Re: Pinging Kate...re. kites

On 13/02/06 5:42 AM, Kate Dicey wrote:
Larry Green wrote:

On 12/02/06 5:54 PM, Kate Dicey wrote:


Snip


Larry, those look great. I'm not sure some of the scouts DH works with will have the concentration (discipline has been totally lacking, their patrols have no team spirit, and at least one has ADHD!), but I will try to build some of the simpler ones with James and any of the lads who want to do a two day workshop and get their flight badge. I might do it as a holiday activity. We can set up a big table and set up several sewing machines in the new conservatory. It'll take a few hours to get them used to sewing if they've never done any before, and it'll take them a while to get used to the slippery fabrics and stuff after that.

With Scout and Guide groups we have had great success building simple 'no-sew' sled kites out of either plastic bags (garbage bags cut up) or slightly stiff, art paper. The spars were bamboo bar-b-q skewers. They can be built in an hour (if the shape is already drawn on the material using a card template) and are very cheap to make (something Scout groups like!)

You can even buy 'kites on a roll'.........

http://www.kitesonaroll.com/index2.asp

.........where the kite shapes are pre-printed on a roll of plastic and they even come with spars, tails and flying line. Ideal for all sorts of group usage.


James certainly thought there were a couple besides himself who would be interested. We'll see how a session with James (used to sewing, used to me teaching him both at home and in school) goes, and then see what happens...

So far he has one completed quilt and a Christmas stocking, and another quilt on the go. He has fabric for at least one more, and PLANS for a chess board quilt and fabric chessmen! That one I can hardly wait for, but with scouts once a week, judo twice, football (soccer) on Wednesdays, and Warhammer club on Friday, then swimming Sunday mornings, you can see he's a busy lad! Some weeks we hardly seem to have time for school! ;) Good job we don't home school, or we'd have severe problems getting through the necessary boring stuff, though writing up the projects would at least mean we had interesting things to write about!


Sounds a bit like me when I was that age (although I had to play rugger in school). My late father was a scout master, I swam, took judo lessons and once I hit 13 I joined the ATC so that I could fly planes and shoot guns! A busy childhood is a happy childhood IMHO.

Let me know if you have any questions if you decide to go with a sewn kite. Happy to help out if I can.

Larry
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Quilting helps student pass math test
    ... At one school where she taught for many years, the school made a big changeover to doing "hands on math" and problem solving. ... there were going to be 81 blocks in the quilt, ... The next day we began marking the fabrics, ...
    (rec.crafts.textiles.quilting)
  • Re: Quilting helps student pass math test
    ... At one school where she taught for many years, ... There are so many things adults can do to demonstrate how to use math. ... there were going to be 81 blocks in the quilt, ... and would use extra fabrics for something else later on. ...
    (rec.crafts.textiles.quilting)
  • Re: out of print fabric sources and an idea
    ... and coordinating fabrics too. ... mix it up real good like school is. ... learn new things and then the quilt really would be 'from' her. ... just some thots i had at quick notice, lol. ...
    (rec.crafts.textiles.quilting)
  • Re: Time for another Roll Call?
    ... Married to DH Rick for 27 years, ... cat, with a black mustache and "goatee". ... Homemaker of Tomorrow" contest at my school my senior year. ... and reproduction fabrics and most colors. ...
    (rec.crafts.textiles.quilting)
  • Re: Quilting is such therapy
    ... conference. ... The kids designed the pattern -- I sure bit off more than I could chew with my meager 4 years of quilt learning. ... I have learned the hard way that quilting is MY therapy, and I will not do another quilt project that also involves schoolwork. ... The quilt became another school obligation and I started to feel guilty about doing quilting for myself when the school quilt was not finished. ...
    (rec.crafts.textiles.quilting)