Christmas in July Report

I have been working away on that embroidered strippy quilt, and finished the embroidered panels, and now that Max is working away on the pieced strips, I will report on last weekend.

Once again, it was another great time of friendship, chatting, laughing, some sewing, and eating, etc etc. I feel very blessed to have the occupation that I do. To see the lovely variety of quilts that come in the door to be quilted, to get to know the ladies that make them, and especially the friendships that come from those attending the retreats. There are usually some great stories to be told, much sharing, and lots of laughs. A couple of those stories come to mind, but I think that I shall just say, that what happens at retreats, should probably stay at the retreat.

The weather forecast was for cold nights, frosty mornings, and cold days, so it was perfect to be inside with the wood fire keeping the house toast warm. Perfect quilting weather.

Friday afternoon was arrival time, and time to catch up on each others lives, since they had last met. And some girls brought show and tell, which was dutifully laid out on the bed for inspection.
The first here is Val's scrappy Antelope Canyon, which I posted on the blog recently.

And Val had another finish, which she started early in June. She had arrived for the weekend with a bundle of fabrics, which her daughter had purchased and given to Val to make a quilt for her. Val had no plans at first, but thought she would make some 9patch blocks. And as she progressed it got bigger and bigger, and now this is the finished top. I love those cute little borders, which were made by cutting the leftover and unpicked 9 patch blocks into strips.

And this is Jean's show and tell, which is Rachelle Denneny's Summerville quilt design.

 I reported on our recent Pick a Case Mystery and our game of bingo for the allocation process. Sadly, the bingo equipment had to return to where we had borrowed it from. But as it was such a great allocation process, I sent my "understudy" to the city shops to purchase a suitable replacement. This was duly delivered on Friday when my understudy came for the Christmas retreat. It is a "tad" smaller than the other one, (it is a toy), but it will do the job we need it for. It was decided to try it out, and so we had a game of bingo, with chocolates as prizes.

There was again lots of laughter as they waited for their numbers. And we ran out of markers for the numbers, so...... thinking caps on.....

.........and Jude's button tin to the rescue!

As the girls arrived, they brought in their sewing "stuff", and unpacked in the bedrooms, and some brought nibbles to have with coffee. So into the fridge we go, to get the milk for the coffee, and where is the milk? I think it might be hiding behind other "stuff" that was unpacked!!

 We called Jean the "fire girl" as she was always checking whether it needed more wood. Some people just know how to keep a wood heater going. Thankyou Jean for a job well done.

It was Saturday before they settled at the sewing tables, and you can see that there is only 1 machine in view, in this room. This weekend was a much more relaxed retreat, with no projects unless you wanted to.

There was a bit more action from these 2 machines in the "back room". They were on a mission to get projects finished. Apparently they can hear all the stories in the next room, so they are not missing any of the fun, and manage to get some work done too.

A few photos of some of the action during the weekend.

And another show and tell as Pat was putting her blocks together, in the latest of her candlewicked quilts. In this quilt, Pat has changed some of Michele Hill's William Morris patterns from applique to embroidery.

 This bottle was brought by one of the Barossa girls, and the contents were just yummy. And this glass might have been poured at lunch time??

"Somebody", not named, thought they would present me with some lovely Christmas gifts, and went to a lot of trouble to wrap them so well. (There are 10 of these!) It was such a thoughtful gift, to help save expenses, and I will leave you to wonder what is inside the wrapping!?

I was expecting a very special guest to arrive about 2pm, and wanted everyone to be in the lounge for the occasion. So just before 2 we sat them down. Our guest was running a bit late, so Pat made them do some exercises while they were waiting. I did get a few pics, but won't post them all. The minutes kept ticking by, and our guest was still not here, so these "exercises" went on for longer than intended. I think I did see a few ladies doing the "hokey pokey" at the end of the session!!

Finally Santa arrive, about 15 minutes late. As he got out of his "sleigh" my neighbour across the road called out to him!! Santa had his helper with him, and he gave her the book to call out the names, and also the "naughty list" to check first. She wondered if he was at the right house when she saw lots of their names on this list. I will post a few photos as some received their gifts.

(I have lots of stories about this lady I could tell, but think they should stay unpublished!!)

Santa had a gift for Helen, who stepped in as his "understudy, Mother Christmas" last year, when his schedule did not work for a visit.

I had been trying to book Santa to visit for a few weeks now, and was having difficulty getting him to confirm the booking. Finally I asked just what it would take for him to say yes! And as he has a few acres (at the North Pole), he jokingly said he would like a tractor! I thought he might ask for some chocolates or name a fee, but no, it was a tractor. I was fortunate that I found just the thing in a local store, and here he is opening his tractor.

This lady got an extra pressie, and for anyone who attended the Pick a Case mystery retreat in June, they will laugh that Santa brought her a whiteboard!

It was Roast Turkey and Roast Pork with the trimmings for dinner that night, followed by Christmas pudding and custard. I must say it is much more enjoyable to cook, and eat, a hot meal in the middle of winter, than in the Aussie summer that might be 40deg.

Here is the group photo, but I was devastated to realise that I forgot to get the red hats out, that we have every Christmas in July retreat. (But I suspect they were pleased not to have to wear them.)

All too soon, it was time to pack up and my "fairies" put all the decorations away in the tub, ready for next year.

And it was time for "some" to sit back, put their feet up with some hand sewing, and maybe a choccie or two, and a nip of that smooth, sweet beverage called "Sable".

The house is back to "normal', and Max has been busy. There was a committee meeting to attend, and quilts to be picked up and or delivered. Hopefully I shall finish the strippy one tomorrow, and I have another trip up the highway planned. Be back soon.

Blessings, From Jude