Tuesday, November 01, 2011

Dyeing to Tell You More...

...about our stitching extravaganza! Take a look at the view from the balcony on Friday. You can see that the view has changed. The sky is cloudy and grey looking and the waves are choppy. Notice that battleship in the distance? There is a naval station located in Norfolk. Twice during my visit I saw navy ships either coming in or going out to sea; plus countless times each day we could hear fighter jets flying overhead. It was amazing to see those too - no pictures though. Felt safe...and proud of our U.S. military.



On Friday morning, Pat and Ann (our hostesses) had arranged for us to tour the old Cavalier Hotel located across the street from the newer version which we were staying at.



The "old" Cavalier Hotel is an historic property; it first opened in 1927 and it is a grand old lady! We were able to tour the public spaces. Since it was off-season, the hotel is closed for renovations - great care is being taken to preseve this old girl! Some interesting stories -- in 1927 Adolph Coors (founder of Coors Brewery) plunged to his death from the sixth floor; the U.S. Navy occupied the hotel during WWII and used it as a training facility; several U.S. Presidents have stayed at the Cavalier; and the hotel is rumored to have ghosts. Today the hotel is used for weddings and large parties; the hotel rooms may be rented during the peak season.





This painting offers a glimpse of the old and new hotels on a hot summer day!



Back to stitching! On Friday afternoon we had our first class; since I was in Track A, my class was with Teri and Tina from Shepherd's Bush (they are rock stars in my world!) The two of them are very funny and shared stories as they helped us prepare our project for stitching. The project is unbelievable! Their season was "spring" and they designed the following amazing sampler for us entitled "Her World":



They also designed two additional pieces which complemented the sampler, a scissor fob and a pincushion; we could purchase these exclusive kits in the Dyeing to Stitch shop onsite.



Our class was held in a room on the 11th floor of the hotel, overlooking the ocean. The wind was howling the entire time (a storm was brewing). There were so many amazing things to see -- approximately 25 or so surfers were out in the ocean trying to "catch a wave", further out we could see dolphins, and every so often, a flock of pelicans would fly by. Yes, pelicans!

We spent our class time sorting threads and then stitched three of the bands at the top of the sampler. Teri also had a fun project for us at the end of class. I need to take a picture of it and will share it in my next post.

Here are Teri and Tina with their beautiful sampler:



Friday night's event was with a "surprise" teacher - Pam from Olde Colonial designs stopped by. She showed us how easy it is to make padded bottoms for our baskets and how the design can be modified to fit any basket. We thought this class was a bit odd, but it all made sense at our closing event on Saturday night. Sorry, no pictures from Friday night - I think I was too busy with the project!

By Saturday morning the wind and the waves were really tearing up the shoreline (keep in mind that to our north, they were getting snow!)




Saturday morning's class was with Theresa Venette from Shakespeare's Peddler. I knew Theresa from when her shop used to be in Fargo, but I had never taken a class from her. We enjoyed her stories and it was fun to hear about how some of her designs have come to be. Theresa's "season" was winter. She designed a beach/sea theme and explained how challenging it is to combine winter and the sea! I think her sampler is pretty cute:



My two partners in crime, posing for me in the back of the classroom:



We worked on the patches in class and Theresa providing good instruction on how to attach these to our sampler when we are ready. Here is Theresa with her sampler:



One last photo of the sea...see all of those black dots? Those are surfers waiting for huge waves to roll in!



I think this post is long enough! I'll share a few more photos and stories with you tomorrow...enjoy your day!

17 comments:

Mindi said...

Tina's retreat design is amazing, I love how she hid the specialty stitches in the green hillside. The ladies were kind enough to let me look at it in the back room of the store yesterday.

It sounds like you had a good time, despite the weather not being perfect.

Anna Zont said...

This sampler is amazing!!!

Anna Zont said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Penny said...

What a gorgeous old hotel the Cavalier was and what interesting history too especially the ghost rumors. :)
Her World is absolutely beautiful and what a cute sampler by Theresa. The whole event sounds like such fun!

Brigitte said...

What a great retreat this must have been. I have just drooled over all the pictures you showed so far, and over all the amazing projects you were working on during the retreat.
The SB Spring sampler is so beautiful. And I can easily imagine Teri and Tina in class. I was at their shop once and we had a lovely talk about one of the sister's time in Germany (can't remember who it was).
Being so near the beach and seeing the ocean from the window must have been fantastic. I would have been torn between walking along the beach and stitching inside, lol.
Looking forward to seeing the next pictures.

Tammy said...

Thanks so much for your retreat report. I've enjoyed it so much. "Her World" is beautiful!! What a wonderful retreat!

Yvonne..... said...

Looks like you had an amazing time! My good friend Polly was there too! I was born in Virginia Beach and have family still there. I'm glad you got to visit!

Lynn said...

It sounds like it was a good weekend for stitching with that storm's arrival. Glad you had time to tour the Cavalier before it hit. It looks like an amazing hotel.
Your retreat photos are fantastic. Thanks for sharing them!

Bekca said...

Wow, that looks like some storm brewing. How nice it must have been to stay inside and stitch. I'm really enjoying reading all about your wonderful retreat, these posts are fab.
Best wishes.

The Inspired Stitcher said...

I love the turquoise in the swimming pool room. What a great old hotel. I love the class pieces and the accessories. I can't wait to hear more!

msmartello said...

Hi Cathy, Great pictures you took. I had the best time! I was so glad to meet you but I am sorry I didn't get a chance to say goodbye. I was wondering if you could email me your address because I like to send out things now and then. I was unble to catch you Saturday night.
Maureen

Vonna Pfeiffer said...

I'm still jealous.....
but in a really good way :)
And the new light...stinks :(

diamondc said...

Cathy: I am glad you ladies had such a wonderful time your partners in crime are the best to have around, I am glad Judy is retired so she can enjoy outings like this.
I look forward to seeing you in april at retreat.
Love the sampler from Sherherds Bush and Shakespeares Peddler is so sweet.
Blessings to you.
Catherine
diamondc

Unknown said...

Oh I wish I lived on the other side of the world Cathy! Those SB's are delightful and look at that sheep fob.... I love it!!! You had a wonderful time that is for sure.

BARBARA said...

Cathy, I was so happy to meet you at the stitching retreat in Virginia Beach ....Maureen and I had a lot of fun and once again met so many new stitcher friends, including you and Judy. Your pictures are so clear and an awesome narrative of the great time we all had....hope to see you again.

Marsha said...

Envious but so happy you could attend this retreat. It looks like it was fantastic.

Veronica said...

Thanx so much for sharing. How I wish I was there. That SB sampler is amazing! I love it.

Hugs,
Veronica.