On the note of "community" and change, one of my favorite places in Portland Maine is closing it's doors. I was lucky enough to base Upton Yarns out of the wonderful shared maker space A Gathering of Stitches for a year when I lived in Portland and I owe a lot to Samantha's encouragement, validation, advice, and business sense (also, her willingness to help me name colors). Samantha is changing her focus from running a shared maker space to further developing her fabulous retreats, and this Saturday (December 10) from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM she will be hosting a book and fabric sale as she closes the doors on her shared maker space. When I worked out of A Gathering of Stitches I may or may not have lost hours to perusing the book shelf (I wasn't getting sidetracked in books, it's all about developing my creative side...) Her book collection is incredible, and it drives me a little batty that I am on the boat and won't be able to snap up the entire collection. So, if you are within any kind of reasonable travel distance from Portland Maine this weekend, I highly recommend a trip to A Gathering of Stitches.
I also highly recommend her summer retreats. And all her classes in general. When I was in Portland I took her Boro class which totally changed my views on mending from "chore" to "art form", and which I have continued to benefit from.
It makes me incredibly sad that the shared maker space is ending, but I am looking forward to one day being able to attend one of her retreats.