May knitting and crochet retreat in France

We had a small select group for this holiday - with four returning guests. The weather was lovely for most of the week, but ended with a spectacular storm on the way back to Bordeaux.
It was a lovely relaxing time, we managed three outings for shopping and plenty of knitting and crochet.

The countryside looks amazing at the moment, very green from all the rain we have had, dotted with bright splashes of colourful red poppies.

Shopping in Cognac for fabric and yarn

Twins Lesley and Angela were both working on the same project - The Rossylyn crochet blanket by Helen Shrimpton

Coffee and a sticky patisserie from our wonderful boulangerie 

Garter pattern Something Blue by Emma L Willey

Pam was making the Lattice Sampler shawl by Jennifer Weissman

And as well as the garter and various other projects Linda was making a gorgeous crochet table cloth

May 2018 knitting and crochet retreat in France

Enjoy a week of relaxation and inspiration with your knitting and crochet, visit Knitting Holidays in France to book a space now.

We have four spaces available for the holiday from 19th to 25th May. The venue is a lovely converted barn in South West France, with large airy living spaces and a heated swimming pool. This is the perfect opportunity to meet new friends who share your passion for knitting and crochet, enjoy the prospect of no housework or cooking and savour delicious home cooked food and of course a glass or two of wine!

There are no structured workshops on this holiday, however, there is plenty of help on hand from Sue and fellow guests, plus a huge library of knitting and crochet books to browse through for tips, techniques and ideas.

During the course of the week there is the opportunity to visit local markets

and of course shop 'til you drop

a bit of sightseeing

and for the more athletic there are bicycles available 

but really we just want you to relax and enjoy yourselves

Gin and tonic fountain

For further information visit the website here

2018 knitting and crochet holidays in France

The full list of dates for the 2018 holidays is now available here.

If you would like to book to come on one of the holidays please use our contact form stating the date of the holiday you are interested in and I will send further details. Places are filling up quickly so don't leave it too long!

Enjoy the French countryside on one of our early Spring retreats

One of the en suite bedrooms at The Barn

Relax by the swimming pool

Learn to crochet

Enjoy the fresh seasonal produce from the local markets

Visit a brocante for haberdashery and vintage buttons

Go on shopping trips for gorgeous French fabrics and yarn

Knitting and crochet workshop with Carol Meldrum - days 5 and 6

Work in progress
Thursday was the last full day workshop at knitting holidays in France and the competition was heating up to see who would actually complete a project.

Finishing off
On Friday morning some of the group were still finishing off squares and the rest were pinning and blocking and learning new methods for joining in crochet or by sewing..

Rhona's squares being blocked in the sunshine

Annabelle gave up on her squares and went back to her favourite knitting project - more toys!

However, when she saw her squares laid out she decided that maybe they would make a bag after all. They are absolutely beautiful with lovely textures and a subtle sparkle from the bead work & lurex yarn.

Sue B has been learning to crochet something other than granny squares and has come up with some lovely textures and subtle shades.

Rose has been learning to crochet and experimented with various stitches to create a collection of squares, a bowl and the start of a body for a hippopotamus.........

When Lillias arrived on Saturday she said that she hadn't knitted for many years and was feeling very nervous about what she would be able to achieve. Well these are her beautifully knitted squares, soon to become a bag, lined with the lovely fabric she bought on Tuesday. 

Sandra has created some amazing textured squares, joining them with splashes of pink and lilac yarn to lift the neutral shades. The fabric she bought on Monday will be used to make a lining for the bag.

Michele has combined a mix of textures using buttons, bobbles and beads using stitch patterns from different sources to create a really lovely and unique mix.

Christine went off piste from the start, deciding that the neutral shades were not for her. After rummaging around in one of my boxes of stash she came up with this buzzing colour combination inspired by her love of Mexico. The owl fabric will make the perfect lining.

 After a spending a gruelling 2 hours on one of the cable squares, Rhona has put together a stunning mix of textured squares to make into a book bag, the lovely batik fabric she bought on Monday will be used for the lining.

                                   

 In the afternoon we went to Cognac for the last bit of shopping and sightseeing.

Then back to The Barn for gin and tonic and the final show and tell.

The finished results are fantastic, everyone has achieved a huge amount in just a week, a big big thank you to Carol Meldrum for being such a wonderful tutor. We finished the week with a supper of Charentaise melon with Pineau, Paella then Banoffi pie. After supper, the secret Santa gifts were distributed - everyone rose to the challenge of creating something from some felting yarn they found in my stash. The gifts included scary badges from Carol, lovely bars of felt covered soap from Michele and cute little woven mats from Lillias.

If you would like to join me and Carol at Knitting holidays in France, we are taking bookings now for September 2918. Details here.