Ruth B. McDowell

Coming to Stitchin' Heaven February 24th - 29th, 2008

The art quilts of Ruth McDowell represent a sustained and extraordinary development over time, intertwining the themes of nature, geometry, the piecing medium and her abiding love of fabrics.

Our Ruth B. McDowell Retreat will be an all inclusive event which will include 5 days of instruction and lodging in the beautiful Piney Woods here in East Texas. The retreat will be held at Brookhaven Christian Retreat in Hawkins, Texas, only 18 gorgeous miles from Stitchin' Heaven. Rooms are double occupancy, so if you are registering with a friend, be sure and let us know so we can put you in a room together.

Click for a student supply list.

Order your supplies here!

For more information on Ruth B. McDowell, you can visit her webpage at www.RuthBMcDowell.com.

Retreat Information:

When? Check-In is Sunday, February 24, 2008 with Classes on Monday, February 25th @ 10am thru Friday, February 29, 2008, concluding at 2:00pm

Total Retreat Fee: $895
(Fee must be paid in full to reserve your seat in class. No Deposits.)

Fee includes 5 days of:

• Instruction
• Lodging
• 3 meals each day
• Transportation to and from Stitchin' Heaven for scheduled shopping breaks
• Each student will be provided with an individual foam board to use while designing

Make your reservation online, call us toll free at 800-841-3901, or come on by!

If you would like more information on the Brookhaven Christian Retreat, you can visit their website at http://www.comcenter.com/brookhaven where they have lots of pictures and great information.

Sew ‘n Spa Retreat

April 15th — 19th, 2008

Stitchin’ Heaven and Copper Leaf Day Spa
at Brookhaven Retreat Center

This is truly a quilting retreat that you won't want to miss and sure to be a truly pleasant mix of quilting, learning, friendship and fun! This is the perfect opportunity for you to gather with old friends, or plan on making new. Don't forget to ask all of the important quilters in your life - your mother, sister, aunt or friend - if they would like to join you!

WHEN

Tuesday, April 15 to Saturday, April 19 - Check in at 1:00 pm on Tuesday, and checkout is after breakfast on Saturday (sometime before noon).

WHERE

Brookhaven Retreat Center located in the beautiful piney woods of east Texas, just 50 miles north of Tyler, 100 miles east of Dallas, and 100 miles west of Shreveport.

LODGING

Stay in lovely and spacious rooms, each uniquely decorated in Texas Casual Elegance. Some of the rooms have private baths and these will be assigned to the first who register. All of the rooms are very nice and clean. They are offered at this retreat as triple, double, or single occupancy (no one shares a bed and no one sleeps on a top bunk!). Brookhaven Retreat Center has a main center that has a large wrap-around porch overlooking a beautiful lake for you to sit back and enjoy the view. There are 2 very large lodge style auditoriums for us to use so we will have ample sewing space and no one will need to share a sewing table!

DELICIOUS DINING

At the Brookhaven Restaurant will meet all of our dining needs - Full Breakfasts, Lunches, Dinners, Snacks and more with savory buffet-style meals. Drinks (iced-tea, coffee & water) and gratuities are included in rate. Oh, did I mention Chocolate?

QUILTING

Dotti and Lucy, two of the sweetest people you will ever want to meet, will instruct you through our Debbie Caffrey mystery class! I think you might feel our draw to them - could it be that they love chocolate?... We love Debbie Caffrey Mysteries and will have fabric kits available in 3 color/fabric choices or you can bring fabric with you from your stash. Fabric for the mystery class is not included in your registration fee.

In addition to the Mystery Quilt, we also have Lucy teach you how to make the perfect takeaway for this retreat. And, we also have lined up surprise visit from a designer who will guide us through another special project - and the materials for all of these projects is included in your package price. Feel free to bring a project or two of your own to work on as well as we will have many hours of sewing during the week. The retreat center is set up in such a way that you will have access to the sewing rooms as late in the evening as you want to stay up and sew and you don’t have to worry about disturbing anyone.

