Wonderful weekend! Part 1.

Oh my! So much that I would like to tell but not enough time.

The three train journeys on Thursday took us from the very South of Ireland almost to the very North. 3 hours Cork to Dublin, 2 hours Dublin to Belfast and another hour to Larne.
The time just flew as we tatted most of the way. I was making Jane Eb's little SCMR butterfly...my favorite to way to use up a yard/metre of thread. I had printed little cards to stick them on to have something to give away. A lot of them never made it to the cards but were given away on the train!

Larne is on the East coast of Northern Ireland, just across from Scotland, the shortest ferry crossing goes to Stranraer.

We were met and taken to our 'place'!(You can read all about it if you wish). I had not known what to expect, except that it was a convent and maybe a little spartan!!

Oh my it was amazing. The original house was built in 1873 by the Smiley's. Sir Hugh had married a scot from the Coats and Clark thread family...now how cool is that!!






In 1928 the house was sold and sold again in 1929 when it was bought by the nuns. The house had been stripped of all its furniture which had been auctioned...what a shame.

The nuns wanted it as a convent and a retreat for ladies. Nowadays it is a retreat and conference centre run to perfection by only 3 ladies, Sisters Margaret Rose Sister Anna and Maura. Nothing was too much trouble for these ladies to do for us!

In 1960 a new accomodation block was built, it was demolished and a new extension built and opened last September. It is fabulous, all ensuite rooms, lovely dining room and conference rooms. Perfect!



You can see my room, the purple arrow. Very simply, but elegantly furnished.





The extensive grounds were being redeveloped, here is the new Rose garden.




Old house/new extension.

Just too much to show you. Later we were given a tour of the old house.. I will show you that later if you would like.

We were greeted with a high tea of Beef Strogonof even before we saw our rooms, which was very welcome.




It chanced that on Thursday evening the Womens Institute in Larne meet here to do crafts and we were welcomed into their midst. What a talented lot of ladies making beaded jewellery, bargello, tapestry, and so much more, too much to take in. We of course invited them to our sessions!! and they came!

On Friday morning we made lace with the ladies of the Northern Ireland Lace Guild..our hosts. Another wonderfully talented lot.

Fergal decided to take an interest in other laces and became an honorary member..so he thinks. he wants to post his experiments on the Leps own blog...see link in side bar...sometime soon!! when he gets his act together.



We had all been asked to make something with a butterfly theme that weekend. I took a tatting pattern but never even started it. This is the Carrickmacross lace pattern that I started.... you can see the pieces on the table.



I just about managed to get the bits all tacked together....tissue paper with the pattern on top, then the net and finally the organdy.



The only other time we got to make lace was on the Sunday morning..the rest of our time was action packed! I did get to start the couching on my project but it will take me a year to finish it!!

So why didn't I make a large tatted butterfly...well everyone who saw my tatting really appreciated for the first time!! and several wanted to learn,, from my guild and from the Women's Institute and from the Northerm Lacemakers so I had the makings of a few more tatters to fill my time.

In the afternoon we got to walk into Larne while some of the group met the Mayor.

On Friday evening two ladies came to show us their patchwork....a mind boggling selection of traditional patchwork, free form work and applique. I couldn't even begin to show you....not without permission anyway. But here is my group getting a closer look at the end of the talk.



Then it was our turn, each to talk about something we had made....my tatted doileys in Blue lagoon and Coral Reef, 3 Geckos and a series of Hearts Desire in all my colours went down well as also did samples of my threads...they had never seen the like!!

Our lace makers do so many things....Carrickmacross, Limerick, Youghal, Tambour, Bandon, Bobbin, Mountmellick embroidery and more.

Jill had recovered an old coaching parasol, simply beautiful.





This is Mountmellick embroidery, white stitches on white sateen heavy fabric...I am trying this too.



Mary's knitted Doiley.



I am not even sure what kind of needlelace this is by Jackie.



Limerick lace harp.



Irish Crochet...



A fairy in Carrickmacross....

and so much more...there were 33 in our group from Cork.

And that was just our first full day.