Monday, April 2, 2012

A Heavenly Weekend, But First.......

.......a bus ride from hell.  I really do not like long bus trips under the best of circumstances.  But put together a surly driver, traffic, two car accidents, and a detour, and a two hour ride becomes a three hour test of patience (I have little).  But, Pat and I finally arrived in Warwick NY for a crafty weekend with some of our peeps.  We were the first to get there, settled into our lovely rooms at the Warwick Valley Bed and Breakfast, met the warm and friendly owner Loretta, and just hung out until the rest of the group checked in.  Why did I forget to take pictures of the rooms?  Each different from the next, all beautiful.  But I do have some nice outside shots.









OK, I just snagged some photos of my room (The Paisley) from the BandB's website.  Click on the link above to see the whole shebang.




We'd get three meals the next day (Saturday), but we were on our own Friday night, and went to a really nice restaurant called Coquito, which specializes in food from Puerto Rico.  Pasteles, tostones, empanadas, sangria, mojitos, oh my.  Afterwards we returned to the BandB, hung out for a while, then crashed.  Breakfast at 8:30 and a full day of projects to rest up for.

Each of us brought something for everyone to do, and they were all different and interesting.  Heidi showed us how to make really cool bracelets with leather cording, ball chain and embroidery floss.



These were addictive, and most of us continued to make them at night while watching a movie.  I think Heather made about a dozen of them.  I did the two above in the afternoon, and made one more at night.  I have all the supplies at home, and I'm sure I'll be making more.

Speaking of Heather, she brought about a ton of feathers so we could make embellishments for a headband, a barrette, a pin, or whatever else we feel is in need of some feathery bling.

Above, Kahena and Gayle work on their designs.

Laurel is making a headband to wear when she goes dancing.

My masterpiece.  Don't know what it will be used for, but trust me,
I will NOT be wearing it on my head,

Lunch break!  Loretta prepared wonderful meals for us, served in this charming room:



Lunch was homemade beefsteak tomato soup and delicious toasted sandwiches filled with chicken or turkey and all manner of vegetables and sauces.  And a spinach salad.


Each table had these odd little salt and pepper shakers, and we had fun re-arranging them into all sorts of poses.  'Nuff said about that.



Laurel had a card with faux stitching.  My actual stitching is better than my faux, so pay no attention to the cockeyed lines.  Still a lovely card.


Pat also had a card, featuring masking an area with torn paper to create a snaky wave of color, over which we did some stamping.  Here are mine and two others.





Kahena had us do resin pendants, but not just any old resin.  These were done with the type that cures under a UV light (yep, just like in the nail salon) in minutes.



Above, one of my pendants.  I embedded some tiny watch parts and glass glitter in between two layers of resin.

Corris, our resident bath products expert had us making sugar scrub.  Here she is explaining the process.


In the next photo (of Heidi's supplies for her bracelet project) look at the top right, and you'll see a jar of the finished scrub.


I kept changing my mind all week about what I'd bring.  I was so taken with Tim's shattered stains, I decided to bring some grungeboard and chipboard shapes and share the technique with everyone.  They all loved it, of course, and I think a few of them will be signing up for his class now.  Heather turned hers into a pin.


Gayle's project was t-shirt scarves.  To be honest, I did not know what to expect, but it is really a cool thing to do, and I think a great project to do with kids.  It just involves some cutting (which does not have to be exact), and pulling (which anyone can do).  Here I am, in all my glory, adorned with t-shirt scarf, t-shirt necklace, t-shirt sweatband, and of course, some feathers.


This is only one of many ways to alter t-shirts into scarves.  Click here for some other ideas, or just do a google search and you'll find lots more.


We finished all 8 projects before dinner, had time to clean up, check emails, etc. and then another bountiful meal of salad, sweet potato soup, stuffed zucchini, roasted chicken and/or tilapia.  Then we all managed to stay awake for a movie, and a few (not me) made it a double feature.  The next morning, omelets, stuffed french toast, and sausage baked with maple syrup.  Packing, saying our goodbyes, then on to the dreaded bus.




The trip home was better than the Friday afternoon ride, but still a bit bumpy.  I wish this BandB was near a train station.  However, Marty (Heidi's husband) picked us (Heidi, Pat and I) up at Port Authority and we all got rides home from there.  Yea, Marty.


14 comments:

jrmathers said...

I am so jealous the B&B looks amazing as wel as the art

Vic said...

What a fun time with all your creative friends! TFS

Elena said...

Looks like you had a great time! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the pendant!!!

Dorothy said...

Wow Eileen! Sounds like a fantastic time!!! Love your feathers! I don't think I would wear them either but they are cool!

Elaine A said...

Eileen -

I can't believe that you and Pat were up here! I live about 30 minutes or so from Warwick. In fact, I'm usually there on Saturday's because I visit my grandmother at Schervier Nursing home behind St. Anthony's hospital. And I've been to Coquito's, excellent food. You could have all come on over to visit (just ignore the loud, overbearing dogs- LOL). It would have been nice to finally meet you and see Pat again.
I'm glad you all had a great time, aside from the crummy bus ride!!

Elaine Allen

Anonymous said...

Oh WOW....Looks like you all had SUCH a wonderful time!!!!!

teri said...

Looks like a lovely time. What a great idea to take over the B&B with artful pals!

Alicia B said...

Looks like a great time was had by all and nothing could be better than that! I can't imagine why you will not wear your feathers on your head though, ROFL *Hugs*

Patzee said...

Yes, we had a grand time and I am surprised that Eileen didn't tell you where she found a teeny tiny feather that night. LOL! What fun it is to be creative and experimental with like-minded crafters. Elaine, I'll let you know if we go back next year--it would be great to stop by.

craftyM said...

I bet the two of you had a grand time. Where was the third muskateer? You know, the little blonde one? The B&B looked great! Did you guys all organize that yourselves... what a great thing for you all to do!

Unknown said...

I love Warwick, NY. Haven't been there in years. Looks like you had a fabulous time!

Loretta, Warwick Valley Bed and Breakfast said...

Wow, I am beyond extatic reading Eileen's blog, as well as the comments. I enjoyed hosting the crafty ladies and look forward to future workshops:) Loretta Breedveld, proprietor, Warwick Valley Bed and Breakfast.

Loretta, Warwick Valley Bed and Breakfast said...

I forgot to say THANK YOU! THANK YOU!! THANK YOU!! to Eileen for writing such an awesome blog:)

Lori said...

Looks like a wonderful time was had by all, minus the bus ride. Sounds worse than the one from downtown NYC to Port Authority for the cruise in 2010. Oh, that was just sitting on the bus for two hours, nevermind. All of the projects were wonderful, and very creative ideas!