Sturbridge 2007 Fun Report Continued...
That afternoon we had a fantastic presentation by Jean Contino, Coordinator of Crafts and Households, and Rebecca Nourse, Collections Manager, at Old Sturbridge Village entited “From Corset to Cap: The Layers of Fashion” -- a talk about ladies’ clothing from the 1830s! They used garments and accessories from the collection of Old Sturbridge Village to discuss the many layers of clothing worn by ladies of the early nineteenth century to create a fashionable figure. At that time, stylish ladies used these layers to achieve sloping shoulders, a narrow waist, full sleeves, and bell-shaped skirts. We saw undergarments (such as shifts, stays, busks, puffs, pockets, and petticoats) along with gowns and embroidered accessories! It was fascinating! Jean (pictured at left) was just a wealth of knowledge, answering question after question.
I must say that as I sat there in my capris and t-shirt -- with a mere two articles of undergarments -- I felt very grateful to be living in 2007!! LOL!!
Now just imagine having these lovely sticks inserted into your undergarments so that you would have nice posture! (Rebecca is holding them.)
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Oh, my!!! Almost ready to go out on the town...
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There were a few more layers in there, too! But Jean did more than show us the clothing. She told us about the materials, how things were made, mourning customs of the times, and SO much more!! It was an outstanding lecture!
After the lecture came another incredible meal, and then our grande finale -- Show ‘n Tell! I have to say that no pictures could do justice to the many beautiful works of art that were shown. It was fascinating and fun. Jean and Rebecca stayed on to enjoy the show.
This is Laurel and Kerri during Show ‘n Tell. Kerri did most of the stitching for these items, and her pal Laurel does her finishing.
We saw quite a display -- some quilting and embroidered clothing, too. Here’s just a sampling.
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It was a lot of fun to walk around and admire everyone’s work!
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Well, another retreat has come and gone...but we made some wonderful memories to enjoy for a long time to come. This was a great group of stitchers -- talented and so much fun! It was a pleasure to be with you all!
Sue
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Thank you, thank you, thank you. It just doesn't seem enough to say for all you do to make the retreats what they are. And Sturbridge was yet again wonderful to say the least. I'm not sure what I enjoyed most ... meeting and working with Jeanette, the camaraderie of old and new friends, the doorprizes, the shopping, the lecture, the food, the beautiful setting ... all of it was magnificent. You, again, outdid yourself. There's nothing better than putting your cares aside for two days and spending it with women who share your passion. ~ Cynthia
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Sturbridge was great! Thanks to you and your team for all your hard work and efforts for these weekends! ~ Laurel
Well, Margaret and my big adventure came to a close on Tuesday. We flew back to CA with so much stuff!! I wanted to thank you for such a wonderful time at the retreat!! It was so great to finally greet you and get a huge hug from you after 2 years of emailing back and forth. It felt like I had known you forever.
I don't think I can put into words to describe the retreat, but I shall try. Sue, you are a dedicated and caring lady who knows what stitchers want!! I just wish the 2 days were more!! The fun and laughter alone is worth the price of coming to one of these events. The doorprizes were out of this world. The goodie bags...........HOLY COW!!!!!! They where stuffed!! I was starting to worry about how I was going to pack all of it and not go over the weight limit the airlines impose on us travelers. Thank you for honoring Margaret and I with the long distance goodie bags. We where thrilled.
You always made sure we were well pampered and spoiled rotten. Thank you for such a wonderful vacation. I haven't been that relaxed in years!!!!! The Publick House was a fantastic choice for the retreat. I look forward to coming back next year. Margaret is coming back as well. I am bringing my daughter next time. She will enjoy this as much as I do. Let's not forget the fantastic food. Oh man it was sooooo good. I have never been so spoiled and pampered anywhere like being at the Publick House. The management was fantastic. Michelle went out of her way to make sure we where taken care of.
