It is always fun when you go with your very best friends!!!!

I go to the same retreat as Joanie. I've gone twice now and enjoy it as a get away with nothing that I have to do. The price is reasonable too.

There's a small-ish quilt shop in Watkins Glen, NY (O'Susannah's) that has an apartment upstairs for folks to organize their own retreat with 6 - 10 people. Bedrooms, bathroom, work room, kitchenette - even a laundry for those who want to wash new fabrics before using! There's lots to do in the area in the summer - a great state park with hiking trails, wineries, beautiful lake...

http://www.osusannahsquiltshop.com/q...g-retreats.htm

We have one coming up in June. We did one last fall and everyone had so much fun just sewing and visiting. This time one of the quilters who can't come to stay might show us her version of PP. Ours is June 2-5 in Lincoln City OR and there is room for a few more! Cost is only $70 for the whole weekend and I think we are all just bringing our own food.

Why not start by going to some to see what they are about? and to get some ideas? Then decide if it's something you want to do? Retreats can be as varied as you want to make them.

Your location sounds like a perfect place and that many could enjoy your home, area and the offerings. If you're wanting to participate, keep in mind that it's not going to be the same as hostess vs. being a guest, even if everyone is bringing/contributing to the food and cooking.



As to size of retreats ... they can be as small or as big as you choose! I do my own personal retreats at times ... plan a few days that it's all about sewing, and nothing but the bare essentials get done done during the retreat!

Translation: food only (minimal prep, from the freezer, advance cooking, etc.), no dishes, no laundry, no cleaning, no appointments ... and minimal outside world contact!!! In fact, that's my plans for Easter Weekend!! :)

We had some of the women who came last time get razzed by their family because they were coming and had never met any of us. I guess you just have to believe that there are good people out there who can become your new friends and trust that things will be fine. I actually entertained buying a place that had 9+ bedrooms and plenty of space for a B&B type set up. It would have been heaven for a quilting retreat! I decided that I didn't want to have a business for the rest of my life even though I would get to interact with quilters, etc.

If it's a Guild sponsored retreat there are often activities that involve everyone, in addition to doing what you want

I do an annual week long retreat in my son's upstate NY country home with 4 friends who live in various parts of the US. We come ready to sew non-stop, drink alot of wine and champagne, laugh, and eat way too much - each of us does at least one dinner; lunch we usually eat left-overs from one of the dinners and breakfast - you're on your own.

Regardless if it's Guild or private, most of us have pre-cut what we'll work on.

I have organized 21 retreats in the last five years (four retreats a year, Feb., May, Sept., Nov.). They are called "Intown Retreats" because everyone goes home at night. We have them Monday through Thursday, from 9 a.m. to at least 9 p.m., and there are usually 15 to 20 of us. Everyone brings some type of food dish, and we sew, visit, laugh, eat, etc.
The place we use is a subdivision clubhouse, and it has tables and chairs. The room is safe, so we leave all of our machines, projects, etc. there overnight. The room costs us $300 for the four days, and we pay $50 for someone to come in and clean up the room. So, it normally costs us each $7.50 each a day. What a deal, and so much fun! Sometimes we bring things from our sewing room that we don't want, and we have drawings, and each person gets to go home with a new treasure.

I am getting ready to go to a week long Girl's Week Out, quilting retreat. We only go every two years. We have two condos and we cook in one and sew in the other and of course sleep in both. This years we only have 11 going to Colorado. We have an instructor that is coming in from Alamosa CO, to teach us. We have seen a picture of the quilt this year, but in years past it was a Mystery Quilt. We are all too old to handle the "mystery". We arrive on Friday, start at 9 am on Saturday and go home the following Friday. We each only cook dinner 1 time in pairs and you are done. Everyone does their own breakfast and lunch. We go to quilt shops in the late afternoon and early evening. We usually eat out one night. I cannot wait, as my Grandaughter would say, "I cited", for excited!

Sew, sleep, eat, laugh, shop.

Obviously retreats can vary widely as to the who, how many, where, and what. Many quilting groups and guilds host retreats as do many LQS's. Quilting magazines even have sections with ads on various retreats and quilting cruises and quilting camps.

If you want to go with folks you know, try to go where you can meet them: quilt show, LQS's, and quilting groups/guilds. Or make it up for just a few of your quilting friends. It can be a destination retreat, where you and friends go to enjoy the surrounding area as well as quilt.

The variety is endless.

If you have a big enough house you could host one if you feel like it. I would caution you to start the first one with a smaller group unless you are very organized. The main item to remember is you would need enough electrical capacity to host all the sewing machines, lights, and irons quilters use. Many places tell retreaters what to bring in the way of irons and lights, so as not to exceed the capacity of the facility.

I hope you post after you go on your first retreat.

ali

I have been to three of themn. It was organized by a group of ladies that run in shop in Southern Mn.Had a place renter on a lake in central Mn. Send out a list of classes and you decide what you want to take. They brought vans of fabric and anything that went with sewing, in case you needed needles or whatever.You brought your machines, sewed till you dropped and had your own bedroom which you shared with a friend , meals were all cooked for us. It was a three day retreat. The night before the last day we had a show an tell and someone would come in with a trunk show. Had a good time. You have to try it. I'm sure you will love it and want to go back again.

