Three large dining tables – enough to comfortably seat 18 people in the same room – provides the focal point for a group of women who book the nine-bedroom Wagon Wheel Lodge at Eagles Ridge in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. every year. They all love to share food during their four-night retreat, it’s true, but those dining tables have a more specific purpose.
The members of the Fantastic Quilters Guild in Fairfield Glade, Tenn., say it’s an ideal situation for their needs.
“We can seat all 18 at these tables with their sewing machines,” says Barb Patterson, co-chair of the group. “We’ve looked at many other cabins on the Internet, but we haven’t found anything with the availability to provide space for everyone with their machines.”
With an active membership of 120, the club’s biggest challenge is the mad scramble that takes place when the retreat registration opens up. Only 18 can take part each year because that’s what the cabin can accommodate, but discussions are under way among the quilters to add a second retreat each year.
From Sunday to Thursday on their selected week, the women work their machines to capacity as they stitch quilt blocks together and work on other steps in the process to create the finished pieces. The time also weaves their lives together, creating a bond through shared stories, laughter and collaboration.
While many, if not most, cabin renters spend only a portion of their time enjoying the accommodations, this group stays put from the time they check in until the time they depart on Thursday morning. A few of the ladies will make a drive to the local quilting shop if they need supplies. Otherwise, they pack in all their food, cook their meals there, and find that time seems to evaporate as they focus on their projects.
The spacious, welcoming Wagon Wheel Lodge (which is identified as cabin #854 at Eagles Ridge) provides everything they need. It features nine themed master suites with log-framed king-sized beds, private baths with Jacuzzi tubs, TVs and wireless Internet. There’s also a huge kitchen and a game room downstairs with a pool table, air hockey, big-screen TV and even a jukebox.
The design of the house and privacy of the bedrooms allows for everyone to hold to her own schedule without disturbing the others. Some, like Patterson, are early birds and wake to see the sunrise. Others stay up to midnight and sleep in until breakfast. Since they cook their meals there, they have a specific schedule – breakfast at 8 a.m., lunch at noon and dinner at 5 p.m.
Each of the three levels of the cabin has its own deck with rocking chairs to enjoy the view. Plus, the ladies can also soak up the scenery while enjoying the outdoor hot tub. The group has held an annual retreat in this cabin for six or seven years. They started out booking three nights, but several years ago they decided to add the fourth night after members regretted leaving too soon.
The Fantastic Quilters Guild often designs quilts that they ultimately gift to various charities. During their retreats in Pigeon Forge, they often work on quilts that they plan to give away.
At the past retreat, Patterson and her co-chair came up with two fun ideas to generate excitement about their efforts. First, they asked each of the 18 participants to bring a red-white-and-blue quilt block. They are now putting the finishing touches on this patriotic quilt that they plan to donate to a local veterans group.
The second idea involved a jelly roll race. In quilting, a jelly roll typically contains 40 strips of fabric. The “race” involved seeing which quilters could finish a quilt top the fastest using the jelly roll strips.
“We ended up with nine quilt tops out of that challenge,” says Patterson, “and those will be donated. They sewed the top part and we all brought them home where we are sandwiching the batting between the top part and another layer and then we’ll do the actual quilting.”
Another fun part of the trip includes inviting staff from the local quilt shop to the cabin where they show the group new techniques or supplies. The quilters are always looking for new inspiration as they lay out plans for the next gathering in Pigeon Forge.
