What could have been more fun?

2008 Winter Knitting Retreat
in Boone, North Carolina

It really started on Wednesday, March 5, when I loaded a few boxes in the back of my car from the Baskets of Yarn warehouse, then I picked up Jordana Paige at the Charlotte/Douglas Airport and we drove directly to the Broyhill Convention Center at Appalachian State University. Arriving a day early was a lifesaver for me! Jordana and I were able to help Betsey and Diane (and Maisie) unpack boxes and baskets and get the shop set up for business the next day. It also gave us a chance to get a good night's sleep before 'hitting the ground running' the next morning.Jordana teaches her "Strawberry Apron" to a group of students in this photo.

Here is an example of the Heart Cables class made with Vicky Howell's "Love" yarn.


The first official day, Thursday, we had 2 classes for everyone--one before dinner and one after dinner. At the same time, registrants received their copy of the "Scavenger Hunt" and began working on that.


We also had our "Pajama Party" at dinner that evening, which was a great way to kick off the fun! It's easy to see that no one else's pajamas could hold a candle to mine, which were 'professionally' decorated by my good friend, Sonja. She even placed a "dragon" on my butt to signify my "draggin' ass". Lots of laughs that night, for sure!

Saturday evening was our "Fashion Show" of projects finished from last year's classes. Here are my students in their Entrelac Vests.
Aren't they just the purtiest things you ever did see? We also celebrated a very special birthday with Mandy from Florida. What a special birthday treat!


Betsey made sure everyone had a good time, scheduling 15-minute massages for all of us, giving us all the newest Jordana Paige Bronze Bella bag (just released at the retreat!), and lots of other prizes. She had "Knitting Diva" tee-shirts for sale (cute!) in 3 colors, lots of chocolate, and a few of the very generous students kept wine flowing almost constantly.

Even with the passing of her 103-year old grandmother, Diane kept us entertained with funny stories and fellowship. We had jokes after dinner each evening, yarn swap one night, and knitted into the wee hours of each morning.

The best part of all was for those of us who stayed over on Sunday night. We had 30-minute massages (whooooweeee!!), pizza dinner in our PJ's (again), and a surprise 50% off everything left in the store starting at 8:00. Betsey is just full of surprises. You really never know what she's going to pull out of her sleeve next. She already has the dates set for 2009, so if you were there this time you can register on April 1 at Baskets of Yarn.

Today's the Day!

Today I head up the mountain for the 2008 Winter Knitting Retreat sponsored by Betsey Macholz and Baskets of Yarn. I've been packing for weeks, but have been continually interrupted by getting the house ready to show to realtors (we've listed it, finally), so my packed items have been moved, repacked, unpacked, and packed again. Whew! I'm tired of packing, and I haven't even loaded the car fully yet. I have the honor of meeting Jordana Paige at Charlotte/Douglas Airport this afternoon and traveling with her up to Boone. We both have classes to teach tomorrow afternoon, so this evening will be spent helping Betsey and Maisie set up the "store" and organize for tomorrow's registration.

On a sad note, please keep Diane Earley in your prayers as she just received news that her 103-year-old granny has been placed in the care of Hospice. My heart goes out to you, dear friend.

About 25 realtors were here yesterday to preview the house. Liberty put on quite a show, as you can imagine. She's very confused and frustrated that we allowed so many people to come into "her" house at one time. She tried her best to "protect" us from the intruders, but she was truly outnumbered and finally just gave up.