Kissimmee 2003

Kissimmee, FL 2003 Fun Report!

We did THE WILD THING in Kissimmee – and what a great time we had!

The night before the retreat began, instructor Linda Reinmiller of HeartWork from My Hand and I joined Dawn and Marie, two of the Kissimmee stitchers, for some late night fun at Downtown Disney. Emphasis on late! Linda’s flight had arrived late, and then Linda and I spent time getting lost before meeting up with Dawn and Marie, and then we got just a little bit lost on the way to Downtown Disney. I was already a little tired and silly when we arrived. We did some shopping and then had a late dinner at Captain Bob’s and I SWEAR TO YOU ALL that it was a virgin Pina Colada that I drank with my meal! (But I was so silly and tired that everyone questioned the drink and I heard about it all weekend long – whenever I got silly again, which was often!)

After our delicious meal we did some more shopping. Marie and Linda had never been to Downtown Disney so it was especially fun for them to get in a little Disney magic during their time in Florida.

The Calm Before the Storm

Morning came quickly for Linda and I, and Jan & Pam from The Someday Shop, as we set up everything for the arrival of the stitchers. Just about an hour before the retreat began, a stitcher came in with bandages on her arms from IV needles and a hospital bracelet on her wrist!! She had unfortunately been admitted to the hospital a few days before the retreat began and had just been released. She insisted that her husband drive her to the hotel so she could pick up her kit and freebies before heading for home!! Now THAT’S an addicted stitcher!!

At 2 p.m. the stitchers were outside the door just waiting to get inside. It was fun to see everyone arrive and receive their Fun Packs. There were items from Anchor, Elizabeth's Designs, Calico Crossroads, Charles Craft, Dames of the Needle, Finger Work, Glory Bee, Jeannette Douglas Designs, Just Nan, Just One More, Rosewood Manor, Kreinik, Mill Hill, monsterbubbles, Nordic Needle, Sue Hillis Designs, The Prairie Schooler, Udder Cream and Weeks Dye Works. A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY!

The Someday Shop had set up a mini shop for us, and I know you’ll all be so surprised to hear this but….a stash enhancement frenzy began!! Yes, I know that it is shocking, but it is true!

Hmmm...Which one should I get?

After awhile everyone settled down to begin working on The Wild Thing with Linda Reinmiller. We learned so much!! And it was interesting because stitchers had chosen different color schemes for their Wild Thing and we were able to see how the different colors would look as the stitching progressed.

Wild Thing -- Front

Wild Thing - Back

Wild Thing Inside

Some of the stitches were new to a lot of us, and some of our awkward attempts and out right mistakes created quite a bit of humor. I discovered after stitching for some 20 minutes that I was going in the complete wrong direction on the fabric! This, of course, caused people to question the content of that Pina Colada. Or perhaps it was when I started singing, “You put the stitches in, you take the stitches out, you put the stitches back in and you shake it all about…” Or maybe it was when I trashed a part of my linen by removing incorrect Nun stitches – and putting more back in incorrectly – and taking them out again!

Jackie catches up

By that time, I was even questioning that Pina Colada! And do you believe I was sitting next to a new stitcher to, ahem, help her out?!? Ohmigosh. Poor Jackie!! Well, I guess you could say she learned from some of my mistakes! We sure did have some laughs over it. After learning one new stitch after another, Jackie turned the page to the next stitch diagram in her notebook, studied it carefully, and then said, “This looks insane!!” Of course, that made us laugh some more, with some of us absolutely doubled over with tears in our eyes!

Jackie & the 3 sisters Janie, Ellen & Nancy

What a great group! Among them were 3 sisters – who each chose different color schemes for their Wild Things, and a mother and daughter team. Everyone was from Florida except for Marie, who flew in from Arizona. So guess who received the prize for traveling the farthest!

Eileen & Marleen Belina.
A mother and daughter sharing their love of needlework.

We had some very nice surprises during the retreat. Pam from the Someday Shop had designed an adorable ORT chart for us, complete with a frog with the word “Rippit” written on it.

Designed by Betsy Foster of Elizabeth’s Designs.

Jan and Pam also kitted up a wonderful Florida Friends chart designed just for us by Betsy Foster of Elizabeth’s Designs.

Linda from Needle Craft World gave us each a beautiful purple bag with gorgeous ribbon containing scissors, charts, and a beautiful Christmas tree design with beading – all kitted up to go into a greeting card. It seemed that every time we turned around there was another freebie for us.

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