Managing without – or not?

So, as regular readers will gather, our housesitters are gearing up and we’re looking forward to another jaunt.   My previous post prompted me to consider what I can safely leave behind and what bits of kit I really cannot do without.  Generally speaking, the size of the gadget isn’t the issue but as a few of you have already noted, the extra charger, transformer, wires and adapters frequently are!

So, what is going to make it into my bag?

Two things have guaranteed passage.  I really couldn’t manage without my mobile phone and laptop.  I don’t use my phone much when I’m abroad because of the costs involved, but the security of knowing that I could – if I wanted – is comforting. 

The small laptop is something we’ve debated over recently; since the advent of the ipad. We use it to back up photographs each day, to read and respond to emails (because both of us continue to read and reply to work- and volunteer-related email whilst we’re away) and of course, I use if for blogging.  Try as we might, we haven’t yet found a way to complete all of these tasks satisfactorily using ipad only, possibly because we are both PC people at heart.  Until now, we’ve used “baby laptop” – a eight or nine year old 11” Sony which is almost as well travelled as we are!  But though it’s still working ok, we’re finding it slow and felt it was time to replace (before it conked out mid-trip, provoking a panic purchase).  Bring on the Samsung.  Oh, and embrace the challenge of Windows 8…  (Linda, my hero shares your view and is still working on it!)

OK.  Perhaps they are the obvious “must haves”.  What about the “nice to haves”?

Well, first is my voice recorder.  Yes, I know there’s one on my phone, but this little one is smaller and lighter then my iphone and tucks into my bag very neatly.  Not only that, but it doesn’t need any wires, because look…

Clever, eh?  (and another reason why I need the laptop, because there’s no usb on the ipad)

Next and in similar vein, my Flip video.  Again, a clever integrated usb means I don’t have cables and chargers to bother about.  My digital camera (OK, both my digital cameras!) have video functions, but transferring huge video files from them isn’t easy and takes time – the Flip camera makes it much easier and less of a hassle.

My ipod.  Hmmm.  This one might have to work its passage, though the fact that it’ll share its charger with the ipad probably persuades me that I could be pleased to listen to a playlist or two on a long flight, so both i-pad and i-pod will be in my hand luggage.  I think as well, there’s an ipod dock in our suite on the ship, which means we could listen to music there too – if we find ourselves in there for any length of time (unlikely).  For that reason, I won’t bother taking the x-mini speakers which the Lechlade gadget girls loved so much, though.

Pogo printer.  Well, this always used to come along but these days, there just isn’t room for the heavy charger, which is twice the size and probably twice the weight of the pogo itself.  Sorry, no printing pics as we go (I can wait…)  So, Pogo, you’re staying home.

Pictures.  Hmm.  That brings me to my big dilemma.  Until now, I’ve only ever had a “handbag camera”.  You know the kind of thing, small enough to put in my pocket and not think too much about.  Recently however, I indulged in a new “bridge” camera; larger and with a bigger optical zoom and greater capabilities in less than perfect conditions.  Of course, it’s heavy.  Rather large.  Has a different battery and therefore needs a different charger from my small camera.  But surely, going to wonderfully interesting places and recording new and colourful experiences is exactly why I got it?  Of course, it must come with me!  However, I’m going to take my small camera too, because you know, there are times when a quick snap is just enough, don’t you think?  Not only that, but there could be places where I don’t really want to carry a huge camera, where I don’t want to look like a tourist (even though that’s exactly what I am!)

It’s not easy deciding what to take and what to leave behind, is it?  What to carry and what to pack?  How do you decide?

Gadget Girl

I believe passionately in making technology work for me.  I enjoy making use of anything which will make my life easier and more fun.  I am always especially delighted to find something which will enable me to do something I couldn’t do before or had never even thought of doing.  As a result, one of my favourite classes to teach is one I call “Gadget Girl”.

Oh, the other reason is, that instead of packing my car with all of this

 

instead, I can just take this

I take great pleasure in revealing the contents of this small 8” x 6” bag and removing nine of the ten wonderful technological marvels that bring me a great deal of pleasure (and allow me to share it with you, too!)  The tenth item – my ipad – doesn’t quite squeeze down that small and will have to travel independently.

I’ve spent the day getting it all together, printing handouts and getting the paperwork together ready to spend a fun day with the Gadget Girls of Lechlade WI tomorrow, snow permitting!  We’ve cancelled once because of the weather and I think they are as determined as I am not to be beaten once again.  By the end of the day, they’ll not only have lots of ideas of way to make use of all of this kit, but may well discover they own much of it already and might even carry it around in their pocket without realising.

Oh, and just in case, I have a bag with the chargers and the cables ;-)

with one week to go

a Valentine’s Day themed project seemed in order.  I had promised to dream up a simple idea for the NFWI website and with time a little on the short side, I looked for a tried and tested pattern for a little card to tuck in a pocket, lunchbox or amongst meeting papers.  I knew I had that pattern somewhere, but finding it was another matter.  This was something I made pre-computer days and since I can’t google my filing cabinet of craft worksheets and class handouts, it wasn’t going to be easy to find.  Did I have time to go through all of those?

I do, however, have a box of templates from all kinds of projects I’ve done and it wasn’t too difficult to find the one I was looking for.  All I’d need to do was to trace round it, scan it into my computer and create a pdf.  No problem.  I might even create some cutting files for those with Silhouettes and Cricuts too!

