Monday, August 06, 2007

TOURS, VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY AND RETREATS FOR 2008

TOURS, VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY AND ARTISTIC RETREATS FOR 2008

Don't just dream it, do it!

As an avid knitter, designer and traveller who loves best to mix her passions in one big moveable feast, I created these tours to lead kindred spirits along to some of the worlds most delectable places. Inspiration is the key. Every location is rich in either cultural or natural beauty, usually both. Each city, town or landscape inspires the creative muse to dance through your fingertips: the brilliant colors of Morocco, the vibrant tapestry of Tuscany, the salty spirit of Nova Scotia, the moody brocade of England, the explosion of color and texture of the Spanish countryside. All awaits you, the inspired traveller.

I've tailored these voyages to light the creative spirit in us all, whether we be knitters, crocheters, photographers, writers or artists by any other name, these trips will feed your imagination. Workshops are liberally mixed with excursions to markets, shopping, visits to museums or galleries, dining well, and relaxing in lovely small hotels. Numbers are kept small. Knitting/crochet workshops explore color and texture and I, usually along with another artist, lead you in a project inspired by the host country. Not a knitter or a crocheter? Don't let that stop you. Sidebar offerings are always available and much of the trip is something everyone can enjoy. Knitaly07, for example, offers a photographic sidebar.

This year's line-up has grown to include Knitaly08 (Tuscany), Knit A Beach (Nova Scotia) and Morocco for April 09 with planning for other destinations underway. The descriptions below are summaries of each trip with links to more detailed descriptions.

Reservations are filling quickly—be certain to reserve soon. Simply click on the reservation menu item to reserve the trip of your choice and I'll contact you from there.

KNIT A BEACH—Nova Scotia,  August 2nd - 8th 

Sea, sand, fabulous yarn, great companions and a chance to explore sea-inspired knitting in one of the loveliest regions in North America. Ilga Leja, designer of so many popular new classic designs, and I will be your workshop leaders here in our own home corner of the universe. Explore, create, relax amid the cool blue hues of the Atlantic ocean.

A tide-pool hued wrap evolves...

Imagine the waves lulling you to sleep every night, evening clambakes by the bonfire, morning strolls along the beach with the wind in your hair and the sun on your face: beautiful, unspoiled and relaxing. Join Ilga Leja and me in our Nova Scotian home for a week filled with sea, sand and ocean-infused inspiration. Our retreat will be at White Point Lodge, one of Nova Scotia's foremost full-service resorts, where knitters and their non-knitting companions can also golf, hike, kayak, lounge on the beach, swim in the pool (or ocean). When not enjoying all a seaside summer retreat can offer, Ilga and I will be leading you through a ocean-inspired project that makes the most of the glorious textures, stitches and colors of the ocean. We'll make treks to Mahone Bay to visit Have A Yarn with one of the best assortments of Fleece Artist and Hand Maiden hand-dyed yarns everywhere, take an excursion to Lunenburg, a World eritage Site, to indulge in a bit of Nova Scotia's sailing heritage.

More information here: http://www.janethornley.com/blog/index.php/site/KnitaBeach/

KNITALY08: A Knitting Retreat to Florence and Tuscany  -- October 9th -18th inclusive

Click here  for full itinerary: http://www.janethornley.com/blog/index.php/site/Knitaly/ 

Imagine this: ten days of some of the best food, most beautiful locations and inspirational countries in the world. Italy is the land of designers and inspiration enlivens every corner of this ancient land. For Knitaly 08, you'll have the honor of spending six nights in a 13th century hamlet high in a cedar forest and four nights in the rich cultural masterpiece that is Florence. Good food, good, companions and great knitting, that's a knitter's dolce vita.

Join Patricia Warner and I for workshops set in the Tuscan hills and day trips to explore famous hilltowns. This truly is a trip of a lifetime!

Knitaly 07 gathers with the Castillo di Gargonza in the background

Florence, San Gimiagno, Sienna, Volterra, the names of Tuscan cities roll off the tongue in the melody of Italian. This year we're adding an optional side trip to Venice to the itinerary established for Knitaly07. Please check  http://www.janethornley.com/blog/index.php/site/Knitaly/ for the itinerary and further details

MAGIC CARPET MOROCCO April 2009: Marrakesh  Amal And Jane (sign up soon. This one's filling quickly)

Here's a voyage for the senses: the land of vivid textiles in the purest natural color. Saturated hues of spice, saffron and mood indigo plus every other shade imaginable spark the eye.Every day will be an adventure into the exotic and every evening a taste of the Arabian nights. Along with two days of workshops at our luxurious riad (Moroccan guest house), Amal and I will lead you into the souks for incredible shopping experiences, plus tours of Marrakesh gardens, a city tour and a day excursion into the foothills of the high Atlas mountains, all in the company of a registered guide and driver.

Learn how to knit or crochet a simple shape into a stunning ruanna or vest using specially-dyed Fiesta yarns (included in the trip costs).

Your guides: besides myself, Amal, a knitwear&crochet designer who has shown her works and given many workshops in both England and Spain, will be leading the way for creative crochet. Amal creates fabulous designs in both knitting and crochet with her innovative use of color and texture.Her wonderfully warm-hearted and generous spirit loves to awaken the inner artist slumbering away inside of us all. 

For more information and to register, click here: http://www.janethornley.com/blog/index.php/site/Morocco/  

One of our workshop rooms

SPRING TO SPAIN—May 10-17th, 2009—Explore Glorious Spain

Guadalest Castle

The land of Valencia hugs miles of coastline rimmed with soft, white beaches before plungeing upward into mountain valleys terraced for every imaginable kind of fruit. Olive groves, figs, loquats, limes, almonds, lemons as big as footballs and so many mouth-watering delicacies grow big and sweet in fertile Spain. And, as Amal told me the day she invited me for a visit (we had never before met; she found my website and recognized a kindred spirit) , her Spain is beautiful, lush and totally unexpected.

I will never forget the day we drove high into the hills, past fields of wild lavendar and blooming cherries to a view so spectacular it left tears in my eyes. I turned and hugged her, grateful that she had asked me to share such glory. On that trip, during those excursions, we often spoke about how much we wanted to share this Spain with other knitters and crocheters. Amal has even built an amazing finca, a country house designed with artists in mind. This trip is, in part, her dream and we invite you to share it with the two sisterly knitters passionately seeking beauty everywhere.

A view of Calpe

Though all workshops will be held in Amal's finca, surrounded by olive trees and perched on a hillside overlooking the ocean, accommodations will be at the Esmeralda hotel, in Calpe on the Cosa Blanca region of Spain, close to the beach and the promenades for independent sojourns . Seafood restaurants line the walks as do shops and markets. When we're not off on fiber explorations, our excursions will take us into the mountains to visit the castle of Guadelest, forages through the pottery and leather markets, an evening with flamenco dancers and other journeys through Amal's secret Spain.

A Finca designed for knitters...

Mediterranean blue inspired Amal's pool-hued vest

From the entry 'TOURS, VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY AND RETREATS FOR 2008'. Wow, what an exciting life you lead.  more power to you. i am ready for the new vest pattern coming up and whatever you have in store for us. keep bubbling with enthusiasm.

By Jo Jensen on 2007 08 11