The retreat this year was held at Edenvale, in Abbotsford, from Monday March 13th to Thursday March 16th.  There were 19 quilters present, 17 members and 2 non-members.

Activities included:

• First evening – Introductions, announcements, and Fat Quarter exchange. A few prizes were drawn. A light snack was provided.
• Second day – Some prize draws, a few brief yoga stretches. In the evening 6 people participated in a Jelly Roll Race, working in pairs. One person did the sewing, the helper straightened out the strips and finger pressed them open. Rather than have a timed race we drew names from among the 6 participants for a prize.  Other prize draws were done during the day around lunch and dinner.
• Third day – Carola (http://carolasquiltshop.com) arrived in the morning and set up her fabrics and threads. She joined us for lunch. There were a few yoga stretches during the day. The Show & Tell was held at 5pm, prior to dinner. The remaining prizes and 2 grand prizes were drawn.
• Fourth Day – A breakfast was set out and a lunch was served at noon.

I often tell friends that quilt “retreat” is a bit misleading. Others often imagine a bunch women gathered around a quilting frame quietly stitching and chatting. As you know it’s not like that! For some quilting, “boot-camp” would be more appropriate with machines whirring, lots of laughter, up and down to use the cutting boards and irons. Some “retreaters” get up early and stay up late, very late. For others it is a chance to unwind and find time for a quiet nap. Whatever one’s retreat style, “quilt-’til-you-wilt” or an opportunity for some down time, we were well taken care of by the Edenvale staff. The new kitchen crew, led by Jen, creatively managed our group’s diverse dietary needs and preferences – producing old favourites like salmon dinner and Pavlova dessert as well as some new dishes and tasty snacks. We love that breakfast gets laid out in the evening with a coffee pot timed to start brewing at 7 AM so we can have breakfast whenever we get up.
We had lots of prizes – enough for everyone to win something with 2 additional grand prizes.
In addition to our own projects, some worked on the Canada 150 slab blocks and at least 5 tops were pieced. The Studio 13 crew will get them quilted and ready for distribution to Ronald MacDonald Houses via CQA. Our next retreat will be March 13-16 2018 and 14 people have already signed up. Contact Marg Rae if you are interested in attending.

Alison R.

(click on a photo to enter slideshow)