already together, and I finished off the other two. I had to stitch all the pocket dividers in place and then sewed the lining and the outer bag and then joined the two. The top edge is topstitched. I'm thrilled with them. But seriously, those bags, or parts of the bags, have sat in that laundry basket for YEARS. All it took was about 3 hours to get them to this stage. I hang my head in shame! I don't mean that in a negative way - it just boggles my mind at how easy it was for me to abandon projects and then never get back to them.
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| Three tote bags in progress |
That matched up rather nicely!!!
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| Excellent matching of seams on the side of one of the bags |
Here's the inside of the bag. It's hard to see, but there are lots of handy pockets for little things. I must remember to ask Carol what year it was that we worked with this fabric.
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| Inside the bag |
We're having so much fun with the Virtual Retreat. At one point, I remarked to one of the ladies that it was like a Sit n Sew day. Except better! We got to see people's studios, we got to see Nina's house in Germany! Oh my gosh - Nina - thanks so much for logging in. It was great to meet you!!! We've seen inside sewing studios, watched the progress on various projects, including Karen, who is longarming a quilt. The quality of the video and audio is pretty darn good. And Paula baked cookies the other day while she was logged in! Now that was painful as we couldn't sample the cookies!
We've been learning how guilds in various parts of the country are coping with meetings or lack thereof. We've learned what the current situation is really like in Germany. Anything and everything is a valid topic! It's been great fun!!! And there are still three more days!!!!
Here's the link for TODAY. FRIDAY, May 29th.
Join Zoom Meeting 9 AM --- 8 PM EST
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81124634129?pwd=blRUck9xYTRZVCthd2ljQTBBS0srdz09 Meeting ID: 811 2463 4129 Password: 910014
So if you're sewing alone at home or just want to pop in to say hi, we'd love to see you!!!!! If you're not familiar with Zoom, you can access it on your smartphone, your tablet, or your computer. Just click the link above, and if you have Zoom, you'll be connected. If you don't have Zoom, you'll be able to download it. The best part??? It's totally FREE. I have a paid subscription, but for you to join my meeting? - totally free.
I love this shot. That's my computer screen at the end of the day, and I'm sewing the bags together. You can just see the top of my head as the bag was in the way!!!
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| Me on the Zoom meeting |
I walked six miles yesterday. I need at least 7 to stay on track for the walk across Canada, so I'm behind about 4 miles at this point. No worries - I'll make it up next week!
I try to do the same walk every night, and I pass this house where a guy is working on a bicycle. Last week, he was scraping the blue paint off of a bike frame. His wife was sitting in a big comfy chair in the driveway on her phone while he worked.
Two nights ago, the bike frame was hanging from a tree as he painted it. And again last night, it was hanging from the same tree as he gave it another coat of PINK paint. I'm guessing the bike is for his wife, not himself!!
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| Bike frame hanging from the tree |
If it's hanging tonight, I'll try to get a closer picture. I don't want people to think I'm weird because I'm taking pictures of their stuff!
At one point, I got a text yesterday saying that a certain someone in the house had knocked down one of my design walls in the bathroom upstairs. Oops - I forgot that I had moved one board in front of the door. Oh well, it was time to pick those blocks up anyway. I may decide to put that quilt together on the weekend. No idea - I'm just sewing and having fun!
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| Oopsy! |
I should mention that we're good listeners as well. One of the ladies who signed in, needed an ear to vent her frustration. We let her get it out of her system, and when we chatted yesterday, she felt so much better. I'm glad we could help. It's not healthy for you to be sitting alone day after day. OH - and the other thing I learned yesterday is about Stephanie and Gillian, a couple who have retired early and are traveling the world. I haven't had a lot of time to check out their web site, but this sounds amazing! I think they have some videos or podcasts. I need to check it out as the whole lifestyle sounds fascinating.
Speaking of traveling, here's the picture from Highway 16 today. Gosh - that looks just like the picture from yesterday! Oh wait - there's a wee bit of scrub brush on the side of the road up ahead!
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| On the road east of the Battlefords |
Here's a picture of the map. See all those roads - those are gravel roads. Not paved roads. When I moved to Ontario, I thought I was - well, I don't know, but there are NOT many unpaved roads in Ontario. Which is excellent for cyclists, but what about the cost?
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| A map of the area where I grew up |
You have to love the detail on these maps! I know I'm crazy, but I'm totally fascinated by the whole technology thing and what's available for us! Who needs TV when there are all kinds of fun things to explore. I try to very conscious of how much time I spend on the computer as well because that can be even worse than TV!!
Here's the bigger picture. This is probably the closest I'm going to get to the homestead (that sounds so pioneer), so you get two maps today. I have to say that I did NOT know there was a big island in the middle of the river near where I grew up! We NEVER went to the river. At least I never did. Not once!! I suppose we could have walked or ridden our bikes, but that would have been a bit of a hike.
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| Making progress on the Cross Canada tour |
I got more paperwork cleared up this morning. I only have two bits of paperwork to finish this weekend (both are overdue), and then I'm up to date. Then it'll be time to start the process all over again!! Oh well, that's what keeps me sane. That's what keeps me busy and having fun at the same time.
Don't forget, today is the LAST day of my QUILTsocial blog posts. Check it out!! So many different ways to learn! There are FIVE great tips for learning. Learning ANYTHING. You must check them out because I think they are critical to our sewing processes!!
So - if you need someone to chat with today, join us for the Zoom Virtual Retreat. It's a load of fun, very informative, and inspiration all at the same time.
Here's the link one more time for FRIDAY, May 29th!!! Everyone is welcome!
Join Zoom Meeting 9 AM --- 8 PM EST
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81124634129?pwd=blRUck9xYTRZVCthd2ljQTBBS0srdz09 Meeting ID: 811 2463 4129 Password: 910014
Have a super day!!!!!
Ciao!!!!
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