FUN STUFF

Of course, no quilt retreat is complete without a bit of fun (and chocolate) -- special drawings and games will add to the festivity. When you receive your packet, you will see that we have a special 'theme' planned - and the fun will just go from there. Plus, we have a special tote bag for each attendee filled with some fun goodies (…and probably chocolate), and, for those who are interested, there will be several fun group activities including a silent auction, scavenger hunt, block swap, show and tell, and our famous “Death by Chocolate Buffet” one evening at the shop.

CHALLENGE OPTION

Once your registration is paid in full, you will receive 6 "orphan blocks" that were left over from a block of the month program from the past Stitchin' Heaven programs. We will ask you to take these blocks and make them into something beautiful. Everyone won't get the same thing but you can request "appliqué" or "patchwork" and we will do our best to accommodate your wishes. At the retreat these projects will be put on display and the participants at the retreat as well as the employees at Stitchin' Heaven will vote on their favorite. A $100 shopping spree will be awarded to the winner.

SPA OPTIONS

CopperLeaf Day Spa from Winnsboro Texas has some of the finest massage therapists and estheticians in the area and will be on hand to provide these services during your stay at the retreat. Spa appointments must be made in advance, however and are not included in your retreat package. Services offered are as followed:

• 60 minute full-body massage: $68
• 30 minute massage: $40
• Full facial: $65
• Mini-facial: $30

RETREAT PRIZES

We have become famous for our retreat prizes and this retreat will be no different! For each $10 you spend in the store you will be given a ticket that will be entered in a drawing for some really fantastic prizes. The drawing for the prizes will be held at the shop on Saturday at noon. Our grand prize will be a queen-sized beauty, fully quilted, even with the binding on it! We are sure you will be very pleased!

FRESH AIR

For those of you who enjoy walking, the retreat center has trails that you can walk through and enjoy the scenery. You can view the spectacular private lake, maybe even catch a glimpse of the wild life, breathe in the freshest air and enjoy the spectacular blue skies and wildlife of Texas while you stitch! This is a beautiful time in east Texas and if we are in luck some of the dogwood trees and azaleas will still be in bloom! Our many variety of birds will be busy making nests and our flowers will be budding out.

TOUR

We will escape the rigors of quilting on Thursday afternoon and head to Gladewater, TX on a 50-passenger luxury bus. Gladewater is the antique capital of East Texas, a Texas Main Street and a National Main Street city as well as a favorite tourism spot, where you can enjoy a bit of past while browsing through the quaint old buildings. We will find over 200 antique and crafters in over 30 antique malls and individual shops.

SEWING MACHINES

Bring your own or let us know if you need a loaner (we have a limited supply on hand). But, we have found that today's machine carry bags make traveling by air or car a snap. Here is another really cool thing: Each participant at this retreat will have their own table in the open sewing area! No sharing required – unless you want to share your chocolate!

GETTING HERE

The closest airport is Tyler (Pounds Field) although we are only about 100 miles east of DFW. The flight to Tyler from DFW will add some expense to your trip. Some auto rentals are very inexpensive these days especially if there are multiple people sharing the expense. Let us know if you choose to fly into Tyler and need someone to pick you up there.

WHAT ABOUT THE WEATHER?

One thing we can say about Texas, is if you don't like the weather, just wait five minutes because it will change. We recommend casual clothes, comfy shoes, and a light sweater and jacket. April is generally mid-70s during the day, and mid-60s for the nights. At times April is quite warm. In 2007, however it snowed on Easter Sunday!

HOW TO SIGN UP

(there are two ways to register):

• Simply call the shop at (800) 841-3901
• Register on-line

PRICES

• $275 Triple Occupancy
• $325 Double Occupancy
• $550 Single (No one shares a bed and no upper bunks!)

Half of the fee is due upon registration and final payment is due by January 1, 2008

Refunds :

We must be notified by January 1 if you cannot attend to give you a full refund. If you find out after January 1 you cannot attend we will do our best to find someone to take your place so that your fee can be returned to you.

This Cost Includes :

• Four Nights Lodging
• Food
• Prizes
• Instruction and all Activities
• Fabric for the Takeaway projects are included.
• Fabric for the mystery quilt can be purchased through Stitchin' Heaven (after all, we know what it looks like!) or you may feel free to bring fabric from your stash. Includes all taxes and gratuities.
  

Does not include transportation costs to the retreat center.