Daylesford Craft Experience Extravaganza 2012...

This past weekend was the Annual Daylesford Craft Experience Extravaganza - wahoo!!!  I picked up Rosie (no blog) early Friday afternoon and we set off in holiday mode...first stop - Woodend for lunch at the bakery and then on to Daylesford to collect the keys to "our house", the lovely cottage LuLu's where we stayed last year and by 4:00pm we were settled in and looking forward to a couple of days of stitchy relaxation.  RIght after I rang Jindi's sitter and asked for the computer and heater in my house to please be switched off when going to give Jindi her tea...yep, I was in such a rush to be "on holidays" that I left the house without completing all the necessary shutdowns!...

"our house" - Lu Lu

Out and about bright and early Saturday morning to get a "good" parking spot and meet lovely GF Jean (no blog) for breakfast at The Red Star Cafe across the road from the day's venue, Peppers in Hepburn Springs...we all had Eggs Benedict (mine with smoked salmon as I don't eat pig)...a very yummy way to start the day's proceedings before heading across the road to the main event...Daylesford Craft Experience 2012...our lovely designers this year were Natalie Lymer, Cinderberry Stitches and Jodie Carleton, Ric Rac who designed as-yet (at the time of the event) unreleased projects for our stitching pleasure...and of course they didn't disappoint...along with the patterns for all their projects our goodie bags contained a kit for Natalie's stitchery needle case and from Jodie "I hate Christmas" Carleton two felt Christmas decorations, projects achievable to start, and maybe even finish, on the day.....what to choose what to choose?...the coin toss came down to Jodie's Christmas Tree and Santa...I went with the tree.  You'll be stunned and amazed to learn that I didn't finish my tree on the day...as if there was any chance that I'd actually be that focused!...

I started the decorations at least...

but my over achieving friends, well what can I say about those two...

Jean finished her tree...

and

Rosie finished Santa...

And then they both went and started the other decoration!  Over achievers!!!

All together now!...

Another fab day out with good friends...looking forward to next year already...

And I have finished the tree...Sunday night I finished the decorations... 

Happy Stitching...

Daylesford Craft Experience 2011

So today we set off for here...

...after drastically over-estimating the amount of travelling time...from Lu Lu it took all of, mmm, let's see...5 minutes driving time...we were slightly early *LOL*...to play at the Daylesford Craft Experience...

Mmmm...where are our seats?

...where we were joined by my lovely friend Jean (no blog) and she brought along two new friends, Lucy & Jess...waving hello!!!!

Thanks to the organisational skills of the lovely Merrilyn we played with Jodie, Melly and Kristen, who all designed great projects...

The designs for the day

Jodie figured out how to get more hours in our days!

In our goodie bags was a small project designed by Kristen and wonder of wonders I managed to get my stitched...not only on the day but at the event!!!...cut out and backed with felt it becomes a brooch.  I did buy the brooch pin but I have plenty of felt at home so it can wait to be put together...

Oh, and the 5 1/2" square and piece of thread became this...

A needlebook for the swap...It's almost impossible to read but the front is stitched with "Happy is she who spends her time stitching"

The swap items spread out for everyone to take a look at before they were "distributed"...

See my needlebook there?...see the pink "tag" laying across the corner of it?...well that is what I received!...Jodie walked around the room and she lucky dipped into the box for those who participated...it was only when I was uploading this photo that I noticed that both what I made and what I received were together on the table...
What a fun day...
Happy Stitching...

Daylesford VIP Weekend Extravaganza!...

(Blogger has spacing issues big time so please forgive the lack of paragraph spacing but it is either none or huge canyons of space where the paragraphs need walkie talkies to keep in touch so I'm going with the no spacing, please feel free to insert as you read...)
Rosie (no blog) and I set off yesterday with the goal to meet up with Mistea (coming from a different direction) and play at our Daylesford VIP Weekend Extravaganza!
Larry veered a little from the straight line at the edge of town and took Rosie & I here...

Where we had this...

yum huh! jealous much?...well you should be...it was De...lish...ee...ous...  Rosie had the hot chocolate, which is actual melted chocolate with steamed milk on top to be stirred lovingly into a milk chocolatey concoction...me I had the cake and chai tea...you see I don't do the milk thing (they do the vegan version with soy but I don't) so I couldn't do the hot chocolate but I found a way...cake!  The cafe is just for drinks and a couple of chocolate based sweet treats but I can have cake for lunch can't I?  Then it was into the shop for some handmade chocolate purchases....and a lot of drooling...
If you are in the vicinity of Daylesford and love chocolate...and I mean Goood chocolate, real proper not sugar and milk laden confectionary, hand made by a chocolatier from proper chocolate ingredients and...am I raving a bit...well it is GOOOD...do yourself a favour and take a drive out to the Chocolate Mill.  And, it is in the nicest bush setting, just lovely with very nice staff.
Oh and of course we drooled our way around the chocolate cabinets in the shop and bought some samples to bring home...the noodle boxes rested by one of the garden residents on the way out...

After proper lunch in Daylesford and Mistea arriving from her direction we picked up the key to "our house"....we are staying here...

How cute is this house!  Here name is Lu Lu...wanna take a tour...

She just gorgeous...warm and inviting...the lights were on and the Rinnai working away so it was very welcoming and cosy when we walked in...it really did feel like we'd arrived home...lovely...
Today we are off to the Main Event the Daylesford Craft Experience...what fun this is going to be!  Report will follow...
Hope you have a VIP Weekend Extravaganza in your world to look forward to!
Happy Stitching...