AND STILL MORE RETREAT PICS

We had such fun!

Hope some of you can join us next year.  Who doesn't need a Spring Thaw in FL in March?

The group is:  The Quilter's Thread

MORE PHOTOS FROM RETREAT

Here we are on the shop hop delivering our charity pillowcases at one shop.  It might be the only shot of all of us.

We had music playing as we sewed, and some of us had to stop stitching and put on our dancing shoes.  I think we are all doing the twist here :)

RETREAT SHOP HOP AND WALL HANGING CHALLENGE

I'm back home, refreshed, renewed.  SEW worth going!

Here are some more retreat pictures.

We wore matching Fabric Acquisition Team t-shirts for our shop-hop.  At the Quilt Shop of Deland we were given demos.

We had a wall hanging challenge.  No particular rules except size.  We invited the quilters next door (Orange Blossom Quilters) and the office staff from Lake Yale to come vote too.  The office staff showed up wearing official "judge" badges/ribbons :)

Several of you have asked how to get involved with this on-line yahoo group, which has this annual Spring Thaw Retreat at Lake Yale Conference Center in Leesburg, FL.  We also do fun things like swaps and round-robins all year.

The group name is The Quilter's Thread, and the addy is:
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/quiltersthreadrus/info

Yes, we are welcoming new members.

Next year's retreat dates are March 11 - 15, 2015.

FRIDAY MORNING AT LAKE YALE

TAH-DAH!  I have the first tah-dah finish of the retreat!

This is the mystery tote bag.  We received fabric quantities, and cutting instructions before retreat.  I used a Riley Blake layer cake, and purse handles that I've had in stash for years.  I knew they'd perfect for some bag some day:)

I wanted to share with you how much room we have.  Each of us has a whole long table to ourselves.

This is a look at how many electronics we bring these days.  All these cords for just two of us!  And my cell phone isn't on charge in the picture, so that's one more.

Our first demo today was the double diamond.  I have received gifts made using this technique, but I've never done it nor seen it demo'ed.  Donna did a great job, and gave each of us a book mark too!  Sweet!

Our shop hop yesterday was so fun.  We had to scavenger hunt for things like a picture with construction workers, etc.  So fun!  I'll post those later.  Off to start the mystery quilt.

Hope you find time to stitch today too!

GOOD MORNING FROM LAKE YALE

Early morning quilters.

And now we are off to shop hop/scavenger hunt!

RETREAT!

I'm head to Lake Yale to the Quilter's Thread (online yahoo group) quilt retreat this morning.  Yeah!  Four days of fun and merriment.  Maybe a bit of stitching too?  Definitely I'll be meeting gals from around the states that I have only known on-line.  Lake Yale is about an hour from where I live so we are driving, but many are flying in.

I'll try to post some of my antics as we progress.

QUILT SHOW!

Our guild show was Fri. and Sat.  What fun!

My friend Carol Becker, made this car cover a few years ago.  She parks out front to help folks find us and set the mood.

These were some of my favorites in the show.

This one had sooo much work on it!

This one is so bright and cheery!

This cathedral window jacket had some 'windows' unopened.  So unique.

I love the rainbow effect here.

This is my friend Jodi, with her beautiful bargello.

More pretties.

This photo doesn't do this quilt justice.  All the animals are paper pieced.  The size of some of the pieces is really tiny.  Each feather, each nuance.  Wow!

I've never used a brown background, but it sure is nice.

Can you tell I'm partial to applique?

An Edyta Sitar design all in batiks.  So pretty.

We had a super crowd; especially on Friday.

I'm tired exhausted after two full days at the show.  Next year, I think I'll opt for a sit down job for part of the time :)  I spent two afternoons arranging and sorting in our boutique.  It was fun and busy.

I didn't enter any quilts this year.  I'm new to guild and wanted to see how it all works.  I gave everything close attention this year.  Generally I just browse the shows.

Take down was accomplished in 36 minutes!  They passed last year's record of 45 minutes.  Lots of husbands help, and it really does work like a well-oiled machine!  So many people working together.

Now, what should I be working on?  Did I come away inspired or in awe?  New goals?