MN Needlework Guild Annual Retreat

This past weekend I attended the MN Needlework Guild Annual Retreat. Actually I was there for 5 days, and could have stayed much much longer. I guess time flies when you're having fun. We laughed until we cried, stitched until we couldn't see straight, and ate until our stomaches ached. My friend Debbie and I were lucky to be put in an independent study room with 4 friends...what a pleasant surprise for us all. We didn't end up with some of the personality squabbles that some rooms experienced. Our room posted the "rules" that conversation was encouraged, rowdy was required and wearing orange was strictly prohibited.


I only took one class this year...blackwork taught by Marion Scolar. I enjoyed the class immensely and even managed to finish the class project (see above). Marion is such a Lady (capital L intentional) and an incredible teacher. One of the first things she taught was that it didn't matter what the back of your work looked like...it wasn't meant to be looked at! She is English and graduated from the Royal School of Needlework. She's been teaching needlework for 50 years, which was so hard to believe. She said she gets irritated with American stitchers who believe the back of the work must be as neat as the front...and I admit I am very guilty of that.

The theme for next year's retreat will be mermaids. I love all the mermaid charts available and am already looking for something to make a mermaid name tag. I am also going to attempt to do a Little Mermaid blackwork piece to enter into the "best use of the theme" competition. I had already thought of stitching something from Little Mermaid for my granddaughter's new bedroom since she LOVES Ariel. I have a coloring book of Princesses I got at Disneyland and there are some great Ariel images in there I think I can use. We'll see!!!

Marion told a great story during class. When she first started teaching she taught in a very, very rough section of London where most of the girls were older than her, were the illegitimate children of American soldiers and English women, and most of the girls were prostitutes. They could out swear most men! One day she had reached her limit with the coarse language so she told them that vegetables were much more effective. She slammed her fist on the table and yelled PEA PODS! Most more explosive....SPINACH! I guess it got their attention and all weekend when we were frogging stitches we'd used explosive vegetables!

And, somewhere along the way, I think I lost my mind and might have voluteered to co-chair the 2010 retreat. Actually, I said I'd seriously consider it. We did spend an evening brainstorming in our room and have decided that the theme will probably be peacocks...unless someone takes that theme in 2009. Heaven help me!! What have I gotten myself into!