Weekend Scrapbook & Craft Retreats

Once in a while, and I mean just once in a while, I need to get away from my daily activities and find some time to be silly. And by silly, I mean – not making decisions, not making sure everything is ready to go, or done, or getting done…. I mean – doing whatever I feel like doing and if asking stupid or silly is how I feel, then that is what I want to do!

This is what we call  “Scrapbook Retreats”.

The intent is to get together with friends and be creative. However, in reality, they sometimes just end up being a relaxing time to catch up with my good friends and my sister. We often end up in fits of giggles over nothing.  Or better yet, the fits of giggles are over something really funny – and the whole room is laughing with us!

What it is

I am guessing a Scrapbook Retreat is a mystery to most of you – so I will attempt to describe one of ours:

Imagine 15-25 women in a very large room together – each with their own six foot table. Then, imagine that each woman brings enough scrapbooking or craft material with them that we have created our very own fire hazard – both in the amounts of flammable material and the trip hazard if you actually had to exit the room in a hurry! We are traveling hoarders.  Seriously.

The weekend usually starts on a Friday night. We all get our dose of exercise carrying in all the craft stuff we MIGHT need over the next two and a half days. And Friday night usually entails lots of chit-chat because we have not seen each other in a while and we need to catch-up!  Our retreats are great because we sleep in the same building that we scrapbook in, so we can get comfy in our slippers and hang out until our eyelids will no longer support the lashes upon them.

Saturday is no different – except we are usually fed a couple of excellent meals, we bring out our snacks to share, and we have a lot more time to giggle and create. Sometimes we find the wine….

Sunday is a little less chatty since we know we have to finish the projects we brought with us (or in some cases – START the projects we brought with us) and then we have to pack up all our *now unorganized* craft supplies and haul them back home.

What I do

I have made some incredible scrapbooks of our family vacations, our Christmas’ together, our Halloween costumes and pumpkin carvings. It is so fun to look back at our family times together, how much we have all changed and grown. I have even taken my sewing machine with me and made some basic quilts, some adorable decorative pillows and some wall hangings. I enjoy creating things and showing them off to my friends – as well as seeing what they are creating while they are there with us!!

Why it is so important

Everyone needs a little down time! I have a full time job, a family and lots of commitments. While I am away for a weekend, it means the decisions are not mine for three days, the meals are not mine to make, the dishes are not mine to clean, the laundry probably won’t get done while I am gone – but I don’t care, because I am not thinking about it!  I get to enjoy what is going on in my friends lives, and how they are dealing with their kids and their jobs and get ideas to rejuvenate me to go back to my family and my job! And – if I get to create something while I am there, it is a bonus! After working on the computer all week long, using my hands to create something is indescribable! So worth it!

One of our favorite places to spend the weekend is in Colorado. Check it out!

I hope everyone gets an opportunity to relax and unwind in a way that is just as fulfilling to them as a ‘scrapbook retreat’ is to me!