EAC Seminar 2018 - Bridging Stitches

This year's seminar was a little bit different from the previous two. For one, instead of flying in we drove all the way to PEI.

Two, I was there for a two day class and so spent most of it away from the residence where seminar was held. Every evening I would come back for seminar events if any were held that night. I missed the reception and the AGM lunch meeting (I didn't have a ticket for either since I was signed up for a Saturday/Sunday class). So, if you looked for me I was away enjoying the charms of the province.

Green Gables

I was there all day on Tuesday for check in. I needed to register my presence and pick up my bag filled of goodies.

A close up of this year's pin with the seminar's logo.

I also dropped off my pieces for the exhibition. The rest of the day was spent helping with the setup of Atelier de Penelope's boutique. I took a video of the shop after it had been setup. You can check out the video here. I also took videos of the other boutiques: Silkworm Studio, Kimat Designs, Felicia Knock.

Wednesday night was Virtual Threads annual meeting. With every year, we have more and more members. It was nice to put faces to the names. We were celebrating Virtual Threads 5th year anniversary. There was cake!

A silent auction was held during the meeting. I was very good and didn't buy anything even though there were two Italian whitework book I would have liked.

To celebrate our 5th anniversary, a goodie bag was put together for members. The seashells and red sand were an excellent touch. A lovely reminder of Prince Edward Island. Chocolate was present as well but it didn't make it for the picture.

Thursday night was the night we were all waiting for: Merchant night! Here are seminar attendees waiting in line to go in.

The room was bigger than last year but it was madness inside. You couldn't even get to Jenny Adin-Christie's table. After I made my rounds and picked up my new stash (more on that later), I went through the booths again and took a video that you can see here.

Friday was a free day for everyone. Some attendees took a one day class while others went on a tour. We did our own thing and visited a few lighthouses.

Point Prim Lighthouse

Saturday was finally d-day. I'd been counting down the days till the first day of class. I came in early so I can snag a good spot. I dragged two tables near each other and used that as a stand for my frame.

We got the rest of our kit and got busy.

The first step was outlining and cutting our felt padding. We also played with a high count metal mesh. These were treated the same way as the felt. Sort of... I'll write a more detailed post later on these.

Homework was assigned, but I was very efficient and got it done before the day finished.

Because that night was the banquet. This is the first year I went to the banquet and didn't have to worry about doing homework afterward. We got a booklet with a list of classes that will be offered next year. I've already made my selection.

At the center of every table, there was a lovely arrangement of stitched smalls. Everyone at the table was able to take something home. I decided to take the Temari. I always wanted one.

They announced the winners of the awards. I received my award for second place in the EAC board challenge. I didn't even know there was a prize. This will go straight to my stitching budget.

Sunday morning, I woke up early ready to start class. Alison spent the day showing us how to stitch every section of the iris and then had us trying it out to make sure we understand. Here she is demonstrating how to stretch purl pearl.

I kind of did my own thing. One thing I dislike about classes is the constant need to jump around a piece as the teacher rushes to show us everything. I like to stitch a piece in the correct order. Luckily, I've a little experience with goldwork and was able to do just that. I spent the day stitching down the petals. I have one more left to do.

As soon as 4:30 pm hit, I received a message from my family asking me where I was. They were waiting on me to finish so we can start driving back home. It takes a long time to pack all your embroidery tools (something my family doesn't understand). Also, Alison had us walk around the room to take a look at each other's pieces so that took a bit of time. It was interesting to see how each person handled the petals.

One last stop before we left for ice cream at Cows! Did I mention the desserts in PEI we amazing? It must be the butter.

Overall I enjoyed seminar this year. Alison was an excellent teacher who is a master in her craft and I look forward to taking another class with her. The seminar committee did an excellent job with organizing everything. Being able to pick up my exhibition pieces Sunday during the coffee break really helped.

I did feel like I missed out on a few seminar experiences as not everyone was staying in the same residence. In previous years, everyone stayed in the same place and if you felt like a bit of stitching with company you just had to go to a lounge on any floor and there was usually someone there. Also, going to seminar with family meant I felt obligated to spend time with them. No late night stitching for me. I wonder how it will be next year.