All good things..............

....."come to those who wait"......or (in this case) "must come to an end"......the wonderful week away at the cottage followed by a weekend quilting reatreat is now but a memory!.....Back home tonight and getting organised for work tomorrow...........I think I can find everything ......somewhere in the chaos that is our house at the moment.....but ......the floors look amazing...will post some pics tomorrow...too dark tonight!

Friday we reluctantly left the cottage and headed to Mannum on the River Murray for a weekend quilting retreat with Sharon and Shontelle from Patchwork on Parade......and 19 other quilters......and to those Doubting Thomas' who thought I couldn't do the dorm-and-dash-to-the -ablution-block accommodation......(and I was wondering how I would cope) I did it.....and it wasn't that bad.....! Actually it was fun! The facilities at the caravan park were good......and really clean which is always a bonus! The weather was kind and not too cold.......the bunks (yes....bunks!) were reasonably comfy....made more so with the addition of a couple of quilts........

......uggies by the bed along with a torch in case one had to wander over to the loos in the middle of the night and the assurance of my room mates that they snored as well so my snoring wasn't going to be a problem.......

Before we got to Mannum we stopped in Strathalbyn for lunch......as luck would have it (gee who would have thought.........!) there is also a wonderful patchwork shop in the town........Kirkbride Quilting where Sally and Suzi helped me with a couple of purchases......

If you are in the area it is well worth a visit! Thanks to AusRose for the tip...and guess what...the girls remembered your group's visit! We set off again after visiting the bakery for lunch and arrived in Mannum to find the girls setting up for the weekend.......Sharon cooks a mean potato bake - here she is cooking up a storm in the camp kitchen........

........and here is the group this afternoon.....minus a couple of girls who had to leave early .....

.....and in case you are wondering.....apart from lots of talking and eating.........we did manage to accomplish some stitching............this is my hexagon top minus the borders which should follow sometime soon.............

Thanks to Vicki for being the quilt holder.......being tall certainly has its advantages!...I won't be able to watch the Ikea ad without thinking of you Vicki.....start the car!!!

Here is Jen's version of the same pattern.........

Another pattern on offer was a starburst pattern......here are some of Robbi's blocks.......

....and Fay's stunning red and white stars.........

so............a wonderful week followed by a great weekend.......thanks again to Sharon and Shontelle for hosting the retreat - looking forward to the next one!

'til next time.........Lorraine