Have you ever attended a quilt retreat? I just got back from my third retreat. I loved it. I always look forward to it and I always have a great time. Great food, fun people, and lots of sewing.
This year we woke up to snow. It was beautiful. It snowed off and on all day. We sewed off and on all day. A win win. On the day we left the snow was mostly gone.
It is always a challenge to decide what to take. Which machine, do I take a class or just bring projects of my own, what snack to share do I bring? And don’t forget the quilt I want to sleep under. I took my featherweight sewing machine, I took one class, and 5 projects came with me,
This retreat usually offers three classes. One year I chose to try all three. That kept me hopping! This year I only signed up for one class, Beginning English Paper Piecing. I also took five possible projects to work on. I couldn’t decide what I wanted to do so I took lots.
In our class we learned how to cut our fabrics, how to baste our shapes, and how to attach one shape to another. The sample our teacher showed us was a cute pillow with a sun made out of diamonds, a flower out of hexagons, some leaves, and bushes. I was THAT student that didn’t quite follow instructions. I did when she was showing us how to accomplish the task. But when I saw the fabrics with the little monster on it I just had to use them and a flower just didn’t seem right. I like what I have so far. Now I need to decide if this will become a pillow or a wall hanging. I also think it needs a fun border.
The rest of the time I worked on my projects. I had taken my Bonnie Hunter’s Cathedral Stars quilt and was able to get all the blocks assembled into a quilt top. I have been working on this quilt over the last year or so as a leader ender while making other things. I had all of the blocks assembled and the setting triangles cut. Fun fact about this quilt, the only fabric purchased was the black, the rest was leftovers from other projects, or I picked up off the free table at my Quilt Guild. 
You can find the pattern on her website. http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2005/06/cathedral-stars.html
I was able to get another quilt into a top as well. I started a table runner but I didn’t bring enough fabric for it so it is on hold.
I had fun with my new Creative Grids Pineapple Trim Tool. These blocks are 6″ finished. They are addictive to make and a little time consuming but so much fun to watch them grow. I’m not sure what they will grow up to be yet. They will be an on going project for a while. 
While I was working on the above projects I used 2″ as my leader enders. I ended up with these cute little nine patch blocks. The beginnings of a new quilt down the road. 
If you have the chance to go to a quilt retreat I highly recommend it. Check out the group to make sure it is a good fit for you. See if they offer classes or will you just bring your own projects. You will meet new people, laugh, sew, and maybe not sleep. Some places sew at all hours, ours the generator goes off at 11 pm so no all nighters, which is ok with me. Each retreat has some sort of information sheet, read it carefully, there is good information. Also the people who organize the retreats are usually great about answering any questions you may have.