Last weekend I was off at a - gasp - retreat! It dawned on me that, even though we had called it a "Festival", it was in fact a retreat. So now I can stop being jealous at all the Americans who go to big retreats and pay a months worth of household money for it, come home with glorious yarns and know a lot of big and famous people.
We were far out in the woods in a little scout cabin - and not some fancy lake lodge.
We were 12 - and not 120.
I met Kathe Lewis (And my mom) - and not MissWroteABook
We ate bread, drank milk (And coffee) and had an italian buffet one night - and didnt drink beer nor eat fancy food.
We had a fire in the furnace that made us and the whole cabin smell like smoke - and didnt wear our best clothes, appearing at out best at all times.
We went to bed at 12-3 and got out at 7-10 - and everybody just laughed.
We slept in 12-bed-rooms (but not all in one) and kicked each other in our sleep - and didnt sleep in fancy single beds with sheets that were changed every evening.
But! It was WONDERFULL, really.
We spun, knitted, talked, and learned a lot about how to mix colours with different tools, and just had a nice time socializing. We had two contests, as well as a drawing, and plenty of prizes. Oue group, Spindefarvegruppen, is disbanding sadly, and since it was/is a group you have to pay for to be in, we had a lot of surplus money, having cancelled some activites in fall.
They had bought a wonderfull Kromski travelling wheel (!!). We also got some prizes from Europawools in the UK, and two boxes of wool dyeing starter sets, a big one and a small one.
The big one was first prize for our "Longest Thread" contest.
We had 7 entrants, and the winner was not at all confident she would win!! I think she was very surprised at winning, eben though her yarn ran 4300 m / 100 g, and number two's was around 1900 m / 100 g. That's some of a difference!
We also had a fiber-guessing-contest, where I fared quite well too - not that it mattered, because we had a prize for everybody in that contest! I won 500 g dark brown merino, 24 micron count. A shared 2.nd place - I was proud.
Then came the big thing we had all waited for, anxiously, because the wheel stood by the kitchen door ever since we came, in its green bag. I had written around 40 tickets with the name of each of the people in the group, also those that were absent. Our groups leader took out one ticket and I unfolded it... and a huuuuge smile grew across my face! (No, I didnt win it.) The winner was "Marianne V", a young woman who can not work, has three little children and whose husband recently left her. She could not even afford a wheel, and had spent all her savings for a wheel (120 USD) on the retreat. I thought she would faint when I read her name aloud! Of course, everybody had hoped to win the wheel, but it was so good that this woman won it, because she, if not needed it, then would but it to the best use.
There was another prize left, the "Little starter set for dyeing", and it was commonly agreed upon that it should go to someone present at the retreat. So one name was drawn, but the person was not present. Another name was drawn, but I never got to say it out loud. I only managed to squeak: "But it's me!!". I must have looked like a tomato, but I was so happy because I dont own any dyeing utensils, and now I do, and can dye my own yarn and stuff!
Other than that, one of the women who owns a online yarn shop had a tiny sale - some shetland jumperweight that was too expensive for me, some silk/wool tweed in strong colours and some "Gotland" yarn - and to skeins of BFL yarn for just 4$ /100 g. I held onto those as if my life depended on it, and also 7 skeins of a brown/black colour Gotland yarn. Gooorgeous. That stood me, all in all, in 35$ for two pounds yarn. That was really ok, for Denmark.
Now I am home, tired, and glad.
Sorry I cannot show pictures, but my camera... same old story, you know?
Have a really nice day
/Lene
PS: My guinea pig had piglings (Planned) friday, three living and one dead. They're goooorgeous!
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I LOVE your blog. I have been reading for a while and I just had to responde to your post about retreats. I am an American and I go on quilting retreats. Our quilt quild sets up the details and we go to a church camp out in the woods. We take our own bedding and towels and eat our meals just like we did in the school cafeteria. We sleep in bunkbeds and have to walk down the hall to get to the community bathroom. It is GREAT! We set up our sewing machines in one big room and stay up late and sew and talk. Most of the time while wearing our jammers! I wouldn't trade it for anything! Last time I took some knitting with me and sat outside and enjoyed the sunshine. :-) I'm glad you enjoyed your retreat as well.
Pat
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