See what happened?  I thought that perhaps I’d better try it out to check that it all folded neatly together and actually worked as it was supposed to.  It’s a good job I did, because it didn’t.  The central square was no longer symmetrical because, I guess, the template had been traced round so many times that it wasn’t quite precise any longer.

So, I fiddled around with the pattern, using my Silhouette to cut it out and sometimes, not choosing a large enough piece of scrap card to fit the shape.  I can tell you, joy was not abundant in my studio yesterday morning.  The frustration of not being able to create something simple but perfect gets to me every time!

Eventually, I decided that the best thing to do was to redraw the pattern from scratch; to stop trying to make a silk purse from a sow’s ear and find some squared paper and a ruler and go back to basics.

So very nearly there.  Still, if this is going out into the wide world, it had better be as perfect as I can get it, and this isn’t.  See that pointy bit at the bottom of the heart?

A few minor adjustments and it was done.  Didn’t seem much for a day’s work really, but this is how it is.  It’s a good job I don’t charge an hourly rate, isn’t it?!

If you’d like to download a copy of the pdf pattern it’s here.  Leave me a comment if you’d like the cutting files and I’ll share them with you, too.

Have fun!

What next?

Well, with my pocket journal all ready for our trip, it was time to clear the decks.  Lesley, you mean to say you didn’t recognise those characters in my last post as “Ni Hao”…or Hello in Chinese?  Like you, we have a few Japanese words but couldn’t recognise them written in Kanji symbols, sadly.  But whilst working on my journal, I established quite an efficient workflow getting characters in Chinese, Japanese, Korean –whatever –from website to Silhouette and can reveal

Seoul – in Korean, of course

and Beijing, in Chinese.  Well, I hope that’s what they say!

Will we need to recognise these names? I very much doubt it.  But it’s interesting to find these things and of course, the symbols make great decorative features for a journal page.

So, the papercraft put away, it was time to get out the next project.  I’d agreed to make a sample to inspire people to have a go themselves and as I thought about how to tackle the project, I made a decision to keep it simple and far from perfect, so that, hopefully, those looking at it would think “Oh, it’d have been better if…” and think of ways to improve it.

I got out the fabric.  Two coordinating teacup prints in a heavy cotton and four zips which I bought yesterday, ready to get going.

I cut four pieces (two from each colour), 20cm x 35cm and set to work.

First job was to sew a zip in between each pair of pieces.  I checked that the teacups were all the right way up and the tag of the zip was at the top on both.

I joined the other ends of each pair of pieces with another zip, so two rectangles of each colour were joined at both ends with zips.

I turned them inside out and stitched the two sides of each, so each pair of fabric rectangles was closed on all four sides.

How was I going to turn them right way out again?!

Easy!  Undo a zip and turn it right side out again through there.

Tada!  two tubes of fabric with a zip at each end.  All teacups the right way up and all zip tags are at the top (phew!)  Have you worked out what I’m doing yet?

I measured carefully to find the middle and pinned all fabric layers together, with a piece of ribbon there.  I drew my sewing line in washable pen because it was really important to get that straight.

By joining the two double ended pockets together, I created a “book” of four separate pockets with zip fastenings closing each one securely.  Perfect to put loose cash in and large enough for cheques, small receipt books and so on.  Everything a treasurer might require at a meeting, in fact.

If each zip was labelled with the contents of that pocket, then taking cash at a meeting would be easy and keeping the raffle money from the sales takings very simple too.

And at the end of the meeting, she can roll it all up and put it safely into the bottom of her handbag to take home.

I’ve detailed the steps to make this “treasurer’s purse” because one of the challenges for the centenary of the NFWI is for members to create an heirloom for tomorrow.  Whilst I’m not suggesting that this funny little purse is anything near being of heirloom status, it might be a starting point for someone who is stuck for an idea.  Think of it made in a beautiful fabric, with embroidered tags and some individualisation to the design.  Maybe add a handmade cord tie and a more lavish fastening?  I’m thinking that any “heirloom for tomorrow” needs to be practical and work for today’s treasurer, who is likely to be a busy woman with no time to waste!

And for my next trick?  Who knows?!

Lazy Sunday afternoon

Well, far from lazy, actually, but that song just prompts me to put the L word in there!

So, humming The Small Faces, I’m pottering about the studio this afternoon, enjoying the post OFSTED glow and offering the occasional 2p as my Hero navigates the nether regions of Windows 8.

 

I’m actually working on my pocket journal, which reminded me that I haven’t shared my nifty method of transferring complex shapes from Silhouette cutting mat to page, by means of a strip of washi tape.  It’s not really rocket science.  I simply remove the cut pieces from the mat with a short piece of tape (or two, if it’s larger)

I turn over the tape and apply a small amount of adhesive to the reverse side of the cut shape, before turning it over, sticking it down to the page and carefully peeling away the washi tape.

See?  I said it wasn’t really rocket science!  But I’m not sure I could have got those tricky Chinese characters down any other way.

The journal’s coming along nicely and I’m happy with it.

I especially like this last folder, for our souvenirs from Hiroshima.

I made good use of the print from the paper collection I chose, handily named “Konnichiwa”.

Oh, I got a new toy to play with too.  Lucky girl!