Quilt Retreat!

One weekend not so long ago I went to Fountainbleu State Park to meet some quilty friends for a craft retreat. I met Erika and Kelly through the La. Traveling Quilt bee two years ago. We keep in touch through Facebook and have met for our own mini-retreat here in my studio.  Last year we planned this retreat but I decided to opt out since it was so close to EOC testing. This year, however, I chose to attend. Oh wow! I had such fun! Loved the weekend!

These photos are from Pinterest, so they come from a variety of original sources. I had hoped to get out at some point over the weekend and take a few pictures myself. Unfortunately a storm blew in on Saturday and rained most of the day. On Sunday we all tried to pack up and get out of town before the real weather hit. 

I averaged between 35 and 40 miles per hour on I-12 for almost half of the trip home. Every 18-wheeler I saw was pulled over on the side of the interstate. While I considered doing so myself, I had no idea how long I would be stranded, so I continued slowly and steadly. The drive didn't matter--I got home eventually--and the weekend was wonderful!  

I had a wonderful time working on a couple of projects: finished the green string quilt, started a quilt using fabrics I bought for a granddaughter years ago, and made a few zipper pouches. 

We, the retreaters, decided to bring something for and exchange with the other quilters. The collage above shows some of those somethings, including the fat quarter of fabric you can see in the background of the pictures. How perfect can it be? This perfect...
pink fleur de lis! 

Every item was well received. My quilted bags (here's a tut) and pincushions were raved over much more than they deserved, but who stops applause when it's coming? 

Have I said that I loved, loved, LOVED the entire weekend? I am thrilled that I attended this year. I have every intention of attending again next year.  When was your last retreat? If you blogged about, add the url to your comment so we can read about it.