April showers were supposed to bring May flowers.

 We had a lovely taste of warm, spring weather last week and managed to play tennis four days in a row but, now, we have steady rain and much cooler temperatures.  My wardrobe went from capris and t-shirts to long pants, long sleeve shirt and socks with my slippers.  Oh well... hopefully the May flowers are happy to have moisture and it certainly is helping the tulips last longer. 

Last weekend I attended a guild retreat celebrating 12½ years. That might sound strange but it wasn't.  Two and half years ago, we had a big retreat planned for our 10th anniversary of the guild and put a deposit down at a hotel in a town twenty minutes east of where I live.  Then Covid happened.  So, the retreat was done virtually and our deposit sat, waiting to be used.  Apparently, in Holland, 12½ years is a big celebration in  marriage as it is half of twenty five and the color is copper.  So, our retreat theme was copper and 12½.  The committee did a fabulous job calling names for door prizes at 12.5 minutes after the hour, holding a challenge for a small wallhanging that used copper in it, and we had a goody bag celebrating copper.  

I packed for the retreat carefully.  I cut up fabrics and made kits for a variety of projects though mainly 3 yard patterns.  I also had blocks made that I wanted to stitch into finished tops but made sure I didn't need a design wall for them.  For a few of them, I laid out my blocks and then picked them up carefully and clipped them with labels for the rows.  I was all set!  And, I stitched like crazy from 9am until 8pm.  We had a lovely lunch provided and many of kept one of our sandwiches to eat at dinner time.  Someone had made huge cookies... 12.5 of them and gave one to each table for us to share.  

I won the 12.5 door prize!  A really nice bottle of wine called Copper.  So much fun.  

I picked up these bento box blocks carefully and had them ready to stitch together.

The 12.5 door prize - in half a bag.

My view of the room from the back corner where I was nicely tucked away to sew.

The quilter sitting beside me was working on these teeny, tiny, miniature blocks... she has more patience than I do!

Here are some of my copper goodies.  We were given a kit to make the itty bitty bag along with lots of things to add to it.  There was a copper, glittery cardboard sewing machine.  And incredible cookie made for us.  An embroidered copper sewing machine plus an other embroidered tag as well as a stiletto with a copper tip.  And, of course, the bottle of Copper wine that I won. 

Back home again and I put together a second bento box from blocks that I finished at the retreat.

I made Carolyn's blocks from some fat quarters that came from the stash of a friend's mum who has passed away.  I grabbed brown, gold and yellows from the offerings and am making some survivor quilts. 

A spool of copper coloured thread which was used to quilt the fabric for our itty bitty bag.

There were labels for the bag as well.  So much fun.

These are Illusion blocks from 3 yard quilts and the fabric came in a gift box from Cherry Tree Quilts in Summerland.  Instead of one large quilt, I squeezed out enough blocks to make two smaller quilts for donation.  

These were the two row by rows that I completed for April.  I goofed on both of them, not reading the directions carefully, but managed to salvage each of them and get them done.

I made these blocks in April - a lattice strip pieced block which is a free pattern from Jordan fabrics.  During the retreat I stitched them into fours but wanted to use my design wall before putting them completely together.  So, on the design waiting.

This is hopscotch from 3 yard patterns at Fabric Cafe and I had the fabric strips cut for the retreat and got the blocks made.  I have them up on the design wall and working on getting them stitched together.  

One more Carolyn's block quilts for Survivors.  So simple to cut and sew and while I had the strips cut from fat quarters for the retreat, I didn't get around to it last Saturday so stitched the blocks as leaders and enders while putting some of the blocks from other projects together. 

Oh my goodness... no quilts finished but lots more on hangers waiting.  But, a very productive week.  Now it is raining and I am tidying up and organizing and have all my current projects as various stages but they are all ready for me next to the sewing machine.  

I do need a kick in the butt to load the B-line and get a few more quilted - I have backings and batting cut and ready, but need to just do it.  My dad used to have a button that was round and on it said, "Round Toit" and I laughed when he wore it.. I guess I inherited his procrastination habits. 

Hoping you are enjoying better weather than us but it is a good time to be sewing!