Even though I live in California I would be interested in a retreat in Pennsylvania. I have kids and grandkids in Delaware so could see them and have some fun with other quilters.

I have read a couple of the Oak Creek Series of books, and they really make me want to go on one. However, in July every year a few of my friends go away to "Homemakers Camp" which is affiliated with the 4H Camp in our state, and take our UFO's or go to the various 50 different craft ideas to make during the 3 days. I quilted last year. Painted in watercolor, made a bracelet, and there is a skit night that we always embarrass ourselves every year in the last night. Lots to do, swimming, boating, hiking. Regular old ladies camp. And some of these women are in their 80's. I am impressed how energetic they are and I can't just sit long as something is always going on. I hope there is a quilting station again this year. I am on my 4th quilt now.

I live on the east coast and we have a quilt beach retreat each year for 3 days. We each take projects to work on. We have demos and play games. We stay in cabins with 2 per room. We have a large room with kitchette & restrooms to quilt in.
I love the sharing of ideas and the friendship. The facilities furnish 3 meals a day and fruits/drinks/breads each day.
SandyGail in NC

Could you give us an approximate price per person for the number of days you were there ?
Thank you -

Sounds like my kind of weekend :lol:

I went to one and I took a couple of projects with me to work on, plus I took a book that I was reading and it was one of those that you can't put down. I finished reading it and got my sewing done also. I won a couple of door prizes, one for being their for the first time and the other one was for having an ugly quilt (it was so bad that my husband even said it was ugly). It's going to be my pratice quilt for putting on my new frame, when ever I get brave enough.

I've always thought it would be great fun to share fellowship with a bunch of fun women with the same interest.
But, time passes, I got old, never did it. The moral of the story is, enjoy yourselves & your friends & your passions when you have the opportunity.

Eat and sew, sew and eat...oh, and laugh a lot too! I have been to a couple at local church camps. They are a blast!

I just got home from a quilting retreat today and most of us sewed, sewed, sewed, finished ufo's, cut out a new quilt, and I actually finished 2 quilts!!! One that I had been working on since 2007. Yes some actually went shopping at a new quilt shop and some went to an antique shop. It is sort of like having a ALL GIRLS weekend. You enjoy other quilters some you know and others you learn to know. Share some of your works of art and have a great time.

I am going to my first one in October. Can't wait to see what we do. I don't like chocolate :oops:

Our summer group had a retreat this last March, I posted some pic's. here:

http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-109613-1.htm

had a great time although I don't think they'll let me do the games again - took too long, had to unsew stuff, all the things we don't like to do, lol.

Price was $175, which included 3 nights, 4 days, - 5 meals, (2 dinners, 1 lunch, & 2 breakfasts). Rest of the time we ate out or brought our own. We've booked again for next year, had to take the one remaining weekend she had left, next two years are booked solid - that's how popular these retreat places are.

Oh yes, we have some lurkers on the board who also went to this retreat.

Exactly. sew sew sew eat eat eat talk talk talk and have fun.

There is a local quilt retreat here once a year and I have attended 5 years now. Things that I learned:
1. take a camera, fan, phone charger, ext. cord, extra light, small cooler, water, and all your sew accessories including several colors of thread.
2. don't do cutting there, cut before you go and do simple sewing. nothing too technical. one year I took a buggy barn and easily got all my blocks sewn in one day. this year I took a lot of machine applique so I could machine applique (blanket) stitch around it.
3. go as early as you can and save places for your friends. make your friends sign up--it is so fun to be together!!
4. take a comfortable chair or extra padding.
5. sign up for at least one class a day--you learn SO much even if you already think you know a lot!!

Thank you so much for your input. I think I'd better experience one, but I guess it would be more fun if I could find a quilting friend to go with. I'll start looking!

Just remember, that one is only one ... and others can be quite different! :)

Your never to old to go to a retreat. The one I went to had a lady that just had a birthday she was 90.

I think it sounds wonderful! Wish I lived close enough to attend (Oklahoma is a bit far). I say go for it - you will have so much fun and make new friends.

I went to one last spring and am looking forward to going again in a couple of weeks. Ours was held at a YMCA camp. We had classes you could take if you wanted, we had a silent auction of sewing and quilting supplies, brought by the retreat participants, to benefit the camp, a fat quarter give away and each person was asked to make at least one block with a certain pattern and colors. For each block you bring you put your name in a jar then there is a drawing and some lucky person or persons get to take home blocks to make a quilt. Last year we had enough blocks for 2 people to make a quilt. We had a show and tell after dinner one evening but mostly we just quilted. If you didn't want to take any of the classes, you could just bring something you were working on for concentrated sewing time. There was a lot of sharing and laughter, as well. It truly is a lot of fun and you get a lot done.

My daughter gives me a 5 day retreat in Prescott Az. every year..at a very large cabin..the last week of Oct..10 quilting friends and I go there..we eat..talk..laugh..and quilt..some sleep..only rules are..NO politics or religions talk!! We've been doing it for about 7 yrs. lots of fun!!!

