back at the sewing machine again

After being away for two weeks, it was nice to be back at my sewing machine. My youngest son is home from college.  He had a pile of folded pants on the floor of his room. They all needed mending.

My son is a skinny guy. He usually keeps his phone in his back pocket. The skinny jeans he wears look great on him but the lycra/denim mix isn't the longest wearing fabric on the planet. The parts of his pants that support the pocket usually fail from the weight of his phone.

So, right after I returned home I started mending pants. This checked pair has been mended several times.  I have been adding a patch to the inside of the pants and grafting the two layers together with lots of stitching.

 Luckily my son doesn't mind the contrasting bits of patch showing.

I mended two pairs of the lavender and black checkerboard jeans.

I also mended two pairs of jeans that I think I bought my son while he was still in middle school. When I think about it, these pants may have been worn for 

 at least a year or two by my older son. My youngest loves these jeans because they are so soft.

 Two pairs of jeans needed repairs in the crotch.

The black and white striped pair was potentially tricky because of the white stripes, they seem to have been made out of a plasticky type of a paint. I didn't know how my sewing machine would behave. I added some black rayon knit to the underside of the fabric. When the pants are worn the repairs aren't all that obvious.

What felt like the most complicated repair for me, was replacing the pocket bag on this pair of jeans. 

I made a pattern of the existing torn pocket, cut a new one out of orange linen, because I had a scrap the right size and then stitched the new pocket bag into place.

All of this mending involves some pleasant problem-solving. Each problem has several possible solutions and I usually try to use the solution that works the most easily for me. There is something oddly soothing about the process of making all of these pants wearable again for my son. Luckily lots of designer jeans are featuring the sorts of repeated stitch patterns that mending produces.  My son likes the look and is happy I can fix his pants. 

I never would have thought that I would find mending so satisfying. 

Today I got a challah cover ready to send to the bride and groom.

The text is the chorus of this poem 

English translation	Transliteration	Hebrew
Chorus:
1	Let’s go, my beloved, to meet the bride,	Lekhah dodi liqrat kallah	לכה דודי לקראת כלה‬
2	and let us welcome the presence of Shabbat.	p'nei Shabbat neqabelah	פני שבת נקבלה‬
Verse 1:
3	"Safeguard" and "Remember" in a single utterance,	Shamor v'zakhor b'dibur eḥad	שמור וזכור בדבור אחד‬
4	We were made to hear by the unified God,	hishmiʿanu El hameyuḥad	השמיענו אל המיחד‬
5	God is one and God’s Name is one,	Adonai eḥad ushemo eḥad	יי אחד ושמו אחד‬
6	In fame and splendor and praiseful song.	L'Sheim ul'tiferet v'lit'hilah	לשם ולתפארת ולתהלה‬
Verse 2:
7	To greet Shabbat let’s go, let’s travel,	Liqrat Shabbat lekhu v'nelekhah	לקראת שבת לכו ונלכה‬
8	For she is the wellspring of blessing,	ki hi m'qor haberakhah	כי היא מקור הברכה‬
9	From the start, from ancient times she was chosen,	merosh miqedem nesukhah	מראש מקדם נסוכה‬
10	Last made, but first planned.	sof maʿaseh b'maḥashavah teḥilah	סוף מעשה במחשבה תחלה‬
Verse 3:
11	Sanctuary of the king, royal city,	Miqdash melekhʿir melukhah	מקדש מלך עיר מלוכה‬
12	Arise! Leave from the midst of the turmoil;	Qumi tz'i mitokh ha-hafeikhah	קומי צאי מתוך ההפכה‬
13	Long enough have you sat in the valley of tears	Rav lakh shevet b'eimeq habakha	רב לך שבת בעמק הבכא‬
14	And He will take great pity upon you compassionately.	v'hu yaḥamol ʿalayikh ḥemlah	והוא יחמול עליך חמלה‬
Verse 4:
15	Shake yourself free, rise from the dust,	Hitnaʿari me'afar qumi	התנערי מעפר קומי‬
16	Dress in your garments of splendor, my people,	Livshi bigdei tifartekh ʿami	לבשי בגדי תפארתך עמי‬
17	By the hand of Jesse’s son of Bethlehem,	ʿAl yad ben Yishai beit ha-laḥmi	על יד בן ישי בית הלחמי‬
18	Redemption draws near to my soul.	Qorvah el nafshi g'alah	קרבה אל נפשי גאלה‬
Verse 5:
19	Rouse yourselves! Rouse yourselves!	Hitʿoreri hitʿoreri	התעוררי התעוררי‬
20	Your light is coming, rise up and shine.	Ki va oreikh qumi ori	כי בא אורך קומי אורי‬
21	Awaken! Awaken! utter a song,	ʿUri ʿuri shir dabeiri	עורי עורי שיר דברי‬
22	The glory of the Lord is revealed upon you.	K'vod Adonai ʿalayikh niglah	כבוד יי עליך נגלה‬
Verse 6:
23	Do not be embarrassed! Do not be ashamed!	Lo tevoshi v'lo tikalmi	לא תבושי ולא תכלמי‬
24	Why be downcast? Why groan?	Mah tishtoḥaḥi umah tehemi	מה תשתוחחי ומה תהמי‬
25	All my afflicted people will find refuge within you	bakh yeḥesu ʿaniyei ʿami	בך יחסו עניי עמי‬
26	And the city shall be rebuilt on her hill.	v'nivnetah ʿir ʿal tilah	ונבנתה עיר על תלה‬
Verse 7:
27	Your despoilers will become your spoil,	V'hayu limshisah shosayikh	והיו למשסה שאסיך‬
28	Far away shall be any who would devour you,	V'raḥaqu kol mevalʿayikh	ורחקו כל מבלעיך‬
29	Your God will rejoice concerning you,	Yasisʿalayikh Elohayikh	ישיש עליך אלהיך‬
30	As a groom rejoices over a bride.	Kimsos ḥatan ʿal kalah	כמשוש חתן על כלה‬
Verse 8:
31	To your right and your left you will burst forth,	Yamin usmol tifrotzi	ימין ושמאל תפרוצי‬
32	And the Lord will you revere	V'et Adonai taʿaritzi	ואת יי תעריצי‬
33	By the hand of a child of Peretz,	ʿAl yad ish ben Partzi	על יד איש בן פרצי‬
34	We will rejoice and sing happily.	V'nismeḥah v'nagilah	ונשמחה ונגילה‬
Verse 9:
35	Come in peace, crown of her husband,	Boi v'shalom ateret baʿalah	בואי בשלום עטרת בעלה‬
36	Both in happiness and in jubilation	Gam b'simḥah uvetzahalah	גם בשמחה ובצהלה‬
37	Amidst the faithful of the treasured nation	Tokh emunei ʿam segulah	תוך אמוני עם סגלה‬
38	Come O Bride! Come O Bride!	Boi khalah boi khalah	בואי כלה בואי כלה‬

This was all painted on silk shantung (please ignore the passive voice, this is all my work). I love the soft colors and the cheerful grapes.

Before I moved to New York the thought of living in such a big city kind of terrified me. Soon after I moved here I remember taking the train back to New York after a visit back home.  The train travels next to the Tri-boro bridge and then turns left and you see a fabulous view of Manhattan. I remember becoming so excited because I was seeing home. I haven't come back to New York and not had that same feeling of excitement and anticipation and being truly home.