Fun at Shoalwater Retreat
I had been told that a spot on the Members Retreat at Shoalwater is highly sought after, so I was pleased to secure a place on the Members Retreat at Shoalwater held two weeks ago. I’m happy to say that the Retreat lived up to my expectations, as I thoroughly enjoyed myself with the other 19 ladies who also secured a place. The catering was great with the chef making some lovely Vegan meals. With mask wearing a requirement indoors, a number of breaks were taken outdoors in the lovely weather we had over the four days.
For those who have not been to Shoalwater, the venue is walking distance to the ocean on one side and not too far from a lake on the other side. This made for very enjoyable views on the early morning runs for a couple of us, with others taking a pause in their quilting later in the day to go for a walk and enjoy the fresh air.
In the work area everyone had their own table, set up in groups of four or six with plenty of space all around, so no-one was stuck in a corner. The room itself was large enough to fit the tables comfortably, and there were lots of windows and doors providing both natural light and a wonderful cool breeze in the morning.
It did not take long however, for every available surface to be covered with quilting items, as most quilters brought along multiple projects to work on. There were a few sewing machine issues, but machine oil applied whilst the sewing machine was lying on its side fixed one of them and a husband dropping off the spare machine fixed the other one.
Tracey from Bernina WA came along and set up a couple of tables. I heard a lot of statements along the lines of ‘I don’t need more fabric’ but after having a look at what was on offer, I think most of us ended up buying some fabric.
Madeleine provided a craft activity on both full days. Some of the quilters who took on the improv pieced tetrahedron pin cushion managed to get it finished, but not until after dinner. Whilst I did not see a completed utensil pot the next day, there were a few who embroidered the phrase on fabric ready to be attached to the supplied container.
We had a show and tell just before lunch on our final day, which allowed everyone to see who made what progress on their many projects. Some quilters (including me) took the opportunity to complete some Community Quilts BOMs. For those interested in seeing more pictures of the work of the retreat members check out the Shoalwater Retreat Slide Show. We did get a sneak peek at a block that could be the start of a quilt to be entered in QuiltWest, so no photos of that one,
A very big thank you to Madeleine, the WAQA Retreats Convenor for all the work behind the scenes in organising a wonderful retreat. Thank you also to the other quilters for all their help, understanding and advice which made for a great time!
Iris