I am getting ready to go to retreat in 10 days. This will be my 3rd time. We go to the Shepherd's Staff.

It is set up dorm style with a dinning hall and a place to sew. It is all on level ground and alll in one building. There is a dining hall and they will fix your meals for you buffet style and the "camp" provides snacks.
You know how we quilters like to eat.

It is normally from Friday at 6pm to Sunday at 6 pm. The cost is $115. This year some of us are going on Thursday. We will bring microwave foods, snacks, and fruit to get by until the regular meal served on Friday evening.It will only cost us $15.00 more for the extra day & night.

That will give us an extra day of sewing, sleeping, R&R, reading, getting acquainted, visiting, going for walks or whatever you want to do.

Thursday night we will have a mystery project if you caare to participate.

We have tons of fun and some get alot of projects finished.
I have signed up to go again in the fall.

I forgot to tell you we play "strip poker". lol

We each bring 3 fat quarters. I don't remember exzctly how the roll of the dice goes but as we play someone gets the fat quarters until it finally ends with someon winning them all. That person has to make something out of the fat quarters completing finished by next yr.
They have lots of rules to follwo to make it a harder challenge.
In a year they bring back what they have designed out of their fq and show it off!
It is fun to see how the quilter has put it all together.

The one my Guild sponsors here in NH runs from Tues, around 10 am with lunch and dinner, Wed - 3 meals, Thursday breakfast and lunch. Costs around $425 these days - way more than when we started 10 or so years ago. It's held at a ski resort off-season; 3 or 4 people share a suite, everyone has their own room, there's a kitchen, dining room, living room. Very comfortable and lovely - huge sewing room well lit with lots of outlets. I went for many years, no more, too expensive now.

Sew and eat :-). Beyond that, it depends on the purpose/planners of the retreat.

I've attended retreats at two different YMCA camp facilities - we stayed in the cabins and sewed in the main lodge/activity center for the facility. I've attended one in a hotel - we rented out a conference room. Another was at an old High School that has been renovated into a conference center - the classrooms were turned into dorm rooms (like 6 to a room?) and the gym was the sewing area.

One of the retreats I attended was a fund-raising activity for a group that supports St. Jude's Childrens' Hospital. They solicited donations from several quilting/sewing organizations (batting, fabric, thread, patterns, gift cards to stores, etc.), grouped the donated items, and held a Chinese auction. Tickets cost $1 each.

Another one I've attended is held at a YMCA camp facility. They usually have an auction (the last few have been silent, but a quilter who was an auctioneer attended in the past and ran the auction). They ask participants to bring item(s) for the auction and all money raised goes to support the facility. Funds have been used to support camp projects in general (like a recent redo of the dining hall) and quilt camp projects in specific (updated/extra lights and power for all of our machines).

Every camp/retreat I've attended has had some sort of show 'n' tell. One does it after dinner on Friday night. Another had an impromptu show 'n' tell in the hotel lobby outside our sewing room. It's always fun to ooh and aah over others' work. We show off what we've worked on during the retreat and/or something we brought from home (maybe a finish of a past retreat project).

Most of the retreats offer one or more projects or classes. At the retreats I've attended, these are always optional. The organizers send us a supplies list of any projects as well as any prep work instructions (cutting, basic piecing instructions to get a jump start, etc). Sometimes a mystery project is offered (d9p, fabric post card, sewing caddy, etc. - something small)

Most also offer some type of game or activity. We've played fabric bingo (at one, we made our boards, at another, the boards were ready for us). Sometimes everyone is asked to piece a specific block (either a block layout and/or a certain color scheme) and for each block you bring, you get a chance in the drawing to win them.

It seems like lately all of the retreats bring in a local person to do massages (extra cost if you want to do so).

Your idea of hosting retreats sounds good in theory, but probably would not be practical. As the hostess you would have too much to take care of behind the scenes in making sure everything was taken care of. Like someone suggested, why don't you attend some first? Then maybe you could start hosting.

Oh Jane,
you got to go on one, even if you ask a couple people over
yourself, and spend the weekend quilting.
This weekend my DSIL, an Cousin, got together, Friday night
and I stayed over till Sat. night. We just sewed, talked, ate
and had a ball, and I did get some major sewing done.
I brought a breakfast casserole, and a Taco Bake, so all we
had to do is heat it up, and eat.
Keep on sewing.

Well, if you are in PA, there are plenty of quilting friends,
that would love to meet with you....what part of the
state?

I have never been to one either! It sure sounds like you have a good time. Maybe it's time I gather up my Q-friends and make one happen!!

ME TOO!

I have no quilting friends where I live but I have met a great bunch here on the board.We have a sub group under Oregon-Washington and have rented a house on the coast for the first weekend in June for a retreat.Very informal and it cost $70.00 for 3 nights.I think there are 10-15 going and we have not all met each other except thru this board.Be adventuresome and put a shout out to Penn. quilters on the main page.Look up our group and see how easy it is to get going. Cindy