Annual Quilt Retreat

This past Monday through Thursday I was on a quilt retreat. 

The retreat, which is now organized by several of the Asheville Quilt Guild members, actually happens twice a year, but for the last several years my friend Alice and I have only been attending the spring retreat. 

Formerly the retreat was held at Lake Logan, about an hour's drive from my house, in a rather remote Episcopal center which is on the site of a former logging camp. So think of lakeside housing and a large sewing/eating space with a fireplace and a rustic feel. 

This year we moved to Bonclarken, also an historic religious retreat, but closer to "civilization." It is a half hour drive from my house, very close to the golf course I often play at in Flat Rock, just outside of Hendersonville. There is a nice quilt shop just a couple miles down the road, and the center of Flat Rock Village which has a nice bakery/coffee shop is about a 3/4 mile walk away.

The move was motivated by a cost increase at Lake Logan, but all the 30 attendees seemed to be happier with the Bonclarken accommodations and agreed to return there in the fall.

We were housed in a newish facility that had the layout and feel of a three story chain motel/hotel and on the other side of the "lobby" was a huge, well lit, windowed room where we sewed. There was a full kitchen adjacent to the sewing space and a small gathering spot with a gas fireplace and a TV that was never turned on. We had a short walk past a couple of buildings and through a parking lot to get to the dining facility which was an add-on to the historic hotel on the property which dates back to the 1860's.

Here is a photo of my corner of the main sewing room.

And outside there is a patio with rocking chairs. The hotel rooms are above the patio and our sewing space is in the peaked portion of the building visible to the right.

After a few hours of sewing, I was ready for a walk, and just a short walk away was their lake which has a nice walking trail circling it.

The campus is quite large and includes several large meeting halls and many types of accommodations ranging from buildings that look like old fashioned strip motels, to larger boarding houses, to cabins, to year round homes. In addition to their own lake, some of the homes overlook neighboring Highland Lake.

I brought several projects to work on. I was happy to finally put together the rest of my scrap mystery quilt top from last year. It was a treat to have the floor space to lay it all out.

Alice and I also divided up some fabric that was donated to us and we each made a "Turning Twenty" quilt top.  Once the quilts are finished they will likely be given to Hospice.

We also hand sewed the binding on this year's Shindig quilt. I guess I didn't include a picture of that in this posting, but likely you will see it in a subsequent posting.

I am including some photos of other people's projects in progress so you can get an idea of the things people were working on and so I can remember some of them, too.

This annual retreat is a nice get-away. 

It's a treat to not have to meal plan and to be able to focus solely on a hobby we share with others. We enjoy the the fellowship, make new friends, get our creativity sparked, learn from each other, share resources and recipes... and so much more!