Winter Respite at Tops'l Farm — in the books!

The first gather2knit retreat is in the books! We spent a dreamy weekend at Tops'l Farm in Waldoboro for our Winter Respite under the March full moon. The pace of the weekend was gentle and relaxing, interspersed with opportunities to come together as a group. The invitation for the weekend was simple: take what you need, no hard and fast rules. Our only request was to keep talk about current events at a minimum — a small break from doom and gloom.

Folks arrived from their hectic work weeks on Friday afternoon. Friday's goal was to physically and emotionally "arrive" into the beautiful setting, unpack, and get to know each other. We made short work of settling and connecting — hanging out in the comfortable farmhouse kitchen, knitting (and beverages!) in hand, with some nibbles before supper. It set the tone for a good-humored, comfy, and relaxed vibe that prevailed throughout the weekend. With Friday's full moon, some of us opted to take a wood-fired sauna and hot tub before bed while others retired early. We kept the sauna and hot tub fired up all weekend for easy access!

On Saturday, we had two interactive learning sessions on finding best fit in our knits. We discussed gauge and ease, measured a favorite sweater and hat, then took our body measurements with a partner — recording our measurements on original hand-outs. With the real numbers in front of us, we each came away with some ah-ha moments about how we want our knits to fit our bodies.

In between our knit fit nerd-fest, there was ample time to decompress, sit and chat, spot a Bald Eagle out the window, take a walk on the Tops'l Farm trails, nap, browse the g2k traveling library of knitting books, and of course, work on our current projects. Even though our location was just 30 minutes from Camden, folks said they very much felt whisked "away" from their regular lives — an expansive sense of time outside of time.

What's a retreat without nourishing and delicious food to keep everyone fueled? We were so fortunate to have our meals prepared by a local private chef that were creatively designed to meet everyone's dietary needs, while not compromising one bit on flavor.

A big thank you to the amazing group of women who jumped on board with this first retreat — a dream come true! Tops'l Farm was a perfectly appointed venue and the weekend was a beautiful respite from winter.