Summer Camp

Summer camp is all about two things.

1. Spending time relaxing with the things you love to do.

2. Trying new things.

The memory that comes with that statement is of myself in church camp the summer after my 8th grade year. I spent lots of time playing my dulcimer that week under the trees by the lake - something I knew well and loved - and I also discovered that I was really, really good at archery. As in, I was better than ALL of the boys. And for the record....I was given the award that summer for being the happiest girl camper.

I digress!

In the spirit of summer camp, I am branching out this summer. After all, arts and crafts was always my favorite camp activity!

Yes, I am spending plenty of time with my knitting and spinning, and that's all well and good. However, for the first time since I had children I actually have the time available to try new things. (This is thanks to the fact that the girls are old enough that they can entertain themselves for large chunks of time...without me having to worry about what they are doing!) Once the girls go back to school and I get my bonus children again, my free time will once again become very limited. I need to try all of my camp activities now so that I can figure out what will and won't follow me into the fall.

Besides, this keeps the Green Woman very happy...and she was starting to get restless. One must keep one's creative muse from becoming restless, because you never know what trouble she will get into if she gets bored.

I've already dipped my toes into the first of my summer camp activities - sewing. In fact, I enjoyed my bag project so much that I've bought the fabric to make all of the other bags in my book that I want. (I never do anything by halves.) Happy me, happy Green Woman. As I've said, it'll never become my full-time craft, but I am very pleased that I am competent enough to produce the few beautiful things I want.

Next up?

Embroidery.

I have about four really great embroidery books which I love to flip through. I've never actually tried any of it, though, in part because I'm not exactly the sort to have an embellished household. (Sorry, embroidered tea towels and pillow cases are just not my cup of tea.) The trick will be in finding ways to use my embroidery. First, though, I need to do some practicing! I have all of the basic materials, and am planning on starting sometime this week.

I have a few options for my third (three months to the summer!) summer camp activity. At this point, I've narrowed my selection down to three things - sketching, bobbin lace, or music. The first is something I've long wished I could actually do, but was so frustrated the last time I tried that I set it aside without giving it a real go. The second...well I remember the bobbin lace people who came to the Lost Arts Festival at the historic site where I worked as a teen with a real sense of awe. I know where to get a started kit for cheap, too. As to the third, it's been years since I played my dulcimer and it could be fun to reconnect.

Decisions, decisions.....

So what are your summer plans?

Are you embracing the camp ideals and trying something new?