A new retreat house!!!!!

I love how we are all so supportive of each other!! And how we are all the same. We lose things, we go through recoveries, we screw up! It's so comforting to know that I'm not alone!!! 

I'm at a new retreat house this morning, getting myself organized in a new space. I realized, as I was setting up my computer, that I had NOT brought the mouse or the mouse pad. Sigh......  As I was packing up, I thought to myself to throw that in, but I did not. It sits under a shelf upon which my computer sits, so it's not super visible. Oh well, I have the built-in touchpad on the computer, which I'm not a fan of, but for a few days, I can make it work. 

I had packed some of my stuff over the weekend, and DH asked whether I was taking my entire sewing room. NOPE -- just stuff that needed to be cut. Well, have a look. 

The car is packed for the retreat.

OK -- perhaps that was a bit too ambitious for a four-day retreat. Oh well!!!! Better to have variety than not. And I left most of it in the car! 

I had some extra time to kill before arriving at the house, so I decided to stop at the thrift store in the town closest to my destination. Oh my—I found some interesting things—yes, a couple of puzzles came home with me. Don't say a word!! I am working on them, and then they are being donated, so they are not staying. 

I forgot to load the pictures and am too lazy to resend them to myself, but I got the next one all laid out and the border done, so when I get home, I can tackle it. 

Anyway, I love how the thrift stores are making the end caps look pretty neat. They created several displays, and it was very striking. 

Colorful displays at the thrift store

They even had an orange one, but I wasn't looking for this kind of stuff, so I skipped it. 

The orange display

I quickly checked the book section and found this book. Hmmm --- the answer to every problem? It sounds too good to be true!! I didn't even glance at it and certainly didn't buy it. I just make stuff up if I need help!!! 

The only book you need? 

But a few things did come home with me - well, they are sitting in the car. A couple of textile things that will be awesome for machine embroidery. I know -- how much machine embroidery does one need? LOTS!!!!

I had a ton of mini-quilts that I had made or won over the years, and when I heard that Kim was starting My Quilt Retreat (I hope I got that name correct), I asked if she wanted any mini quilts for the house. She went through the quilts and picked the ones she liked. The two on the right came from that stash. Oh shoot -- I need to take a closer picture of the one on the top --- it's a scrap quilt!!! The leftovers from a Thimbleberries quilt, I think. And the one below I won at a guild show - maybe someone will recognize it as their own. 

Mini-quilts on display

And this small one, which is very artsy. I guess I could have hung these around my house as Kim did, but I didn't. I'm OK with that. 

Another donation

And here's one more. I don't think I made this one - I made one that says "I Like to Teach". There are two more on the wall behind me, so I need to get a picture of those today when it's a bit brighter in the house. 

Another donation quilt

I did not bring a sewing machine with me - only some handwork and some cutting. So I got some table risers (I borrowed them from the house, but I have mine in the car) and started cutting. 

My workstation

WAIT A MINUTE -- let me tell you what happened on the way. While I packed somewhat carefully and didn't want to stack things, one bag sort of got tossed on top of the rest. At one point, a police car with flashing lights was coming towards us. The car in front of me pulled to the right and stopped in front of me. I had to put the brakes on a bit. I heard something fall with a thunk, but I didn't have the time to check what happened. Everything breakable or that could leak was safely stowed, so I didn't worry. 

When I stopped at the thrift store, I realized the bag with the box of white scraps had toppled over, and white scraps were all over the back. Yikes!!!! What a mess. 

Some of the mess with the white scraps

Now I will admit that this box was chock-a-block full, and the contents were "mildly" exploding out of it. But after this incident, the contents seemed to grow two sizes bigger than they were in the box. How did that happen? 

Good grief --- there were white sdraps everywhere, and I tried to keep them contained in the box, but they wouldn't fit. I worked on this yesterday and a bit this morning, and it barely looks like I've made a dent in the box. This box of white is long overdue for a trim. 

The white scraps

How long is it overdue? I don't remember ever using the white scraps for anything, except for the occasional piece for applique. Well, what do they say in the barber world? This box is getting a Number 2, or more likely a Number One, which means that everything, or most things, are being dealt with. 

But look at what I found. This fabric was for a project that I made in 1999. And the scraps are still in the box. 

OK—this scrap was generated in 1999!!!

I'm not going to share all the details on how I'm dealing with the box or what I'm cutting. I'm going to save that for my scrap class in the fall. But needless to say, it's an eye-opener. I will share the pieces I'm cutting later. I honestly don't think I can finish that box today, and I don't want to spend all my time on it. So I'll work until this afternoon, and then I'll switch to something else. I need to touch everything I brought with me - just to prove a point!!!!!

I went for a walk yesterday afternoon, and it was glorious. I realized that the main road, 1 km from the house, is Highway 2. Why is that significant? That is the road we cycled on when we passed through this area in 2013. We are near Newcastle!!! Oh my --- what memories, although the entrance to this road is not memorable because of anything on it! 

On my walk, I spotted this. Seriously? How is this even possible? There is still snow on the ground—OK, not much, but still. 

A caterpillar?

And look—there's a beautiful barn quilt on the garage. I knew I had arrived at the correct place. 

A barn quilt

And last - do you remember this quilt di that ended up at my house? Look what I found here!!! And that's all I'm going to say about it! I refuse to say more to protect the innocent!!! They know who they are. 

Hmmm -- is that a quilt di? 

Well, I'm off to continue cutting scraps!!! Oh, shoot —I just realized I didn't bring the charger for my FitBit, and I'm at 45%. I should be OK because, like my phone, I turn absolutely everything off. I don't get phone messages, I don't get any kind of notification. It doesn't even show the time unless I push the button. I like my solitude without a phone or Fitbit interfering in my day! When I need something, I check. 

I see there are some geocaches within walking distance, so I may do that this morning, although it's minus 6, which is nothing! Just get out there and walk!! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!