What can you say about our instructor Jeannette???? She is such a fun lady. I can't thank her enough for the wonderful MA sampler. Margaret and I went sight seeing while there. We actually had 3 more days after the retreat to visit Salem, Boston, and Plymouth. It was a thrill to have all the places we saw on the sampler and know that when we look at it, we shall remember the people, places, and food with a smile on our lips.
To our fellow stitchers, what a treat to have met you all, especially the front row on the left side of the room… funny and wonderful ladies. I loved the humor of each one. I hope to see some of them at the next one I attend. Thank you for welcoming the 2 of us from California. The ladies that do come to your retreats year after year I can understand why. It's the camaraderie, laughter, and love of stitching that make these stitchers come back for more each year.
Thank you again for all the hard work you do for us. ~ Sincerely, Denise
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This has been the 9th Stitcher's Hideaway retreat I've attended and I continue to be impressed with the work that Sue puts into her retreats to make them such a fun time for everyone. It's so nice to meet up again with familiar faces and to meet new stitchers. As usual the food was great, vendors had fun stuff for us, the presentation by the ladies from Sturbridge Village was excellent and Jeannette's Sampler was beautiful and she was fun as usual. Thanks Sue for the goodie bags and the door prizes! I'm now looking forward to Mystic in November! ~ Linda M.
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Just a quick note to thank you for a fabulous time in Sturbridge – I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time! The food, the company, the teacher, the piece was too terrific and you…well, words can not explain!! Take care…enjoy the summer…see you in Mystic! Ha-ha!! ~ Love, Debby W.
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Just wanted to let you know that I had a great time at "Stitcher's Hideaway" in Sturbridge, MA. This quaint town was an ideal place to retreat to. Had a great time at the Retreat and the week following (our vacation). We actually stayed in South Yarmouth, Cape Cod but traveled as far north (one hour) into Maine. Gail has a sister up there and we spent one night with her. The mosquitoes are really bad in Maine. I had a great week (very expensive! this area of the country) but well worth it. The history is so captivating here. I drove almost 1200 miles from the Cape up thru Maine. Good thing we had unlimited mileage! We both thought the New England area was beautiful. We stopped in Boston on our way back to the Cape and saw The Commons and where the Freedom Trail begins. I never would have known anything about it if it were not incorporated into "The Sampler". So for me, this has been a learning vacation filled with loads of American history. Hope to attend another of your retreats in the future. Thanks again for everything! ~ Patti (Froggy), Ohio
Linda with Sudberry Box Doorprize Gail & Patti
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It’s Sunday morning, the day after! I’ve just had my coffee, along with a sticky bun from the Publick House Bakery. My thank you notes to Kreinik and Brightneedle have been written. Now it’s YOUR turn!
What can I say except “THANK YOU” once again for a wonderful time. I always enjoy Stitcher’s Hideaway, but I think this has been my favorite so far. I love the Sturbridge setting – the Publick House Inn was especially good on the food department.
And then, of course, was Jeannette with her awesome Massachusetts Sampler, which is going to make a few people jealous! And I’d like to thank you for arranging the visit by the ladies of Old Sturbridge Village – I thought the lecture was wonderful!
I hated to leave early in a way, but it took awhile to lug all the bags in!! LOL!! Seriously, thank you so much Sue; I’ll look forward to the next time! ~ Love, Karin
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I wanted to write to tell you what a blast I had at the Sturbridge Hideaway. All your arrangements were wonderful and the setting superb. I really appreciate your work in lining up terrific designers like Jeannette and gathering all our gifts and door prizes. I especially want to thank you for my door prizes: the Desk Box from Sudberry and the sampler from Carriage House Samplings. I feel especially lucky to have won those. I hope to see you again soon. I’m working on arrangements for Mystic II. ~ Yours in Stitching, Linda
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“In short, the only way to describe the weekend is "Incredible" from start to finish. The weekend was like one big high point, each event building off the prior one. No, the sampler isn't finished, but all who have seen it in prrogress fall in love with it! I am in no rush to finish it because whenever I work on it, a flood of memories come to mind. Thank you for making the weekend so special. I look forward to joining with everyone next July, if not sooner.” ~ Mary R.
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