2019 Creative Escape Retreat - with VIDEO - Tina Zinck, Paper Crafter

Hi Friends! This past weekend I held my annual Creative Escape Retreat at the Smith Rock Lodge & Chalets in Scotsburn, Nova Scotia. The ladies who attended and I all had an absolutely fabulous time! We relaxed, we stamped, we laughed and we enjoyed our girl’s getaway!

Smith Rock Chalets feels like home away from home for us now (I held my retreat there last year too) and the staff feel like family. I can’t say enough about the customer service – everyone who works there is an absolute gem and they go out of their way to make sure we’re taken care of. The meals that were prepared for us were soooo yummy – we did not go hungry, that’s for sure. Retreats are all about being spoiled and indulging a bit, right?

Once the ladies arrived and got settled in their rooms on Friday night, they set up the projects they brought with them and we just enjoyed seeing each other again. Then we ate our delicious supper and I demonstrated the ‘faux metal’ technique for our evening class:

On Saturday we lingered over our breakfast and then at 10am we started the second speciality class, which was a Magnolia Book Box – perfect for trinkets or other treasures. Everyone LOVED this project!

In between the crafting, I had some prize patrols and we played a few rounds of stampin’ bingo and everyone won a gift. Speaking of gifts, I had prepared special gifts to give throughout the weekend. Out of all the gifts I made, my favourite was this one:

Isn’t this just the sweetest? Everyone received a china teacup with plant and a “Free as a Bird” decoration, as well as a stamped cookie! The cookies were created by my super talented friend, Debbie!

Are these cookies amazing or WHAT? In case you’re wondering, they’re decorated with edible ink made specifically for cake and cookie decorating. Thanks so much, Debbie, for making our retreat extra special with your beautiful cookies!

Here are some of the other gifts I gave out throughout the weekend:

Everyone received their own personalized goody bag, filled with Stampin’ Up! products. I also attached a magnolia brooch with our names. I just LOVE the Magnolia Lane suite!

This was Friday night’s gift – a Faux Metal magnetic, with roses made from the new 2019-2021 In Colours!

Bath & Body Works Hand Sanitizer gifts.

Ghiradelli Chocolate Treats

I’ll be creating video tutorials of all the projects and gifts to share with you. In the meantime, here’s a short video of our weekend:

I had such a great time this past weekend – THANK YOU to those of you who joined us at the retreat. My heart was so full of joy, spending time with each and every one of you.

My next Creative Escape Retreat at the Smith Rock Chalets will be held June 2020. I will also be planning another Christmas Retreat (one day only), here in Heatherton, NS, in October. Details will be sent out soon via email, so be sure to subscribe to my newsletter (click the button on the sidebar) or follow me on my Serene Stamper facebook page.