NW Retreat

 You might have noticed it's been a bit quiet here lately - a combination  of a stressful time at work, problems with blogger and having been away in the Lake District on a North West CQ group retreat.
At my lowest ebb I happened to see a notice about a last minute place on the retreat at Glenthorne Quaker Guest House becoming available - only 5 days notice  but enough time grab the opportunity and  sort out train times. A few days of sewing, painting and walking in beautiful scenery in stimulating company was just what I needed

 Most people brought their sewing machines but luckily I didn't have to lug mine on the train as I had a couple of pieces at the tweaking stage ready for hand stitching (left hand side on wall and rail). I also brought my watercolours  including the handmade set of pigments I received on the Pip Seymour FSC course - just the gritty textures to capture the colours of the fells.

 We settled into a routine of working in the classroom from 9 until 1 then  group walks were available in the afternoon, returning for tea and cakes! The weather wasn't brilliant but it stopped raining long enough on Tuesday to venture out to Easdale Tarn - not so lucky on Wednesday when a walk around the lake was a washout!!(good use was made of the drying room for soggy waterproofs and boots)

 In the evenings there were informal presentations by Judy on Faces of China - her Journal Quilts based on her travels along the Silk Road; Magie talked about bead making in Ghana(followed by interesting debate about Fairtrade accreditation ) and Gillian showed us lots of photos and  some of fabrics she'd bought on a very recent trip to India.   Then we'd be sewing away until 10.30 or later!!

There were also opportunities for a bit of retail therapy - Grasmere Gingerbread of course and sketchbooks from the Heaton Cooper Gallery (  had the patterns left by removal of ivy on the garage next door been left intentionally??)
The accommodation was homely but comfortable and the staff and other guests  helpful and pleasant - a very restful break. It was great to concentrate on my own work  while seeing what others were up to - plenty of help on offer if anyone ran into problems  and a lot of laughter. Hope to return next year - we discussed how it wasn't always necessary to be learning  new techniques or have the services of a  tutor but appreciated  the  time to work on our own pieces  in a  supportive environment with like-minded people.