sarah in nyc

Yesterday, two of the class participants came to my house to work with me to finish off the Bein Gavra. We ate, did some stenciling, embroidered ribbon, sewed it on , trimmed loose threads and had some pie. All in all a really productive day. Kathy,  took lots of photos with her fancy digital camera, and after she emails me her photos I will post them here. For any of you who are locals, it is being presented at Shabbat morning services at Ansche Chesed on December 24. Hope to see lots of you there!!!

Today, I took a new machine into my life. My friend Sara, was in the studio audience of the Rosie O’ Donnell. You can see her talking about it here. Sara had kept the machine in her apartment, unopened for the last four years. I bought the machine from Sara and brought it home this afternoon in my shopping cart. I decided to try out the machine on the ribbon I purchased for the Bein Gavra. This is what I ended up with. You can see what the ribbon looked like before I began. So now, I am completely ready to get rid of two sewing machines. The first is a 1973 Sears Kenmore Zig- Zag machine. It is a real work horse. You could probably drop it from my window on the 6th floor and it would survive the drop unscathed.  The other is an early 1990’s Pfaff. It’s a wonderful machine but it needs a new motor. I can also send you the the sewing machine repair genius. If you want either machine, let me know and name your price.

Earlier this week, Alonzo had asked if his brother, Dave, could join my class. Dave is a 45 year old mute retarded man. I agreed to have Dave in the class. I brought along extra velvet  so participants could practice  before they began to stencil on the actual piece. I was a little worried about having Dave in the class, but I figured that I could figure out something for him to do in case the task at hand was beyond his skills. Most of the other class members were away, having begun their Thanksgiving early. I got Dave stenciling on the scrap velvet.  He had no trouble at all. So when Ruth came in I asked Dave it it was difficult use the stencil, he grunted an enthusiastic “ No!”. So, Ruth who is usually timid, got into working fear- free. The three of us had a blast working together. Next week we add the lettering.

I’m teaching this class at my synagogue. CREATE A PIECE OF SYNAGOGUE ART IN FABRIC With Fabric Artist Sarah Jacobs In this workshop, we’ll create a “Bein Gavra” – the fabric covering that is placed over the Torah between aliyot — for the Sanctuary. The words bein gavra literally mean in between the people, meaning between the olim. The goal of these sessions is to create something beautiful that will both enhance and reflect our experience of being close to the Torah. We’ll spend the first session or two exploring our relationship to Torah both as individuals and as a community, and using that discussion to together design and create a piece that is meaningful and beautiful, as well as practical. The remainder of the sessions will be spent working on making the “Bein Gavra”. This workshop is open to all – adults and children over the age of 10. No sewing or fabric art experience is required. 5 Tuesdays 7:30-9 pm Beginning October 25 Materials fee $15 ...